Renault Clio review

We’ve got used to the Renault Clio going through image changes like they're going out of fashion, and the latest version of the small car has been restyled to match the looks of the French manufacturer’s newest models.

As a result, the Clio has a front-end design similar to the Renault Megane electric car and the Renault Austral family SUV. And like the Austral, it's available in a new range-topping trim called Esprit Alpine, inspired by Renault's Alpine F1 team.

The engine range is straightforward: you can have a 1.0-litre petrol or a 1.6-litre hybrid petrol. (As with other Renault hybrid and electric cars, the 1.6 is badged E-Tech).

Of course, the Clio isn't the only small car you can get with hybrid technology these days – the Honda Jazz and Toyota Yaris have been using it for years. And there are plenty of rivals with non-hybrid petrol engines in this hotly contested class too, from the Skoda Fabia, the Vauxhall Corsa and the VW Polo to the Audi A1 and the Mini Cooper.

So, is the Renault Clio a good buy, or will you be better off with one of those rival cars? Read on to find out...

Learn more about the Clio from Renault

With 90bhp and a 0-62mph acceleration time of 12.3 seconds, the Renault Clio's 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol unit – badged TCe 90 – is perfectly adequate for dashing around town.

Performance feels rather leisurely when you ask more from it, though: you'll have to change down a gear using its six-speed manual gearbox if you plan to overtake slower traffic or head up a steep incline. An equivalent Skoda Fabia 1.0 TSI 95 has a stronger mid-range punch.

The other Clio engine option is the 1.6-litre hybrid, called the E-Tech 145. It produces 143bhp for a 0-62mph time of 9.3 seconds. Unlike the TCe 90 it uses an automatic gearbox that results in a smooth and linear power delivery.

When accelerating from a standstill, it can take a second or two for the petrol engine to wake up, and the engine and motor pull adequately, if not very strongly.

Although by small car standards we wouldn’t describe the Clio as uncomfortable, it can’t round off imperfect road surfaces as well as the Fabia or VW Polo. Entry-level Evolution trim comes with 16in wheels and provides the best ride comfort, while mid-level Techno trim and above come with larger 17in wheels and have a slightly choppy low-speed ride.

Those impacts never cause the car’s body movements to feel uncontrolled though, and it does settle down as you build up towards motorway speeds. The flip-side to the Clio’s firmness is tighter body control over undulating roads, so you and your passengers experience less vertical movement.

If you pitch the Clio into a corner briskly, you’ll find that body lean is kept nicely under control.

The steering has a more direct and accurate response than most rivals – including the Fabia and Vauxhall Corsa – and gives a better sense of connection with the front wheels. Techno trim and above come with a Sport driving mode that adds weight to the steering for an extra bit of reassurance.

If you start to push the car hard, you’ll feel it gently and safely running wide at the front before the stability control kicks in to rein it in safely. That said, the Polo offers greater and more predictable levels of grip.

In the Clio E-Tech hybrid, there’s a slight whine from the electric motor when it’s running on electricity. If the battery is low, the engine will kick in quite loudly to top it up, which can take you by surprise in traffic. The E-Tech engine is smoother than the Yaris's, but can sound coarse when you start to push it.

The automatic gearbox changes gears smoothly enough. Unlike in the Toyota Yaris, it's not a CVT automatic but sounds like one at times when it holds on to gears to get the most out of the engine under acceleration.

The TCE 90 is a little gruff on startup, with some vibrations felt by occupants, which is more noticeable when the stop-start system operates in traffic. The Fabia’s 1.0-litre engine is smoother.

The brake pedal response can initially feel sensitive, but you get used to it quickly enough and they perform strongly. In the Hybrid, you can also slot the gear lever into B-mode to maximise the regenerative braking for charging the battery. 

There’s a little suspension noise as the Clio deals with bumps, while slightly more wind and road noise means it feels less refined than a Fabia or Polo.

“There's no more feedback from the steering when you select the Sport driving mode, but the added weight that it brings makes me feel more confident at speed.” – Darren Moss, Deputy Digital Editor

The driving seat in the Renault Clio has a decent amount of adjustment and most people should be able to get comfortable behind the wheel.

There’s no lumbar adjustment on any of the trims, so you’ll need to look at the Audi A1 if you want this feature. Esprit Alpine trims come with sportier seats with more side bolstering to help keep you supported when cornering, but even the standard items do a good job of holding you in place.

The steering wheel is reach and rake adjustable, and you get a clear view through it to the 7.0in digital TFT display fitted to Evolution and Techno trims. The resolution is clear and crisp and there are a few basic layouts to choose from. Esprit Alpine comes with a larger 10in display that extends the full width of the cluster and can show sat-nav directions and other information. Even so, it can’t show as much information as the Active Info Display in the VW Polo.

Unlike some cars, which have their controls hidden away in an infotainment screen menu, the Clio has buttons and dials that are less distracting to use while driving, including a climate control system with integrated digital displays.

The Clio’s screen and front windows are large, and while windscreen pillars are chunkier than on a Skoda Fabia, the shallow angle of them means they don’t impede very much at junctions or roundabouts. For a small car with a better view forwards, try the Honda Jazz (it has handy front quarter windows to minimise blind-spots).

With smaller side windows and a narrow rear windscreen, the view out the back of the Clio isn’t quite so good. Again, a Jazz or Fabia provides a better rearwards view.

At least you get rear parking sensors as standard on all Clios, and all trims except entry-level Evolution get front sensors and a rear-view camera.

The Evolution and Techno trims come with a 7.0in infotainment touchscreen with wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay smartphone mirroring, DAB radio, Bluetooth and built-in sat-nav.

The rear-view camera image looks fuzzy at night, but otherwise the screen has crisp graphics and responds quickly enough to inputs.

With Esprit Alpine trim, you get a larger 9.3in portrait-oriented screen that's more like a tablet computer. It's glass-fronted and looks good, but doesn’t add a great deal more in terms of functions.

Both screens come with five touch-sensitive buttons at the base for infotainment shortcuts – although a good old-fashioned volume knob would be better.

The Clio’s interior looks and feels much smarter than most of its rivals, especially if you opt for mid-level Techno trim or above. These come with plenty of soft-touch plastics on the upper levels of the dashboard and doors, finished with a mix of glossy and fabric finishes. It compares well with the Polo and even the A1.

Entry-level Evolution trim misses out on plush materials, but at least the textured plastics do a semi-convincing job of looking like its more upmarket trim levels.

The ambient lighting on mid-spec Techno trim and above adds pizzazz at night. Meanwhile, Esprit Alpine trim includes contrast stitching and a French flag embroidered into the dashboard fabric.

The metal-effect climate control dials have a tactile feel, adding to the sense of quality, although the Fabia and Polo controls feel more robust overall.

“I like that the Clio's interior combines good-quality materials with up-to-date technology, and the fact that the shortcuts for frequently used functions are always on display is a huge plus for me.” – Doug Revolta, Head of Video

For what is a fairly small car, front space in the Renault Clio is generous, with plenty of head and leg room for drivers well over six feet tall, and little danger of clashing elbows with your passenger. Still, you’ll have no complaints in the Peugeot 208 or the VW Polo either.

Oddment storage includes a big glovebox, decent door bins, storage in the central armrest and a deep tray in front of the gearlever. That said, it can’t beat the Tardis-like Honda Jazz, which not only has deeper pockets but also two gloveboxes.

Rear space in the Clio is fair, but there’s no doubt that an adult over six feet tall will find their head very close to the roof lining. If the person sitting in front of them is a similar size, the rear passenger’s knees will be wedged against the front seat.

Hybrid models are just as spacious as regular versions, although neither has as much rear space as the Jazz, the Skoda Fabia or the Polo. The Jazz has room to spare for the adults in the outer spaces, plus wide door openings that make putting a child in their child seat a doddle.

The Jazz and the Fabia are better at accommodating a third passenger too – the Clio’s raised middle pew will force the occupant's head even further up against the roof lining.

Every Clio has 60/40 split folding rear seats. That's par for the course in this class, but the highly-versatile Jazz allows you to fold up the rear seat base, revealing a cavernous area that you can park a bicycle across.

The seatbacks fold to create a flat floor, but the front passenger seat doesn’t fold far enough forward to make much of a difference with extra-long loads.

You get driver’s seat height adjustment as standard. If you want to give the same luxury to your front-seat passenger, you’ll need to avoid the entry-level trim.

On paper, the Clio looks to have a truly cavernous boot by the standards of the class. At 391 litres in non-hybrid models, it’s not just bigger than those of its rivals, it’s also bigger than that of the VW Golf from the class above. That means it should have plenty of space for a shopping trip or weekend away.

You get a two-level boot floor so you can either maximise space or reduce the height of the lip when loading it through the tailgate. In the floor’s lowest position, lifting heavy items in and out can be rather awkward. The Jazz has a much lower lip to lift items over and is therefore easier to get things in and out of.

The E-Tech hybrid’s boot capacity is quite a lot smaller, at 301 litres. It’s still bigger than a Toyota Yaris boot, but you’ll get more space in a Jazz.

“The Skoda Fabia may come with an umbrella in the driver's door for rainy days, but that car misses out on the Clio's central armrest, which doubles as a storage cubby for your odds and ends.” Dan Jones, Reviewer

The Renault Clio is offered with temptingly low pricing, with the entry-level Evolution trim undercutting the cheapest versions of most rivals, including the Peugeot 208, the Seat Ibiza, the Skoda Fabia and the VW Polo.

On top of that, it should hold on to its value better than a Fabia over three years, although both the Honda Jazz and the Polo suffer far less depreciation over the same period.

With official fuel economy figures of 67.3mpg for the E-Tech hybrid and 54.3mpg for the TCe 90, the former is the most frugal Clio on paper. During our test drive (which consisted of town, countryside and motorway driving), the hybrid achieved an impressive combined figure of 57.6mpg.

Meanwhile, on a separate testing occasion, the TCe 90 achieved a respectable real-world fuel economy figure of 46.3mpg. If you’re a company car driver, the Hybrid should be a good option, with its low CO2 emissions (from as little as 95g/km) leading to lower BIK tax rates.

Regardless of the trim level, the Clio has a generous amount of equipment. Indeed, even the entry-level Evolution trim comes with 16in alloy wheels, full LED headlights, automatic windscreen wipers, keyless start, automatic climate control, touchscreen infotainment and rear parking sensors.

Techno trim adds more creature comforts, including 17in alloy wheels, a leather steering wheel, a wireless phone-charging pad, automatic LED headlights, front parking sensors and a rear-view camera.

Esprit Alpine is the range-topping trim and adds a host of sporty features to the Clio, including sports seats and unique 17in alloy wheels. On top of that, it gets the larger infotainment screen and digital driver’s display, a heated steering wheel, heated front seats and adaptive cruise control.

The Clio didn't feature in our 2023 What Car? Reliability Survey but Renault as a brand finished in the bottom half of the manufacturers table, coming in 23rd place out of 32 brands. That’s above Audi and Vauxhall but below most other rivals.

Every Clio comes with a three-year warranty with no mileage limit for the first year and a 60,000-mile cap in the following two. That’s pretty par for the course and matches the three-year warranties offered by most rival brands, but not as generous as Hyundai’s five-year policy or Kia’s seven-year package.

Euro NCAP awarded the Clio the maximum five stars for safety, and it performed better than the Audi A1 at protecting adults from chest injuries in the event of a frontal impact. However, because the Clio was tested back in 2019, it can’t be compared to the five-star Polo, which was tested under 2022’s tougher regime.

As well as being well-rated for protecting its occupants in a crash, the Clio also helps to prevent you having one in the first place – automatic emergency braking (AEB), traffic-sign recognition and lane-keep assistance are all standard.

“When we tested the Renault Clio against its Skoda Fabia rival, we found that the Clio would cost a typical owner less to run over three years.” – George Hill, Staff Writer

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