The seven greatest Renault road cars ever

Renault have always produced cars I find ‘interesting’ and that’s a trait I love. Why opt for the boring reliable choice, when you could buy the car that has the optional extra of ‘va va voom?’ And you can’t put a price on ‘va va voom’…

In its history, Renault’s approach to car design has resulted in some unforgettable cars which leaves it with a portfolio that’s hard to beat for variety and fun. I can tell there may be a large percentage of readers who aren't convinced, so let me take you through the best Renault road cars of all time and inject a bit of ‘va va voom’ into your life.

Renault Clio Williams

Kicking off the list we have what is considered one of the greatest hot hatches of all time. If there is one genre that French manufacturers have always excelled in, it’s the hot hatch. The Clio Williams was the first real contender to wrestle that crown away from the Peugeot 205 GTi. Even today, when choosing the perfect car to tackle a challenging British B-road, the Renault Clio Williams is hard to beat for pure driving fun.

Love ‘90s hot hatchbacks? Watch our video, the best hot hatchbacks of the 1990s.

Renault 5 Turbo 2

The Renault 5 Turbo 2 holds a special place in the hearts of many motoring enthusiasts. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone that wasn’t a fan of the Renault 5 Turbo. 

The original 5 Turbo was a homologation to comply with Group 4 rules, with the Renault 5 Turbo 2 using more stock Renault parts. A design they’d go on to replicate more recently, the flared wheel-arch and beefier (boeufier?) version of the everyday hatchback was an instant winner. 

Renault Clio V6

If there was a car to summarise why I love Renault, it is the Clio V6. I’m regularly told that it was a pretty poor car to drive, but that doesn’t take away any of the appeal. Someone in Renault HQ made the decision to replace the rear seats of a Clio with a 3.0-litre V6 and I don’t know how anyone can react to that other than to applaud. 

Renault Sport Spider

It may not have been a commercial success, but the Renault Sport Spider was a key car in returning a sporty image to Renault in the late ‘90s. It borrowed that sweet 2.0-litre engine from the Clio Williams and placed it into a lighter all-aluminium chassis weighing just 930kg making it a lot of fun to drive. 

Renault Megane R26.R

Probably the definition of a marmite car, the design of the late ‘00s Megane certainly caused debate. The advertising campaign centred strongly around the rather large rear-end and the shaking of the arse. As soon as the R26.R version was released, it was not the bums that were wagging, it was the tongues.

Out-performing the Porsche Cayman S around the Nürburgring, it really showed what stripping all the weight out of a car can really do. Renault managed to strip 120kg from the standard Megane R26 with power remaining the same at 230PS (169kw). This resulted in a lap time around the Green Hell of just 8 minutes and 16.9 seconds.

Megane RS 275 Trophy R

Following on from its predecessor, Renault went a bit over the top with this hot Megane. True to form, it claimed its Nürburgring lap record, but that’s not why this particular Megane grabbed the headlines. The reason why the RS 275 Trophy R was the talking point in the motoring world was the rather ambitious price tag of £72,000. Even I’m struggling to defend them for that.

Renault Avantime

The final entry may raise a few eyebrows, but just give me a second to explain. If there was ever a car that epitomizes why you should love Renault, it is this. The Avantime is a massive middle finger to conformity. What other car manufacturer would decide to make a two-door pillarless people carrier? C’est magnifique.

Renault 5 Turbo 2 image courtesy of Bonhams.