Renault Clio Review 2024

A small car with big car refinement and practicality, the Renault Clio is one of the best little hatchbacks you can buy. That's easier to say in a market that no longer includes the Ford Fiesta - but, with its stylish looks, impressive cabin and low running costs, there's a lot going in the Renault Clio's favour.

The latest Renault Clio went on sale in 2019, but a comprehensive update in 2023 means it now looks thoroughly up-to-date, with a similar 'family face' to the Renault Megane E-Tech and Renault Austral. It's very definitely still a hatchback, though - Renault has resisted the temptation to stray into small SUV territory with its Clio, meaning it remains a rival to the Toyota Yaris, Volkswagen Polo and the new Suzuki Swift.

There are now three trim levels available (Evolution, Techno and Esprit Alpine), with prices starting in the region of £18,000. The cheapest Renault Clio models come with a small turbocharged 1.0-litre petrol engine (badged the TCe 90), but you can get a Renault Clio E-Tech hybrid for an extra couple of grand. This pairs a 1.6-litre petrol engine with a pair of electric motors, providing impressive efficiency and - Renault claims - the ability to travel with the engine off up to 80% of the time when driving around town.

Unlike the Peugeot 208 and Vauxhall Corsa, you can't get a fully-electric Renault Clio. You could briefly get this generation of Clio with a 1.5-litre DCi diesel engine (until 2021), which returned impressive fuel consumption. One of these could be a great purchase for a frugal secondhand car buyer, particularly if you're planning to use your Clio for lots of motorway miles.

While it might be a small car, the Renault Clio is impressively refined no matter which engine you choose. It's easy to drive, while the ride quality is generally good - although the 17-inch alloy wheels of our Esprit Alpine spec test car did transfer some patter from uneven road surfaces into the cabin, especially around town.

Inside, the Clio's interior has taken a noticeable shift upmarket. There are lots of soft-touch materials, particularly on more expensive models, and the amount of technology on offer has taken a large step forward. There's a new 9.3-inch touchscreen media system available, as well as a 10-inch digital instrument cluster.

Although the Clio's exterior dimensions are smaller than before, it's actually a more practical choice than the old model. It certainly feels roomy enough, with plenty of space for taller drivers while the boot is now a generous 391-litres (or 301 litres for the Clio E-Tech). The boot access is wider, too, although there is a hefty lip for lifting heavy items over. For those wanting to shift furniture in a small hatchback, you might want to consider a Honda Jazz instead.

It’s not sparse or utilitarian, just uncluttered and this is typified by the large horizontal air vent that runs across the sweep of the dash. There’s also the central infotainment screen that does away with most buttons, though Renault wisely retains rotary controls for the ventilation.

The gear lever sits in a raised surround to feel to the driver. A height adjustable driver’s seat combines with the reach and rake movement for the steering wheel to serve up an ideal position for drivers of all forms.

Renault has made a trade-off in this fifth generation of Clio over its predecessor. This is to sacrifice a little rear legroom in favour of a much larger boot. Compare the 391-litre load space to other superminis and it easily beats them and the Clio even has the Volkswagen Golf dusted when it comes to cargo carrying capacity. Sadly the hybrid model is the exception to this rule, with its boot space cut to 301 litres. 

Renault deserves a big pat on the back for listening to its customers and coming up with a new model that addresses the questions raised over the previous generation car’s cabin plastics. Where the old car suffered from some iffy finishes, this latest Clio is a strong contender for best-in-class construction alongside the Volkswagen Polo or SEAT Ibiza.

Everywhere your hand comes into contact with the Clio, there are soft-touch materials and plastics that feel they are sturdy. This impression remains even when you feel further into the door pockets or seat bases where the edges are smooth, so you won’t snag a finger when reaching for your water bottle from the door bin.

If you're looking for a secondhand Renault Clio, you'll have to be careful which model you go for if you want the most impressive infotainment system. The basic Play models got a very basic 4.2-inch display, while the Clio Iconic got a better 7.0-inch unit with satellite navigation, full smartphone integration and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Only high-spec S Edition and R.S. Line models got the portrait 9.3-inch touchscreen.

Today, the Clio Evolution and Techno both come with the 7.0-inch display, while the top-spec Esprit Alpine comes with the 9.3-inch media system. The smaller unit is fine, but we like the bigger display. It looks smart, responds quickly and is easy to use, helped by a row of touch-sensitive shortcut buttons at the bottom of the screen.

With prices starting from around £18,000 and the most desirable hybrid models nudging £25,000, the Renault Clio represents reasonable value for money - even if it isn't the bargain small car it once was.

There are some pretty good discounts available on used or nearly-new Renault Clios, though. We've seen pre-registered cars available for as little as £16,500, while a budget of £14,000 will get you a one-year-old example from a Renault main dealer.

With an official fuel economy figure of up to 67.3mpg, the hybrid Renault Clio E-Tech is so efficient it pretty much made the old diesel Clio redundant (this could officially return up to 67.2mph). Our Real MPG data suggests you'll see around 58.0mpg in the real world - that's a very healthy real-world figure, and one that should be easy-to-beat if you cover a lot of town driving.

Even the regular petrol Renault Clio is pretty efficient, officially capable of around 54.3mpg. HonestJohn.co.uk readers see just under 50.0mpg on average, which works out at around 13p per mile (depending on the cost of fuel).

The annual tax bill for a Renault Clio will be the same as all petrol cars - currently £190/year, while the E-Tech hybrid qualifies for a £10/year green car discount. Insurance costs are likely to be pretty reasonable, but we'd recommend searching around for quotes - particularly if you're a new driver.

Unfortunately the Renault Clio is not quite as gently absorbing over ruts and potholes as previous models, resulting in the car jiggling a little too much for our taste.

The flipside is the Clio now handles with greater accuracy and control. You get steering with quicker inputs, though no more feel, while cornering grip is up there with the Fiesta’s.

All of this comes as a bit of a disappointment during the vast majority of driving time in the Clio. While it’s great fun to point down a country lane for a bit of old-fashioned small hatch enjoyment, it’s not as plush or cosseting on city streets or motorways as the previous Clio. There’s too much emphasis on the sporty side and not enough on comfort.

The latest Renault Clio was initially offered with a range of 1.0- and 1.3-litre petrol engines. We'd avoid the lower-powered 1.0-litre SCe - with just 75PS, it felt quite underpowered, even in a small car like the Clio.

Today, the entry-level Renault Clio comes with a 90PS turbocharged 1.0-litre engine which comes with a six-speed manual gearbox. With 0-62mph acceleration in 12.2 seconds, it's quite slow, but will do the job for new drivers or pottering around town.

Our engine of choice is the E-Tech hybrid, though. With its 1.6-litre petrol engine, twin electric motors and clutchless automatic gearbox, the Clio E-Tech can set off under electric power alone and return impressive fuel economy during real-world driving. It's not the most refined choice - the petrol engine makes quite a spectacle of jumping into life once you've exhausted the capabilities of the electric motors - but it's easy to drive and noticeably keener to respond than the petrol model.

Every Renault Clio comes with twin front, side and curtain airbags, ESP traction and stability control. A tyre pressure monitoring system is fitted, though Renault only supplies a puncture repair kit.

You do get a lane departure warning in all Clios, along with lane keep assist. There’s a traffic sign recognition system and a distance warning alert, while hill start assist stops the car rolling backwards as you pull away on inclines.

Frustratingly, only high-spec models have the option of the Traffic and Motorway Assistance Pack with blind spot warning, auto hold electronic parking brake, and Traffic Jam Companion with adaptive cruise control and lane centring.

The Renault Clio Evolution comes with 16-inch alloy wheels, rear electric windows, 60:40 folding rear seats, automatic air conditioning, heated rear windscreen, grey fabric seats, a synthetic leather steering wheel, LED lights, automatic windscreen wipers, ISOFIX child seat fixing points on rear outermost seats, automatic emergency braking (AEBS) with emergency brake assist (EBA), anti-lock braking system (ABS), lane keep assist (LKA) with lane departure warning (LDW), hill start assist (HSA), emergency call system, distance warning alert, traffic sign recognition, cruise control with speed limiter, eco mode driving function and rear parking sensors.

The Renault Clio Techno adds 17-inch monastella alloy wheels with grey/black inserts, F1 blade in body colour, chrome exterior styling, shark fin antenna, automatic electronic parking brake with auto hold, central console with armrest & storage, driver and passenger seat height adjustment, tinted rear windows, techno black fabric seats - fabric with synthetic leather, mottled grey interior including roof and a-pillars, top grain synthetic leather steering wheel, electrochromatic rear view mirror with light and rain sensor, auto high low beam (AHL), front LED roof lights x2 + LED rear roof lights x2, multi-sense including ambient lighting, wireless phone charger, traffic sign recognition with over speed prevention, front and rear parking sensors, rear camera.

The top-spec Renault Clio Esprit Alpine adds 17-inch Esprit Alpine diamond cut alloy wheels with blue/grey Alpine hub cap depending on body colour, F1 blade in matt shadow grey, Esprit Alpine fabric seats with synthetic leather detailing, a heated steering wheel, electrochromatic rear view mirror with light and rain sensor - frameless, heated front seats, 9.3-inch Easylink touchscreen with navigation built-in navigation + Wi-Fi smartphone integration compatible with Apple CarPlay / Android Auto + Arkamys speakers x6 inc. 2 boomer + 2 tweeter + 2 bicone, 2xUSB, 1x jack + Bluetooth, 10-inch driver information display, adaptive cruise control with speed limiter, blind spot warning, rear cross traffic alert.