THE TROUBLE WAS, SAID MY INTERVIEWEE, "T with a charismatically thick French accent and more than a wry smile, 'we spent all the money on the old car...
We weren't meant to be chatting about hot Clios, but our man knew about them better than most - I'd just better not drop him in it here - and the conversation had strayed onto one of the most controversial cars ever to wear the now-defunct Renault Sport badge: the final, turbocharged Clio RS of 2013.
I had always wondered what those on the inside really thought of the 200 Turbo. At the time, Renault said the model was aimed at broadening the market appeal of the firm's hot hatches, which seemed a dangerous sentiment.
Broadening appeal smacks of trying to have one's cake and eat it, especially so in this case, as the previous Clio RS was a bona fide evo icon, a car whose gunslinger-esque shadow still looms large over the hot hatch market to this day.
Denne historien er fra October 2024-utgaven av Evo UK.
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Denne historien er fra October 2024-utgaven av Evo UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Cupra Formentor Abt
It's farewell to the original Cupra Formentor with an Abt-tuned run-out package. It's a quietly excellent car; just a shame about the price...
Renault Sport Clio 200 Turbo
This misguided departure from the French brand's hot hatch heritage saw the Clio fall from grace
REBIRTH OF AN ICON
The Kalmar 9X9 is a modernday reinterpretation of Porsche's game-changing 959 supercar, with a carbon body and up to 917bhp. And evo is helping to develop it
Volkswagen Golf GTI
The underachieving Mk8 GTI gets a shot at redemption with the new, revised Mk8.5 version. Is it the leap forward it needs to be?
BEST BUYS
FAST FORDS FROM THE CORTINA TO THE ESCORT AND THE FIESTA, Ford is responsible for some of the most popular cars in British history. But alongside these everyday machines it has also produced a stream of desirable driver's cars.
HY AND DRY
The switch to electric power means an early exit for Hyundai N's brilliant ICE hot hatch duo. We go for a farewell drive in the 120 N
SEXY BEAST
The Vanquish name is back for Aston Martin's latest seriesproduction flagship, with a stunning new look and simply brutal performance from an 824bhp twin-turbo V12
THE JOY OF DRIVING
From mastering the everyday commute to unlocking the full potential of your performance car, our new series will help you become safer, more confident and ultimately more skilled behind the wheel
TINY DANCER
You haven't seen a Mini dance like this before, but then you haven't seen a Mini with a 4-litre M Power V8 under the bonnet and rear-wheel drive. Introducing Vini...
LAMBORGHINI GALLARDO
Grandaddy to the Temerario and the car that transformed Lamborghini was the brilliant, V10-engined Gallardo. We get reacquainted with a Lambo legend