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our test drives or view them all

Clio Renaultsport 200 Cup

SAY what you like about Renaultsport’s rollerskate Clio 200 Cup – you’ll look far to find so much fun in one sporting package.

My back wasn’t looking forward to the delivery of the Clio 200 Cup.

The prospect was not good of seven days strapped into a missile that’s 7mm lower than the “ordinary” 200bhp Renaultsport Clio, rides on springs that are 27 per cent harder at the front and 30 per cent harder round the back, has dampers that are stiffer by 45 per cent, and scuttles round on 17-inch alloys smeared with wide and grippy 45-section rubber.

The 200 Cup’s list price is £1,000 less than the standard Clio 200. It’s a stripped out and “harder” version of Renault’s feted little hot hatch – and it goes like the wind.

Basically, it’s nothing more than any other award-winning Clio supermini – on steroids!

Propelling my 1.24-tonne alien green model was a highly developed and normally aspirated 200bhp two-litre petrol with 215 Newton metres of torque driving the front wheels through a close ratio six-speed box.

It was quite an engine – instantly responsive with an exhaust note emitting a track hungry yowl but, unlike most Renault engines we all know and love, delivering max power at a screaming 7100rpm and not getting into its torque pot until it’s spinning at 54rpm.

Yep, it’s a flier!

Renault’s press office had added a few luxuries to supplement the experience – a set of 17-inch Speedline alloys at £180, hugging but hard Recaro sports front seats at £950, and that special Renault ID alien green paint finish that not only turned heads but also took my breath away with a price tag of £1,225.

Why so expensive? It baffles me! Normal metallic paint costs £405, Renault ID glacier white is only £155 extra, and Renault ID storm grey will set you back £405.

Maybe the clue is in the green finish’s name. Could Renault have sourced this colour from an extra-terrestrial? I can’t see any other excuse for the astronomical price tag!

But price apart, it does look good. Coupled with the gloss finish black grille and matching black alloys, it adds up to an exciting little three-door that sprints off the line to 62mph in under seven seconds and will drag this hot rod to more than 140mph if you have the autobahn to do it!

It’s a genuinely hot little ship – and a sheer delight on tight single-trackers where its kart-like steering responses were only marginally marred by Renault’s insistence in providing the racks with a little too much assistance feedback.

Grip is phenomenal in the dry. The Cup is incredibly predictable, precise at the turn in, and gets its power down sharply thanks to instant throttle control and a lightning fast gear change. Why can’t all Renaults be like this?

Noise is not a strong point. The body is light, sound-deadening in short supply, and anyway the glorious bark from the two-litre heart is just too good to suppress.

Through Highland Moray and on into Ross-shire, this rapid apple green supermini was more “green imp” than “green goddess”.

It behaved, with a little encouragement from me, like a terrier on heat – burying its nose into corners, sweeping through open bends and charging up slopes as though they did not exist.

And, despite its 140mph-plus potential, I managed all that and extracted a lot of fun in the process without ever having to break through the 60mph barrier – well, hardly ever! That’s the delight of our finer Highland roads.

The Recaro seats are real body-huggers – but my glutinous maximus took a real battering.

Through faster bends they gripped my sides and gave me good general support, but the further I drove the more the seat design’s “bottom down” shape left me with a seriously numb bum!

I clambered out near Achnasheen and must have struck a pretty sight massaging my rear end at the roadside – apologies to any shocked motorsnorth readers who passed that scene!

Committed hot hatch drivers may be able to adapt to the Recaro numbness, but I can’t remember the Mazda3 MPS or Focus RS leaving me quite so crippled!

Having said that, this little Clio is among the best fun I’ve had on four wheels for quite some time.

I can forgive its rather ordinary dash, with the only bright spot yellow highlighting on the rev counter.

I could even live with its tiny radio control buttons, raucous road noise and box-kart ride.

That’s all because of its overall sharpness, its cornering precision, its surprising practicality as a hatch with a useful boot – and its eager delivery.

Chassis and drive line are in harmony, and on a track this little green hornet would be in its element.

Even the brakes are perfect – Brembo stoppers that are progressive and powerful, and add to the Cup’s style with their bright red calipers.

Real enthusiasts will love the Cup – and if it was me, I’d recommend this model over the more expensive standard Clio 200.

Now that’s high praise because I’m of a vintage where performance is best served up with a fair amount of comfort – such as in a Porsche 911.

But the Clio 200 Cup is unadulterated fun: sheer enjoyment in a well-appointed package that delivers a track star without any real need to add a lot more in the go-faster category.

Surprisingly the standard Clio 200 costs £1,000 more, but lacks the endearing raw feel of the skinned out Cup.

What's more, if you drive a hard bargain you could get more than £1,000 discount on a new Cup.

Both models have ABS and electronic stability control, front and side airbags that are two-stage adaptive up front, height adjustable restraining front head rests, and a raft of anti-theft devices to protect your little racer from sticky fingers.

Like all Renaultsport cars, you also get unique styling features such as extended front and rear wings with integrated side air extractor louvres, F1-style front air breaker blade and black B-pillar with, on the test car, a bold Cup motif.

All in all it makes the Clio 200 Cup look the part, without looking ridiculous.

And running costs? I averaged 29mpg over a brisk week with a car that emits at 195g/km dropping it into tax band J and carrying a reasonably affordable insurance group 30.

It was quite a week with quite a car, a latter-day Mini Cooper S!

Oh, and my back? Well that’s OK apart from a few twinges, but my buttocks were left black and blue!

Rating: 8/10

FINAL THOUGHT: If you are in to affordable performance fun, you’ll find a friend in the Clio Renaultsport 200 Cup. Never has so much been packed into so little. The 200bhp motor is fast, responsive and wrapped round a chassis that makes the most of a fine front drive supermini hatch.

Clio Renaultsport 200 Cup

• Price: £16,710 (£19,065 as tested)
• Capacity: 1998cc
• Power: 200bhp
• 0-62mph: 6.9 seconds
• Maximum speed: 141mph
• Economy: Combined 34.4mpg; Urban 25mpg
• CO2 emissions: 195g/km
• ESP: Standard
• Insurance: Group 30 (New 1-50 insurance grouping)