Renault Clio R.S. 16 Concept 2016 aro 19 2.0 Turbo 275 cv 36,7 mkgf #Renault

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To celebrate its fortieth anniversary, Renault Sport is proud to unveil the concept car, Clio RS16. In under five months, teams from Renault Sport have worked to bring to life a somewhat crazy idea, which involved putting a 275bhp, 2.0-litre turbo engine developing 360Nm of torque under the bonnet of a Clio R.S.
To fully exploit the potential of this powerful engine, derived from Mégane R.S. 275 Trophy-R, Clio RS16 comes with chassis and suspension systems featuring solutions developed for racing. Boasting 19-inch wheels and a 60mm wider bodywork, its aggressive design only serves to confirm its purpose: become Renault Sport's most powerful road car.
Sharing its name and colour scheme with the RS16 single-seater, Clio RS16 celebrates Renault's return as a Formula 1 constructor. On Friday, 27 May 2016, Renault Sport Formula One Team driver Kevin Magnussen treated fans and onlookers to the first public outing of Clio RS16 at the legendary Monaco Grand Prix.
Where it all started
The idea that led to the creation of Clio RS16 took shape one evening in October 2015, during a brainstorming session organised at the head office of Renault Sport Cars. Managing Director Patrice Ratti met with the inner circle of his team to try and come up with new projects, especially in order to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of Renault Sport.
During discussions, engineer Christophe Chapelain asserted that a Clio chassis would be perfectly able to handle the performance levels of a 300bhp engine, based on his experience in rallying. One thing led to another and the idea of a Clio R.S. with exceptional performance gained ground.
"We all recalled the impact made by Clio V6. We wanted to create a technical concept car with extraordinary performance levels but which was more realistically priced. We therefore had to keep our feet on the ground and use simple, ingenious solutions to achieve a vehicle that could be type-approved. Furthermore, we wanted this project to be entirely developed by Renault Sport," recalled Patrice Ratti. "In theory, a Clio R.S. fitted with our most powerful engine - the 275bhp, 2.0-litre turbo engine - was an attractive proposition, but we had to conduct more serious checks as regards its feasibility. In less than a month, a small team had completed a preliminary study that confirmed it was possible to house this engine under the bonnet. We therefore decided with Thierry Landreau, Technical Director of Renault Sport Cars, to take a gamble and actually produce this car. Overall coordination of the project was placed in the hands of François Ratinet, who led the 'commando' team, which I supervised."
Michael van der Sande, at the time Senior Vice-President, Renault Group Marketing, was also excited about the idea. Renault was studying its return to Formula 1 and Clio RS16 would further demonstrate the close ties between racing and production cars. At the end of December, Renault gave the go-ahead for the project.
It was decided that Clio RS16 would be unveiled to the public on Friday, 27 May 2016, at the Monaco Grand Prix. This deadline determined a large part of the project, which therefore had to be completed within just five months!
A commando unit A team of a ten or so people was put together in early January at Renault Sport. The project was entrusted to the Preliminary Project unit, a Prototype Build Centre department. "The premise was to design an exclusively Renault Sport vehicle, fitted with the most powerful engine in the range," explained Laurent Doré, Manager of the Prototype department. "The aim was perfectly clear, but the first difficulty concerned the lead-times, which were extremely tight. We created a team made up of experts from Renault Sport Cars and Renault Sport Racing. This little 'commando' unit was managed by Maurizio Suppa, an engineer specialising in prototype design. " Whilst remaining independent, the Preliminary Project unit could nonetheless use the many skills found at the Les Ulis and Viry-Châtillon sites (Essonne). The project immediately garnered the support and enthusiasm of all of those involved in the project.
Many challenges to be met
Aside from the time constraints involved in completing its work, the Preliminary Project unit quickly identified the major challenges posed by the specifications. Firstly, it was a question of correctly positioning the engine, gearbox and cooling system taken from Mégane R.S. 275 Trophy-R.
With some 360Nm of torque, the engine required the powertrain suspension to be altered, and the teams came up with an inventive solution, combining and adapting parts taken from the production Mégane, Kangoo and Espace.
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