Mid-engined lunacy: Renault Clio V6

02 August 2007

Take a Renault Clio shell, shoehorn a 3-litre engine where the back seats used to be, and hey presto. It�s a Clio RenaultSport V6!

Stuart Milne reckons it�s a car which simply shouldn't work � but it does; in a lardy, spine tingling kind of way.

With each tiny decision costing car makers unthinkable amounts of cash, it's rare to find a truly crazy car these days.

Sure, Mitsubishi managed to redefine what's possible with the faintly ludicrous Lancer Evo FQ-360 I test drove recently.

But despite its staggeringly quick 0-62mph time of 3.9 seconds, its still a four wheel drive saloon car; and they're ten a penny.

So when a lunatic at Renault decided replacing the rear seats in a Clio with a three litre V6 engine, I simply couldn't believe it wasn't April Fools Day.

And to be honest, I still can't � even after driving one.

Renault Clio RenaultSport V6 In many ways the idea of a brutal engine mounted amidships in a tiny supermini is better than the execution.

It's noisy and not as fast as you'd expect. Slotting through traffic and width restrictions is tough too; thanks to the rear of the car measuring six foot � about as wide as a Range Rover.

The driving position was awful, with a gearstick action figure Stretch Armstrong would struggle to reach.

So on the surface, the Clio V6 seems like a totally pointless exercise by the French car maker.

But there's something so compelling about driving a car which you never thought would ever be built.

The Renault Clio might be loud, but it's capable of making every last hair on the back of your neck stand to attention.

That's not to mention the neck craning ability as the Clio threads its way through crowded town centres.

Renault Clio RenaultSport V6 On the move it�s a bit of a handful � especially the traction control-free early Mk1 V6s. They had slow-to-react steering, which meant when the back end broke free on the bends, there was practically nothing you could do to keep it out of a ditch.

The situation was improved with the later Mk2 model, which had more complex suspension � even it did take away some of the original's rawness.

It looks sensational though, with its gaping front bumper, huge rear bumper with a pair of huge exhausts poking out. And those two massive intakes behind the doors look ready to suck the tarmac straight off the road.

See the V6's bullfrog-like face grinning in your rear view mirror and you'll find yourself taking evasive action. Just by taking a quick glance you know it's going to stick to your tail like a superglue-soaked limpet.

Either that or overtake at warp nine.

Today the ample-bummed French showstopper can be had for less than £10,000, rising to around £19,000 for a last of the line Mk2. That's a lot of pose factor for the price of a new 1.2-engined Clio.

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