Turbo vs Supercharged Challenge, the Exciting Small French Hot Hatch Edition

Had they done that, they wouldn't waste their breath on such frivolous matters that pale compared to the sheer pleasure an experience like this brings. To be fair, there aren't that many Alpine passes in the U.S. – or even any Alps, for that matter – so if you're a V8-loving American, you'll be excused if the thought of two tiny cars racing against each other doesn't get you off the edge of your seat.

Indeed, the specs of the two Renault hot hatches featured in this series of head-to-head drag and roll races are not that impressive - and that's despite the fact they both went through tuning programs of varying complexity.

The yellow and smaller one is a Renault Clio RS 200, a car that, in its original form, has a two-liter four-cylinder naturally aspirated engine producing 200 ps (197 hp). It's one of those instances where the numbers don't do it justice and it's actually the experience itself that will make anyone who cares about driving unequivocally fall in love with the Clio.

This one, however, features a Rotrex C30/94 supercharger as well as the entire range of other engine modifications (intake, injectors, valves, springs, exhaust) to bring its output to a claimed figure of 350 hp and 250 lb-ft (340 Nm) of torque. A rebuilt six-speed manual gearbox with a limited-slip differential for the front wheels completes the picture. Slapping a supercharger on the wonderful two-liter engine takes away some of its character, but it also brings a 75% power increase, so I don't think anyone is in doubt whether it was worth it.

The Renault Megane RS 250 Cup is basically the same recipe used on the Clio RS 200, only slightly scaled up. Apart from the added room, the larger chassis also made the Megane that little more useful around a track – in fact, the French model held the unofficial title of the best hot hatch for several years before losing it to the likes of Ford's Focus RS or the Honda Civic Type-R.

Unlike the Clio, the Megane RS 250 Cup came with a turbocharger from the factory, a detail that made modifying the car a much easier - not to mention less expensive - job. However, skipping on the investment also meant the power output was only kicked up by 20% – from 250 ps (246 hp) to 300 hp – making the Megane less powerful than its competitor. It's also heavier, though the extra torque (354 lb-ft/480 Nm compared to Clio's 250 lb-ft/340 Nm) should help it negate the roughly 220 lbs (100 kg) handicap.

The encounter was supposed to feature a third, even smaller French hatchback – a 300-horsepower Twingo. However, as if attempting to perpetuate the idea we talked about at the beginning of the article, it broke down, leaving these two to settle which is the quicker.

Before any racing is done, however, it's time for a quick sound check. Americans will probably prefer the growlier bark of the Megane, but there's no denying the sweet racecar notes coming out of that Clio, even after losing that clean, nothing-but-engine sound of its original naturally-aspirated unit.

Get on with the racing

OK, it's time for the first roll race and things don't kick off very promising. Jack, the driver in the Clio RS 200 lags behind massively so we don't get an even start. The gap pretty much remains the same throughout the race so Jamie in the Megane takes the first win. For the second run, Jack learns from his mistakes: he doesn't hang about, gets in front before they hit the marker, and might even jump the start a little. As a result, he wins it quite comfortably.

With everything hanging on the result in the third race, it didn't need much to be a true nail-biter. However, thanks to what was probably a perfect start - or at least by far the cleanest they had on the day - it turned into a thriller, culminating with one of those close finishes that require careful video analysis before calling the winner. Being the exact opposite of an impartial observer, Jamie makes it sound like there actually is a debate to be had, but I feel the footage is clear enough: the Clio RS was in front, even if only by a nose hair. The smaller, more powerful car is crowned king of roll racing. Time for a bit of old-school drag racing.

Bear in mind both of these cars are front-wheel-drive manuals, so this is as much a battle of drivers as it is of the cars themselves. Well, it's pretty hard to tell which of the two factors weighed more than the other, but it only took two almost identical races to know who the winner was. Taking revenge for his defeat in the roll races, Jamie manages to finish in front of Jack by over a car's length twice, thus going home with arguably the more coveted prize.

At the end of the day, as quick as these cars undeniably are in a drag race, straight-line acceleration is not what they were built for. This contest feels a bit like watching two Olympic gymnasts taking part in a 100-meter dash - still fun and entertaining, and definitely with an above-average result performance-wise, but ultimately a little bit pointless.