Renault unveils the Clio R.S. 16 at the Monaco Grand Prix

Renault Sport has unveiled a new concept car on the streets of Monaco's famous Grand Prix circuit, driven by Renault Sport Formula One Team's Kevin Magnussen. The Clio R.S. 16 is the highest performance Renault Sport road-going vehicle ever and its reveal celebrates both 40 years of Renault Sport and Renault's return to Formula One as a constructor.

Finding the ideal way to house the engine, transmission and cooling system of the Megane R.S. 275 Trophy-R was a significant challenge. The exhaust system was also revised as a function of the engine's potential, while the suspension was engineered to match the car's performance characteristics. Careful attention was paid to the sound produced by the car, too, and an Akrapovic twin exhaust system was selected. The design and development team dealt successfully with the constraints inherent in the Clio R.S. 16 project (body widened by 60mm, 19-inch wheels and optimisation of the engine cooling system) to produce an expressive, sporty stance. The result is enhanced by an LED R.S. Vision chequered-pattern lighting signature featuring exclusive multi-faceted reflector technology.

Renault Sport's trademark Liquid Yellow has been combined with gloss black details to mirror the livery of Renault Sport Formula One Team's R.S.16 F1 single-seaters.

"Our aim was to produce a concept car with genuinely outstanding performance credentials," notes Patrice Ratti, Managing Director of Renault Sport Cars, leader of the project which particularly inspired the development team's specialists. "On paper, producing a Clio R.S. powered by our most potent engine - namely the 275bhp 2.0-litre power unit which delivers peak torque of 360Nm - was an extremely appealing idea, but we had to make sure it was feasible."