Renault Clio Williams Series I

Renault Clio Williams Series I
The Clio Williams has a 1998 cc 4 cylinder 16 valve engine, modified from the 1.8 litre Clio 16V 136 bhp model, to give 150 bhp at 6100 rpm and significantly more mid-range torque (129 lb/ft at 4500 rpm), matched to new closely-spaced gearbox ratios. It was produced by Renault to make an all-out attack on the 1993 French Rally Championship, and engineering input from Williams Grand Prix Engineering was minimal - they effectively lent their name and badging to Renault, who in turn hoped to cash in on the success then experienced by Williams (one F1 manufacturers championship already won, the second (of six consecutive) already almost in the bag). The car was only available in Williams Blue, and other changes from the standard Clio 16V include the attractive gold aluminium rims, improved suspension and handling, a more luxurious interior with Williams logos stitched into the seat backs and a zippable suit carrier mounted under the rear parcel shelf. Surprisingly, ABS brakes and airbags were removed from the 16V, as the Clio Williams was aimed at the more experienced and enthusiastic driver. Initially, a limited run of only 2500 was announced at the Geneva Motor Show on 2nd March 1993 (of which only 400 were right-hand-drive), each one individually identifiable by a serial-numbered plaque on the dashboard (an idea carried over from the earlier road-going versions of the mid-engined rally car, the Renault 5 Turbo Series I). However, as with the Renault 5 Turbo I, due to the tremendous demand, a second (the Clio Williams 2) and even a third series (the Clio Williams 3) were later released in 1994 and 1995 (much to the annoyance of those who had purchased the limited-edition Series I as an investment, rather than as a great car to drive).
Although the Williams 2s and 3s are not as sought-after today (mainly because of the missing serial-numbered Williams plaque on the dashboard), they are just as delightful to drive.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (25 Kb)

Our 1993 Renault Clio Williams Series 1 (s/n 2533), captured asleep in North Devon on 25^th August 1996.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (33 Kb)

Back home on our driveway on 18^th October 2001 ....

Renault Clio Williams Series I (41 Kb)

.... with the summer tyres ....

Renault Clio Williams Series I (23 Kb)

.... and the winter tyres fitted.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (24 Kb)

A close-up of the gold aluminium rims, which now sport new Toyo Proxes tyres (the original Michelin summer tyres have been kept for sentimental reasons) ....

Renault Clio Williams Series I (14 Kb)

.... and the steel rims for the winter tyres.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (24 Kb)

On the left of the tailgate is the Williams logo ....

Renault Clio Williams Series I (19 Kb)

.... and on the right side is a small souvenir from my visit to Williams Grand Prix Engineering.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (29 Kb)

Ready to board.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (28 Kb)

First-class passengers entrance.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (21 Kb)

The door sills display the Williams lettering, to welcome the occupants.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (20 Kb)

Supportive, comfortable seats (with the blue Williams logo stitched into them) are very inviting.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (12 Kb)

There is even space for three business class passengers in the rear.

Renault Clio Williams Series I Interior (24 Kb)

This is the view that the pilot has - white numbers on blue background instruments, including a central outside temperature readout in Celsius.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (24 Kb)

Alarmingly, the oil level gauge (furthest left of three smaller gauges, and directly above the Williams plaque) only works for the first three seconds after turning the ignition on, then falls to rest at zero! Oil temperature remains constant at 95°C in summer or winter, and oil pressure (with Mobil Rally 1 full-synthetic) is 5,5 bar at 3000 rpm (4 bar at 800 rpm) when cold, dropping to 5 bar at 3000 rpm (3 bar at 800 rpm) when warm.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (25 Kb)

And here it is - the rare Williams Renault plaque with the unique serial number engraved into it - fixed to the dashboard.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (25 Kb)

Now only 31.605 kms on a car that is almost 10 years old - you will be very lucky to find a better Williams than this!

Renault Clio Williams Series I Interior (25 Kb)

Renault Clio Williams Series I Interior (25 Kb)

A nice slick 5 speed gearbox, with a leather-covered gear lever knob and steering wheel.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (25 Kb)

On each of the plastic front wings there is a repeater indicator, and an indication of the capacity of the engine behind the wing.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (24 Kb)

The 2.0 litre engine that enables such excellent performance and comparative fuel economy.

Renault Clio Williams engine (9 Kb)

With the aid of a Gunson compression tester ....

Renault Clio Williams Series I (13 Kb)

.... the compression of cylinders 1 and 2 ....

Renault Clio Williams Series I (13 Kb)

.... followed by 3 and 4 can be easily measured - passed with a clean bill of health.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (18 Kb)

The Devil rear silencer is much larger than the standard unit, and gives a meaningful addition to the power and sound output.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (28 Kb)

The occupants can now be guided reliably to their destination by a Blaupunkt TravelPilot RGS06A Navigation System.

Renault Clio Williams Series I (21 Kb)

The individual components are the 5" TFT colour display, mounted directly above the glove box ....

Renault Clio Williams Series I (28 Kb)

.... the remote control unit (the buttons are illuminated at night), mounted directly above the ash tray ....

Renault Clio Williams Series I (14 Kb)

.... the small GPS antenna, mounted at the base of the front windscreen ....

Renault Clio Williams Series I (29 Kb)

.... and the central processor (with integral CD reader) and loudspeaker, both fitted underneath the front passenger seat (tilted forwards here).

Renault Clio Williams Series I (23 Kb)

The CD can be easily changed (without having to go round into the boot).

Renault Clio Williams Series I (23 Kb)

Underneath the rear parcel shelf is a special leather pouch, where normally a suit would be discretely transported (ensuring that it is not folded or creased by the other luggage) ....

Renault Clio Williams Series I (25 Kb)

.... but in this Williams, the space has been used to hide the cables and frequency splitters for 6 hi-fi loudspeakers ....

Renault Clio Williams Series I (26 Kb)

.... which sounds very good indeed, even when fed from a modest Panasonic radio/cassette unit.

SU-CL 735 is left-hand-drive; we purchased the car in January 1996, and sold it in June 2003, during which time we only drove 5,808 miles at an average fuel consumption of 31,41 mpg, and the total distance covered was only 19.895 miles from new. This is certainly one of the best examples of this model, and with a modified ignition box from Renault Sport, a Devil exhaust system and K&N air filter, 168 bhp is easily obtained - plus a Renault alarm/immobiliser should ensure that only the rightful owner can enjoy this beast!

FUEL LOG

Date	kms	Miles	Litres	Gallons	l/100 km	mpg	Average l/100 km	Average mpg
13.07.93	0	0	Herr	Perlik	bought	Clio	Williams	OF-AZ 4589
28.09.95	-----	-----	Herr	Westenberg	bought	Clio	Williams	K-JP 1630
24.01.96	22539	14087	-----	We	bought	Clio	Williams	SU-CL 735
31.01.96	22592	14120	37,55	8,26	-----	-----	-----	-----
01.05.96	23757	14848	110,50	24,31	9,48	29,96	9,49	29,96
30.06.96	24615	15384	79,32	17,45	9,24	30,73	9,38	30,28
23.08.96	25143	15714	52,17	11,48	9,49	29,95	9,49	29,95
23.08.96	25514	15946	30,76	6,77	8,29	34,27	9,33	30,44
25.08.96	26020	16263	38,98	8,57	7,70	36,88	9,09	31,24
26.08.96	26588	16618	46,87	10,31	8,25	34,43	8,97	31,66
08.09.96	27198	16999	46,57	10,24	7,63	37,22	8,80	32,30
21.06.97	27645	17278	40,27	8,86	9,01	31,54	8,82	32,23
03.03.98	28120	17575	43,09	9,48	9,07	31,32	8,84	32,15
12.04.99	28543	17839	43,96	9,67	10,39	27,34	8,95	31,75
18.07.99	28907	18067	33,83	7,44	9,29	30,57	8,97	31,68
14.02.00	29411	18382	42,95	9,45	8,52	33,34	8,94	31,80
15.12.00	29851	18657	52,12	11,46	11,85	23,99	9,11	31,18
18.07.02	30501	19063	57,99	12,76	8,94	31,80	9,10	31,23
19.11.02	30957	19348	40,90	9,00	8,95	31,75	9,09	31,26
08.06.03	31414	19477	44,28	9,74	9,69	29,32	9,12	31,15
29.06.03	31832	19895	36,42	8,01	8,71	32,61	9,05	31,41
29.06.03	Sold	Clio	to	Laurent	Duquesne	in	Jodoigne,	Belgium

Since we were not using the Clio Williams, we reluctantly decided to sell the car. However, after we had dealt with so many liars and timewasters (click here to see further information about our failed attempt to find a good new home for this superb Williams - not all translated from German into English yet - and to cast your vote in the biggest Bullshitter competition ), we reconsidered whether we should sell the car - because we know that we will never again find such a good example ...... and we have invested a lot of money to bring this car back up into perfect condition.

Laurent Duquesne with his Clio Williams ( Kb)

Laurent Duquesne with his Clio Williams ( Kb)

However, here you can see the Clio with its new owner, Laurent Duquesne, after we delivered the car to Jodoigne in Belgium on 29^th June 2003.

Described by Jeremy Clarkson in his 'Hot 100' book as "... a damn good car. Tight. Fast. Neat. Precise. And most of all, big, big, fun." You said it!

And the May 1998 edition of 'Performance Car' magazine has just chosen their 'Best GTI ever'

6^th place - 1987 VW Golf GTI 16V Mark II (139 bhp)
5^th place - 1998 Honda Civic Type-R (182 bhp)
4^th place - 1998 Peugeot 306 GTI-6 (167 bhp)
3^rd place - 1991 Renault 5 GT Turbo (120 bhp)
2^nd place - 1991 Peugeot 205 GTI 1.9 (130 bhp)
1^st place - 1994 Renault Clio Williams 2 (150 bhp)

Well, not too many surprises there, except for the low rating of the racy rice cooker !

In the August 1998 edition of 'Performance Car' magazine, they include the Renault Clio Williams amongst 14 other cars as an icon of the 90's (alongside Lamborghini Diablo, Ferrari F355, TVR Griffith 500, McLaren F1, etc.) and write .....
"Renault could have just slapped a set of Williams stickers onto a Clio 16V, fitted gold wheels, called it a limited edition, and left it at that. Instead, it went to the trouble of and expense of re-engineering the 16V, swapping its 136 bhp 1.8-litre motor for a 150 bhp 2.0-litre, and retuning the chassis.
The effort was worth it: the Williams is the best hot hatch to date, eclipsing even the supremely talented 205 GTI. With torque to complement its impressive power output, the Williams could thrust away from tight corners to leave other 16-valvers struggling behind, waiting for the revs to build.
Quick in a straight line, the Williams also excelled in the twisty stuff. Its chassis was subtle yet sharp, devouring all types of corner with sensational poise. It's no surprise people still point when a Williams zaps by."

The same engine later saw service in the Renault Sport Spider.

Renault Clio Williams PR shot (36 Kb)

This is a photograph of a Clio Williams in action, used by Renault Publicity.

Renault Espace F1, Sport Spider and bike (18 Kb)

And here is another Renault Publicity photograph, showing the Renault Espace F1 (my ideal company car), a Sport Spider and something with two wheels missing.

Renault Clio Williams in flight (26 Kb)

This Clio Williams in flight was photographed for a car magazine road test.

Renault Clio Williams Rally (21 Kb)

The Clio Williams Group A and N were (and still are) very successful in international rallies.

Renault Clio Williams Group A s/n 111 (29 Kb)

This is allegedly the Clio Williams Group A, Serial Number 111 of Michael Ober in Graz, Austria.

Renault Clio Williams Cartoon (59 Kb)

I found the following summary at http://www.rallyinfos.com/will.htm:-

Renault Clio Williams

La sportive des temps modernes, belle, classe, performante mais insipide. Une voiture très performante, coupleuse, raide mais trop confortable, la voiture idéal du père de famille. Elle se conduit toute seule ou presque, tient la route à merveille mais elle à le défaut de la législation, on ne l'entend pas! Son gros point fort reste les glissades, tellement facile à rattraper qu'on attend le dernier moment, quand on est face au rond-point :) De plus, elle n'est pas faite pour la route (où, rappelons le, la vitesse est limitée!) 1ère, 2ème, 3ème et voilà; maintenant si vous rouler en sportive pour taper les 210, achetez plutôt un mazout...

Les chiffres: -150ch pour 990kg

-18.2mkg à 4 500tr

-0-100km/h : 7,9s

-1000m d.a. : 29s

-Vmax : 216km/h

Performances légèrement inférieures aux 309Gti16 et 306 S16…
Évolution possible : et presque obligatoire, l'admission dynamique K&N, qui lui donne un petit son et un plus en couple. Son qui atteint un bon niveau au bout de 4-5000km, au point que la vente en deviens une question délicate...

N.B: Si quelqu'un est intéressé, j'en ai une à vendre TBE, 75 000km, 11M€ - pirolivier@oreka.com

So there!

And here it is, the Renault Clio Sport - only two seats, but a three-litre V6 250 bhp engine placed midships. This is not only the replacement for the Clio Williams, but also the Renault 5 Turbo I and II.

I went to our local Renault dealer (Renault Rhein-Sieg in Sankt Augustin) on 21.10.98 to inquire how much this toy costs, to be told that Deutsche Renault do not intend to import any examples of this Clio into Germany, because the market for a small car with a large engine is too limited (the road tax and insurance would be prohibitive). Well, luckily many other car manufacturers haven't realised this yet, and there are often long waiting lists for what should be such undesirable cars manufactured outside of Germany (such as the BMW Z3 M-Coupés). Even German car manufacturers are rediscovering the hot hatches - the humble VW Golf is available with an engine of almost 3 litres. Our Clio Williams and Cobra 289 replica are also somewhat more expensive than a Twingo to tax and insure, but we both work hard to pay for our fun. WAKE UP, DEUTSCHE RENAULT!!

Meanwhile, further pictures can be found on Katriina's web site (address below).

RELEVANT CAR CLUBS

Clio Williams Owners Club
Mark D. Owen
43 Woodview Road
Woolton Hill
Liverpool
Merseyside
L25 6HY
England
(I am not sure if address is still valid, since no replies to letters ever received)

Renault Owners Club
John Lowestoft
England

(Membership enquiries only please)

Renault 5 Club Deutschland e.V.
Germany

Renault Racing Touring Team
Rainer Huebner
Germany

(this site includes a very comprehensive listing of Renault on the net)

Katriina's Renault Centre

(this is an excellent site for anything and everything Renault-related).

Deutscher Sportfahrer Kries e.V. (DSK)
Germany

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