Renault kills off plans to produce 200kW Clio RS16

Renault has confirmed it will no longer produce a production version of the wild Clio RS16 concept that it revealed at this year's Monaco Grand Prix.

Issuing an official announcement on Renaultsport's UK forum, a spokesman from Renault UK thanked RS fans for their interest in the RS16 but said: "After conducting an extensive feasibility study, Renault has decided not to market the Clio RS16".

It's believed that Renault UK has already contacted those who had already expressed an interest in the Clio RS 16 and was already in the process of refunding those who had gone as far as placing a deposit with their dealers.

Until recently it was hoped, even within Renaultsport, that a decision by the French car-maker would be made any day but those plans have been dashed over a lack of capacity at the specialist Dieppe plant that was set to build the Clio RS16.

According to Autocar, the mostly hand-built Renaultsport Clio was originally destined to be produced at Alpine’s Dieppe factory but that plant is currently preparing to begin retooling for the Alpine sportscar that was revealed back in February of this year.

With limited capacity at other Renault plants and a lack of expertise and skills necessary to manufacturer low-volume models, plans to produce the RS16 were subsequently put on ice.

Based on the Clio RS220 Trophy, the new RS16 was a small hot hatch on steroids because instead of a 162kW/280Nm turbocharged 1.6-litre, the flagship performance Clio came with the same 201kW/368Nm 2.0-litre turbo from the Megane RS275 Trophy-R.

As well as the bigger engine, fans of Renault's performance division were also eagerly awaiting the return of the six-speed manual transmission, following a decision by the car-maker to only offer the current generation fast Clio with a six-speed dual clutch auto.

A spokesman speaking to the Brit mag said the Clio RS16 could have entered production once Alpine manufacturing had begun but it would have meant the launch some time in the first half of 2018 - and that was felt too long a wait for the limited-run Clio.

Believed to be at least 100kg lighter than the Megane RS, the Clio RS16 was expected to not only be quicker than the RS275 Trophy-R — with a 0-100km/h time of less than five-seconds expected — but for the small hatch to be the fastest Renault ever made, despite its slower manual gearshift.

According to Renaultsport engineers, initially, there were concerns the 2.0-litre turbo might be too heavy for the small Clio but in the end the weight of the heavier engine (over the small 1.6 it replaces), were more than offset by the light weight of the six-speed manual.

Reducing weight further was the addition of a lightweight lithium-ion cell that replaced a lead-acid battery, saving 15kg alone.

To cope with the greater torque of the Megane RS’ engine, engineers carried over the bigger hatch’s torque steer-reducing PerfoHub — but this change meant the RS16 needed bespoke front suspension struts, springs and adjustable Ohlin dampers from the Megane Trophy-R.

At the rear of the car the torsion beam set-up remains, but differs from the standard RS 200 as the beam itself has been lifted from the Renaultsport R3T Clio rally car.

Brakes, meanwhile, are large 360mm Brembo discs up front that sit on aluminium hubs from the Megane RS Trophy-R’s optional Nurburgring pack.

Wheels are lightweight 19-inch rims made by Speedline.

Wider front and rear wheel tracks have also meant a return of big wheel-arches not seen since the Clio V6. This time the Clio RS16 gets composite arch extensions and side sills bonded to the Clio’s body.

At the back of the car the fast small Renault gets the Clio Cup factory racer’s rear wing that generates 40kg of downforce at speeds of up to 200km/h.

The Clio RS16S keeps the standard car’s rear diffuser but now comes with two outlets cut into it to make room for the new Akrapovic exhaust pipes.

Cooling at the front of the car to the 2.0-litre turbo’s intercooler is aided by a new front splitter that channels air towards it.

Inside, the rear seats have been ditched to save weight while a pair of lightweight near-competition-spec bucket sets replace the standard chairs.

It's not known how many Clio RS16s the French car-maker had planned, but it's thought that around 250 cars were scheduled to be built and sold from around £40,000 (A$66,000) in markets like the UK.