Renault Clio

Supermini class-leader gets regenerated with bigger body, snouty face, latest hybrid powertrain and more

With the Ford Fiesta culled and Renault surely being satisfied by the success of the electro-revived 5, one wonders if the venerable Clio suddenly finds itself on thin ice.Renault insists not. “Clio is Renault,” intoned executives at the launch of the new sixth-generation version in Portugal. Then again, in many European markets Fiesta was Ford, until it abruptly wasn’t. These are dangerous times for small ICE cars.But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. For now there is a new Clio. It will go on sale in mainland Europe next year and arrive here only in 2027. Renault puts this unusual delay squarely on the UK government and its inconsistent communications concerning its zero-emissions vehicle mandate. As for the car itself, the design has been overhauled, which is to say it has been wrenched in an angrier direction from the elegant template that Laurens van den Acker laid down with