The French make some of the world’s most desirable luxury goods, everything from Louis Vuitton to the Airbus A380.
But when it comes to French luxury cars, consumers’ response is either lukewarm or stone-cold.
Citroen’s C6 flagship, for example, seems to appeal only to French diplomats and the occasional local businessman, who is probably doing business with a French company or two.
French superminis, on the other hand, are pretty popular.
People in the know appreciate their inimitable sense of style, generally superb suspension and luxurious touches.
New Renault Clio to be launched in Singapore later this year
The latest from Paris is the rejuvenated Renault Clio.
Keen pricing continues to be the Clio’s trump card.
At $64k the renewed Clio currently undercuts its two major rivals, the 1.4-litre Peugeot 207 and Opel Corsa, which have breached the $70k mark.
Other than optional alloy rims and leather seats, the small Clio is big on standard features straight from the factory, although not all of them are useful in an urban runabout.
The cruise control with speed limiter, for example.
Because on this island, it is mostly stop-start traffic and the highest highway speed limit is just 90km/h.
Making the cruise control system appear even more redundant is its strangely placed main switch, which sits beside the handbrake.
Over the top paddle shifters are gone and the plastics’ quality is higher.
The other interior changes are more welcome.
The dashboard, particularly its top half, is softer to the touch. The stubby steering stalks feel more substantial than before, with the indicator’s ticking sound possibly a little louder too.
And the redesigned audio panel is far more user-friendly now.
Automatic headlights, rain-activated wipers, reverse parking proximity sensors, a trip computer and a roomy back seat also contribute to the Clio’s on-board comfort.
Thankfully, the previous car’s ridiculous shift paddles have been ditched.
Too bad Renault didn’t also throw out the tacky seat belt height adjusters and the cheap glovebox catch.
Mechanically, the Clio is unchanged.
But cabin insulation is said to have been improved, to the benefit of cruising refinement.
The 1.6-litre engine is still a free-revving, energetic number that gets increasingly vocal as the revs rise, while the 4-speed automatic is as smooth as the ride, apart from the transmission’s slight twitch downshifting into first gear as the car comes to a stop.
The performance is enthusiastic rather than fantastic, but it’s strong enough for most traffic situations, while the handling is neat.
In the event that you decide to do a Nelson Piquet Junior in Singapore, really accidentally this time, the Clio will protect with its six airbags, 5-star Euro Ncap crash safety rating and state-of-the-art seat belts.
The refreshed Clio has a nice new key, by the way.
A classy design that retracts the ignition blade into a solid fob, it symbolises how the small Renault has matured into something “bigger”.
Renault Clio 1.6 (A)
ENGINE 1598cc, 16-valves, inline-4
POWER 110bhp at 6000rpm
TORQUE 151Nm at 4250rpm
GEARBOX 4-speed automatic with manual select
0-100KM/H 12.2 seconds
TOP SPEED 186km/h
CONSUMPTION 13.3km/L (combined)
PRICE INCL. COE $63,999
