► Updates for Clio RS
► New ‘RS Vision’ lights
► Akrapovič exhaust option
The Renault Clio range as a whole has been in for a facelift recently, with new lights, bumpers and interior trim. Now it’s the go-faster Renaultsport versions’ turn to get a mid-life update of their own.
What are those lights about?
The hot Clio RS gets its own new front bumper design, with an LED lighting scheme called ‘RS Vision’, made to look like the chequered flag Renaultsport logo and combining the foglights, cornering lights, side lights and main headlights.
Another example of LEDs allowing designers greater freedom to doodle stuff on the front of cars, the RS Vision light signature was first seen on the recent Clio R.S. 16 Concept car.
What else is new on the 2017 Renaultsport Clio?
A new set of wheel designs, and an optional Akrapovič exhaust system for the hottest 220 Trophy model, which might help make it sound a bit more charismatic.
The range structure remains the same: the 197bhp Clio RS 200 is the entry-level model, and the range-topping 217bhp Clio RS 220 Trophy is the priciest.
Both use the same 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine and paddle-shift dual-clutch auto gearbox, although rumours persist of a future manual edition.
The regular 200 model has a choice of two suspension set-ups: the standard ‘Sport chassis’, with a choice of 17in or 18in wheels, and the stiffer ‘Cup chassis’, with 18in wheels only. The 220 Trophy has its own even firmer, slightly lower set-up.
The updated Clio RS models are available to order in the UK from September 2016. Customer deliveries start in the autumn.
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