Photo: CarPix
As you would expect, putting the engine from the Megane RS in the body of the little Clio results in the fastest Renault ever made. And thankfully, the cool RS16 one-off from a few months ago is headed into production.
These are the first spy photos of the Clio RS16 road test prototype. They reveal almost nothing we haven't seen already, but at least they confirm that a production model is planned.
Officials have been saying that a 2-liter engine would necessarily make the Clio faster. But come on, we're talking about one of the most harshly criticized RS models ever. How can they make it worse? If this doesn't go after the MINI John Cooper Works Hatch's Nurburgring lap time, we'll eat our F1 fanboy hat.
The production RS16 will have the same crazy race car wing. It's not just for show, as it reduces lift over the rear axle by 40 kilos. However, we don't see the crazy fender flares and 60mm spaced out tires. What it might have is better exhaust, as you can see huge pipes sticking out from the back.
As crazy as taking the 275 horsepower engine and manual six-speed gearbox out of the Megane 275 Trophy and putting them in the Clio sounds, it's pretty reasonable for Renault.
In the past, they've let loose with monsters like the Clio V6, which had its engine in place of the rear seats. The French also made the supercar-like RS 01, the 5 Turbo and the Espace F1.
Unfortunately, we don't know how many will be made or how much the RS16 will cost. But production will be limited to about 500 units costing somewhere in the region of €40,000.
That's hefty for a small car without air conditioning. But it's the Clio people have been waiting for: uncompromising and equipped with a manual. Many hardcore fans have already expressed interest to buy one.
Officials have been saying that a 2-liter engine would necessarily make the Clio faster. But come on, we're talking about one of the most harshly criticized RS models ever. How can they make it worse? If this doesn't go after the MINI John Cooper Works Hatch's Nurburgring lap time, we'll eat our F1 fanboy hat.
The production RS16 will have the same crazy race car wing. It's not just for show, as it reduces lift over the rear axle by 40 kilos. However, we don't see the crazy fender flares and 60mm spaced out tires. What it might have is better exhaust, as you can see huge pipes sticking out from the back.
As crazy as taking the 275 horsepower engine and manual six-speed gearbox out of the Megane 275 Trophy and putting them in the Clio sounds, it's pretty reasonable for Renault.
In the past, they've let loose with monsters like the Clio V6, which had its engine in place of the rear seats. The French also made the supercar-like RS 01, the 5 Turbo and the Espace F1.
Unfortunately, we don't know how many will be made or how much the RS16 will cost. But production will be limited to about 500 units costing somewhere in the region of €40,000.
That's hefty for a small car without air conditioning. But it's the Clio people have been waiting for: uncompromising and equipped with a manual. Many hardcore fans have already expressed interest to buy one.
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