My holiday Rental - Renault Clio
The days of Papa and Nicole are long gone, and not just because Papa would now be in a high risk Covid group and should not be mixing with Nicole, or her family.
This holiday, yes I was lucky enough to get away with the family, I rented the 2020 Renault Clio, and here is a car which has truly grownup. We had a fairly basic spec, but one which included the mid level 1.0 T petrol engine, and about 100 HP. Our holiday took us to Northern Italy and gave me the chance to drive the car b oth laden and empty along highways, and local roads which give a good impression of the full range of abilities of this supermini.
First impressions are great, with a huge step up in interior quality, and a large boot for the class normal, although the rear seats are lacking leg room, which means they are better for kids, than adults. The seating position for the driver is much better than Clios of old, with at last the chance to sit in the car, rather than on it. A drivers seat which has good height adjustment should not be taken for granted and makes a big difference for use every day. Familiarising myself with the info system was easy, with a good size touch screen, along with Apple car play and everything we could expect. Even the stereo was of good quality. But, there are very few physical buttons on the info system, fine for the driver, who has a stalk on the steering column,but more confusing for the passenger who has to pass through menus to make simple adjustments. Bring back a volume control knob please. Talking of physical buttons, or lack them, there was also no discernable way to open the boot of the car without a button on the key. This was really annoying.
Driving impressions were initially very positive, with excellent noise and vibration insulation, a firm, but well controlled ride, and extremely high level of road holding, eliciting family wide complaints before I could even get close to assessing handling traits. Gearbox, was fine, brakes easy to modulate, and steering was devoid of feel but accurate. There was a feeling of a layer of rubber between the controls and road, but certainly not as bad as have felt of past Renaults. I would say more VW Polo than Ford Fiesta, which is still my favorite Supermini to drive.
Faults, are hard to spot without more thorough testing, but the Air conditioning developed a fault, which on a car with only 5,000 kms is pretty unacceptable, and quite inconvenient in August Italian temperatures. In addition the ride does tend to suffer a little for the superior body control,and I could hear a faint rattle from the drivers door, which tends to make me think the car is not build as well under the surface as I would like. So, to me, it is a supermini trying to copy the VW Polo, but honestly not doing it quite as well. So, if I wanted a spacious, mature, well made and competent to drive Supermini, I would still go VW Polo, or possibly Seat Ibiza. If I wanted something more agile and fun to drive I would turn to a Fiesta. But this Clio is certainly closer to the Polo in this generation than it has been for a longtime, and that in itself shows a really strong effort by Renault and a car that will deserve its place in the best seller list. I also look forward to the electric and hybrid versions which will be with us soon.
