Clio eco2 blends ecology and economy

The eco² Clios employ what's fast becoming a standard suite of emission-reducing technologies but with one important competitive difference -- no price premium

As it prepares its all electric ZE (zero emission) range for market next year, Renault has launched its 'greenest ever' production car in Europe. The Clio eco² sports a 1.5-litre dCi 86 diesel that Renault claims is good for 3.7L/100km combined cycle fuel consumption and 98g/km CO2 emissions.

The eco² uses a remapped version of the conventional 1.5 dCi 86 engine used in Clios to date, along with front and rear aerodynamic tweaks, taller gearing and low-resistance tyres. The result is a 17 gram reduction in CO2 output, and a 19 percent improvement in fuel economy, down from 4.4L/100km.

Renault's big jump on rival eco-models like Ford's Fiesta Econetic and the Volkswagen Polo BlueMotion is that it's serving up eco² versions of the Clio three-door Extreme and five-door Expression with no price premium over conventional stablemates.

It's an important competitive edge, because price premiums on low-emission versions gobble up the tax breaks and other advantages made available to buyers, for example through the UK's Zero Vehicle Excise Duty and -- in the case of fleet buyers -- 100 percent capital write-down allowance and  benefit-in-kind advantages.

With European governments tightening the emissions thumbscrews every year, virtually every auto maker is building eco-models into its lineup, such as Ford's Econetic, Peugeot's Economique and Vauxhall's ecoFlex lines. At the moment, standard pricing behaviour sees them costing between $1000 to $2000 more than their conventional equivalents. Renault's move can be seen as both an aggressive tilt at such rivals and a pointer to the mainstream status towards which these models and the technologies they incorporate are moving.

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