From 1989 to 1997, the Williams-Renault F1 team was highly successful in the Formula One World Championship. But the UK based Williams company was not involved in the development or production of the Renault Clio Williams, introduced in 1993. It was a Williams in name only, as this pitbull of a hatchback was entirely the work of Renault Sport.
More specifically, the Clio Williams was a rallysport homologation special. To compete in its class (with a maximum displacement of 2,000 cc), at least 2,500 road cars had to be built. Renault Sport had an excellent starting point for their mission, the sporty Clio 1.8 16v.
The track width was increased by 34 mm and both the suspension and the 5-speed manual transmission were reinforced and modified. The Williams is powered by Renault’s F7R inline-4, a naturally aspirated 2.0 liter DOHC 16v engine. Its maximum power output is 147 DIN-hp @ 6,100 rpm. In the road cars, that is.
The Renault Clio subcompact (B-segment) hatchback was launched in 1990, it superseded the 1984 second generation of the R5. The current generation of the Clio is available as a hatchback and wagon, the crossover based on the Clio is called the Captur.
Some of its direct European competitors were -and still are- the Volkswagen Polo, the Opel Corsa, the Ford Fiesta and the Peugeot 205 (and later 206, 207 and 208). Examples of Japanese and South-Korean competitors are the Toyota Yaris, Mazda 2, Kia Rio and Hyundai i20.
The Williams I caught is a Clio Mk1 Phase 2, that’s the refreshed 1994 model. Selling at least 2,500 units of the original 1993 Williams Phase 1 was easily achieved. Given its commercial success, Renault decided to continue the production of the Williams and released the Phase 2 and later on even a Phase 3. The Williams Phase 1, with a numbered small plaque on the dashboard, is considered to be the most desirable now.
Regardless the phase they represent, all of them have golden 15” Speedline rims.
The interior of a Phase 1. The small, metal plaque can be seen left of the center air vents.
The Williams’ initial color was Blue Sport 449, somewhere in 1995 (according to a Dutch Clio Williams forum) it changed to a different shade, called 432 Blue Methyl.
Allez, now it’s about time to see one in action, going around the Nürburgring.
The Peugeot 205 GTI ruled the eighties, the Renault Clio Williams took its crown in the nineties. What a pure beastie it is!
Sharp car! I always liked this generation of Clio`s. I had one myself, well not a Williams, just a 1.2 RN 2 door in red. Nice little car. Back in the days my sister and me watch often formula one on tv. I remember that Renault was very succesfull with the Williams and later Bennetton team.
The successor doesn´t appeal to me.
Great post Johannes. And thank you for all your excellent posts in the last several years. You’ve highlighted so many cars I wish had been sold in North America. I love that interior.
Thanks Daniel!
I think you’ve helped convince some North America readers that the European market offers many cars/trucks/buses as competitive or better than what we have here.
Every continent/region gets and drives the vehicles that fulfill the “local” needs best, including meeting the region’s (legal) standards when it comes to these vehicles.
When focusing on big commercial vehicles (heavy-duty trucks and bus chassis) though, it is a fact that the Old World’s manufacturers have spread their tentacles all over the globe -very successfully- in the past decades, especially Volvo and Daimler. To a somewhat lesser extent also VAG (through MAN and Scania) and Iveco.
When I was a child, there was an ever present diverse mix of unique cars from the continent on Canadian roads. I really miss those days. In many ways their advanced engineering foretold the future of automotive design. I was always most impressed at small car technology that made the most of their small footprint. European designs showed us how well packaged cars could be. I remember being stunned the first time I examined a Citroen DS up close. The more exposure to the best the world has to offer, the better.
It is much more difficult to build a good and practical small car than a good and practical big car. And since the subject is Renault, they happen to be damn good at building super-efficient small and compact vehicles, both passenger cars and commercial vehicles.
Nice car, of a genre not really seen in the US, our smallest hot hatches typically being Golf GTI or Focus class. Well, except for the short-lived Suzuki Swift GTi. And the Williams name wouldn’t have much cachet today; I just checked, and Williams drivers are 17th and 20th in current Formula 1 points standings. Out of 20. Renault drivers are in 8th and 12th. Not great either.
You skipped the drivers 5. and 6.
I just checked, and Williams drivers are 17th and 20th in current Formula 1 points standings. Out of 20. Renault drivers are in 8th and 12th. Not great either.
It was a different situation in the early 90s, when the engineers at Williams and Renault got their sums right. I remember Nigel Mansell being quoted in 92, words to the effect “a monkey could win the championship driving that car”
I no longer get the check box at the bottom of the post window to subscribe to a particular thread, nor do I receive e-mail alerts that new comments have been posted to a thread I have commented on. Is this usual, or am I “special”?
Different situation to put it mildly. This year the Williams team is the joke of F1, having it’s butt handed to them on a platter by Sauber/Alfa Romeo, who for years finished every race 19th and 20th.
Williams actually did quite respectable two seasons ago, when they put the Martini colors back on the cars, but the last two redesigns have performed horribly.
And the 5th and 6th place drivers are Red Bull, Verstappen and Riciardo. Who are, essentially, THE competitive Renault powered cars. Except they’ve been having lots of mechanical problems these last few races.
Williams and McLaren dominated F1 in the 80s, both sad also-rans today.
Red Bull gets Honda engines next year. Verstappen stays, Ricciardo goes (to the Renault team).
Honda didn’t do very well in F1 either in the past years. But they seem to be on the way up, reliability- and performance-wise.
For now, Mercedes-Benz and Ferrari are the king pins.
How was the build quality and reliability of these. Good looking car and I love the interior. While Renault was in the USA, they’d developed a reputation as a car you wanted to run away from.
As you can see it looks quite decent for a 24 years old, boiling hot hatch.
We had a Clio 1.2 in 1991 and than another in 96. Excellent cars – comfortable, light, spacious, decent to drive, reliable.
Williams and F1 now is a complex story of ambition, history, power units and (mostly) money and factory teams. But to many British F1 fans, including me, they are one of the greatest teams in the sport, with a great history and huge achievement list. After all, at one point Frank Williams was doing his business out of a telephone box, has been quadriplegic for 30 years, and Williams are now building an advanced engineering business around future technologies.