Following last year’s launch of Renault Sport’s Twingo Gordini RS, Renault South Africa has expanded the Gordini range with the launch of the new Clio Gordini Renault Sport at the 2011 Knysna Hillclimb, sponsored by Renault.
Clio Gordini is to Renault, as John Cooper Works is to Mini and DS3 is to Citroen, that is, a fast hot hatch with an added dash of style and exclusivity. ”The Clio Gordini Renault Sport combines the award-winning credentials of the Clio Renault Sport with the proud heritage of the Gordini name to produce a truly segment-defining hot hatch,” says Xavier Gobille, managing director of Renault South Africa. “Accordingly, it will appeal to a growing number of drivers seeking an exclusive yet affordable performance car with a distinctive character and a race-inspired legacy to match.”
Amédée Gordini established the Gordini company that transformed production cars into racers, modified regular engines for competition in endurance and grand prix racing, and even built specialist racing cars under his own banner. In 1956 Renault approached ‘The Sorcerer’, as he was commonly known, to develop its rear-engined Dauphine sedan into a competitive rally car and the rest, as they say, is history. Eventually the Gordini company was merged into Renault and it became the foundation for Renault Sport Technologies (RS), which has gone on to produce the impressive RS versions of the Clio, Mégane and Twingo over the years. It’s fitting, then, that Renault pays homage to Amédée Gordini and the legendary cars that he spurred the development of.
In the case of the new Renault Clio Gordini Renault Sport, the hatch retains all the virtues that make it our favorite hot hatch of the moment, but adds the eye-catching and unique Gordini styling. Easliy identifiable from the standard or Clio RS ’20th’ Special Edition models, the Clio Gordini wears exclusive Malta Blue paint, together with twin white stripes that extend from the bonnet, over the roof to the tailgate – paying tribute to the racing Gordinis of the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Further styling enhancements include white exterior mirror housings and F1-style aerodynamic front splitter, diamond-effect 12-spoke aluminium alloy wheels, as well as ‘Gordini Series’ badges on each flank.
The Gordini spirit continues in the cabin too, with Gordini-badged Renault Sport seats, trimmed in black leather with blue accents along the lower and upper side bolsters. The top section of the leather-trimmed three-spoke sports steering wheel is finished in blue leather, with two white stripes to indicate the straight-ahead position. Similarly, the gear lever features a blue leather gaiter and a metallic Gordini-branded gear knob, bolstered by a numbered Gordini plaque on the gearlever console, carpet mats with blue edging and Gordini branding.
The instrumentation echoes this performance hatchback’s racing disposition, including a rev counter dial with white background, as well as the on-board Renault Sport Telemetry Display that made its debut on the Mégane RS Cup. The system provides the driver with real-time performance and vehicle data, as well as several options to tailor the throttle and engine response.
As mentioned, the Renault Clio Gordini RS retains the virtues of the standard Clio RS, meaning a superb chassis and suspension system, matched to a potent, high-revving naturally aspirated engine. The Clio Gordini RS features the sportier Cup chassis as standard, which offers a firmer and more focused set-up, providing an even more exhilarating driving experience than the standard car. An independent steering axis front suspension ensures precise steering and together with low-profile 215/45 R17 tyres, endows the hatch with serious levels of grip. Stopping power comes courtesy of Brembo four-piston callipers that bite into ventilated 312 mm front discs and 300 mm solid discs at the rear. ABS with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution is standard. The Electronic Stability Programme (ESP) can be turned off for spirited driving, such as at the Knysna Hillclimb where media raced the cars up the 1.9 kilometer course.
At the heart of the Clio Renault Sport is a 2.0-litre naturally aspirated 4-cylinder engine that develops 147.5 kW, or a class-leading 75 kW per litre. The engine pulls strongly all the way to the 7 500 r/min redline, although peak power is achieved at 7 100 r/min. Torque of 215 Nm is available at 5 400 r/min, but as media found out after the first few smokey starts at the Knysna Hillclimb, the Clio Gordini is plenty quick off the mark without the tacho needle pointing skywards. Once on the move, the slick-shifting six-speed manual gearbox is one of the most satisfying to use and plays an important role in the Clio’s 0 – 100 km/h sprint of 6.9 seconds.
As the range-topping variant in the Clio Renault Sport range, the Gordini boasts a premium level of standard features, including a rain sensor and automatic headlight activation, dedicated cornering lights and electrically folding exterior mirrors. Other convenience features include cruise control with speed limiter, Renault’s hands-free key and ignition card, automatic climate control and dark-tinted rear windows. On the audio front, the Gordini Renault Sport is equipped with an 80-watt CD receiver with MP3 playback, a separate dashboard-mounted display and steering wheel controls, as well as Bluetooth and multimedia connectivity with USB and iPod connections.
Whether you have penchant for hot hatches, historic racing heritage and stand-out styling, or even if you don’t, the new Renault Clio Gordini Renault Sport is a car that will never fail to involve its driver from the moment the brilliant, naturally aspirated, 2.0-litre engine fires into life. In fact, we feel like getting our hands on a set of keys and driving one right now!
The Renault Clio Gordini Renault Sport is priced at R279 900 and includes a 5-year/150 000 km warranty and 3-year/60 000 km service plan.
