It's Europe's best-selling car: Renault unveils its new Clio (and its curves may not be unanimously appreciated)

It's been Renault's best-selling model for many years: the Clio. The fifth generation, launched in 2019, but restyled in 2023 to give it a facelift, remains the diamond's best-seller currently. In the first six months of the year, it was also the best-selling new car in Europe. In France since the beginning of the year, it is well ahead of the Peugeot 208 , with nearly 70,000 units sold between January and August, compared to just under 48,000 for its main competitor. This new generation, the sixth since the first Clio launched in 1990, must therefore confirm this success and even further assert this dominance.

While the transition from the Clio IV to the V had evolved in small steps, the changes were ultimately more significant with the restyled 2023 version. The program, in particular, a new lighting signature and the new diamond logo which significantly changed the front end. On this sixth generation, one could logically have expected a certain conservatism from Renault, but not at all.

This sixth generation introduces a new front end, with a grille that stands out clearly in the form of a snout. All this is surrounded by a new lighting signature, with headlights that appear to be inserted into a black case and position lights that adopt a new design. The Renault logo, which joined the hood on the fifth generation, is found in the middle of the grille and a cloud of diamonds.

In terms of dimensions, this new Clio grows by 6.7 centimeters, to 4.12 meters, and also gains 3.9 centimeters in width, to 1.77 meters. The height increases only slightly, +1.1 centimeters to 1.45 meters.

The top-of-the-range "Esprit Alpine" version can now benefit from 18-inch rims, as was the case for our presentation model with also the launch color, this new "absolute red", which will also be complemented by the green of the Twingo concept as well as the more classic white, gray, black and blue. We will also note the wheel arches now marked in black plastic and the disappearance of the rocker panel belt which connected the front and rear wheels.

At the rear, the lights adopt a completely new design in four blocks, two of which are isolated on the trunk. A slightly inclined trunk, which reinforces the slightly cut and more aggressive side of this rear, which is reminiscent of the Renault Rafale.

Inside, this new Clio is similar to the latest R5 and R4 , with dual 10-inch screens for the gauges and infotainment. There are also the same shortcut controls for the air conditioning, in the center, under the touchscreen, and the "My Safety" button on the left, which allows you to retrieve your personalized settings, particularly those concerning overspeed or lane departure warnings.

The main change compared to the Clio V is the move to the Google ecosystem from the second trim level ("Techno"), as on the latest models of the diamond brand. This improves fluidity and update capacity, with this environment also remaining compatible with CarPlay for iPhone owners.

Many details show Renault's desire to move upmarket on this Clio, especially on the "Esprit Alpine" version, with the possibility of personalizing the lighting ambiance, a "spectral titanium" effect (innovative technique of chrome in color gradient) around the air vents or even Alcantara on the door trim and dashboard.

Already well-equipped in the fifth generation, this new Clio makes further progress in terms of driving aids, with a total of 29 systems offered. And not everything is available only on the highest-end versions, with adaptive cruise control and automatic parking brake (or "autohold") included as standard.

We also note the arrival of "active driver assist", an intelligent adaptive regulator (capable of modifying the speed according to the traffic context, slowing down when approaching a roundabout for example) and ensuring centering in the lane, a first on the B segment with the R5 and the R4.

Renault also introduced an "emergency stop assistant", capable of slowing the vehicle to a complete standstill in the event of driver inactivity.

The fifth generation of the Clio introduced a non-rechargeable hybrid engine for the first time. It was a fairly successful model: since the beginning of the year, this E-tech full-hybrid version has accounted for nearly 38% of Clio sales in France.

Renault is upgrading this E-Tech version with the engine already offered on Captur and Symbioz and which increases the power from 145 to 160 horsepower, with a thermal part which increases from 1.6 liters to 1.8 liters of displacement, an improved automatic gearbox (multimode with clutchless dogs) and a battery which increases from 1.2 to 1.4 kWh. In summary, a slightly more powerful engine (with a 0 to 100 km/ in 8.3 seconds, one second less) and more efficient, with 89 g/km of CO2. Renault promises up to 1,000 km on a single tank and the ability to drive 80% of the time in electric "in urban and peri-urban use".

In addition, Renault will offer a 115 horsepower 1.2 TCe petrol engine, which replaces the TCe 90 and will also be available with a manual gearbox to constitute the future entry-level offer for this Clio VI. We will also find the Eco-G engine later, the petrol-LPG dual-fuel system "with an even greater range.

Diesel is disappearing from the engine range, with the 100 horsepower dCi still available on the Clio V.

In conclusion, the Clio therefore retains a 100% thermal offering, enough to offer an alternative to the R5, just like the Captur with the R4.

Renault has yet to reveal pricing for the new Clio, which is expected to be announced when orders open before the end of the year. But with the advances in design, equipment, and engines, one thing is certain: we can expect higher prices.

Excluding the basic versions currently on the market (the "Generation" version with the SCe 65 starts at 16,900 euros in a limited edition), the Clio V is currently available from 21,700 euros with the TCe90 in "Evolution" trim. The hybrid 145 starts at 24,500 euros.

It remains to be seen whether Renault will temporarily maintain the Clio V with the SCe 65 to keep its offering below €20,000. This hypothesis has not yet been confirmed by the French brand.