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FIRST REPORT Our time with the super-green Renault Clio TCe has ended, but replacing it is the super-mean, super-lean RS 200 Turbo
If I'm honest, the RS is the Clio that I've always been waiting for. I was as keen as mustard to try the new, Mk4 Clio as soon as it came out, and that first opportunity came in the form of our 0.9 TCe model. We've spent three months with the smallest Clio in the range, racking up the miles and trying to prove that its 88bhp three-cylinder engine is just as usable every day as a more powerful variant.
It has proven to be a capable companion, just as much at home on a long motorway journey as on the short urban commute. We even managed to coax some driving eqjoyment from the little Clio, and provided that you're ready to work the engine hard enough, the TCe can be an engaging car to drive.
That said, there are some aspects of the Clio TCe that I'm glad to see the back of. I couldn't get on with the standard MediaNav infotainment and navigation system, which was clunky, slow to use and suffered from frustrating glitches.
The car wasn't overly fuel-efficient, either. We didn't manage to get close to the 65.7mpg that Renault claims the car can do, instead managing economy only in the mid-40s with our greenest driving shoes on.
With its downsized 1.6-litre turbo engine, the...