ONE of the UK’s most popular supermini ranges has grown, with new versions of RENAULT’s chic Clio boasting more power and extra equipment at bargain-basement prices.
There are now nine trim and equipment levels for the three-door versions with prices ranging from £7,485 for the entry-level 1.2-litre Freeway 75 to £13,480 for the Dynamique SX dCi 106 with air conditioning.
The nine models are Freeway, Extreme, TomTom, Expression, Rip Curl, Dynamique, Dynamique SX and Dynamique S 138.
An all-new 1.2 Turbo 100 TCE engine – it stands for Turbo Control Efficiency – will be available on both three and five-door versions.
New for the Clio Tom Tom model is, as the name suggests, the addition of the world’s best-selling portable satellite navigation device.
The TomTom ONE GB portable satellite navigation system is worth £179 and can be used with TomTom Home, which is TomTom’s free software application that simplifies the process of downloading and installing new content and services such as safety camera locations and traffic information.
The Clio TomTom model comes with two engine choices; a 1.2-litre petrol model at £9,260 and a dCi 68bhp diesel at £10,230.
The dCi 68 falls into one of the lowest VED bands with just £35 due in Vehicle Excise Duty.
The 1.2-litre petrol version offers economy of 48mpg and CO2 emissions of 139g/km, whilst the dCi 68 has a combined mpg of 63 and CO2 emissions of 120g/km.
Based on the Extreme model, the TomTom also gets a leather steering wheel and gearknob, satin chrome exterior and interior door handles, a blue centre console with blue dashboard inserts, satin chrome dial surrounds and the sat-nav system.
There is also fancy badging inside and out and users can upgrade the sat-nav system to cover Europe as a £50 option. The Tom Tom also comes with an MP3-compatible CD player with four speakers, two tweeters and fingertip remote control as an option at £125.
New for the Clio and also the Modus is a high-efficiency 1.2-litre turbo engine based on the existing 16-valve 75bhp unit.
It uses a turbocharger and provides the torque of the 1.6 VVT 111 engine coupled with the power of the 1.4 16V and the economy and emissions of the 1.2 16V 75 to achieve the best of all worlds.
With a combined mpg of 48, a top speed of 115mph and pulling power of 145Nm, the 1.2 Turbo 100 TCE offers frugal fuel economy and impressive performance.
The 1.2 Turbo 100 TCE produces only 140 g/km of CO2 which will incur a road fund licence of just £115. Compared to the existing 1.4 16V 98 and the 1.6 VVT 111, which the new 1.2 Turbo 100 TCE replaces on Clio and Modus models, this represents a saving of £25 a year.
Insurance groups have just been announced with the Clio TomTom at 2E and the Dynamique SX and all other Turbo versions rated at 4E.