Motoring News
28 March 2015Renaultsport eyes hot Captur and Kadjar models
This Autocar image shows how a hot version of the Renault Captur could look
Renault will follow the example set by Nissan and offer performance-oriented versions of its growing SUV line-up
Hot versions of Renault’s latest crossovers, the Captur and Kadjar, could be on sale within a couple of years if investigations under way at Renaultsport prove them viable for production. Renault bosses are said to be interested in the success and strong sales of Nissan’s Juke Nismo. Patrice Ratti, CEO of Renault’s independently minded performance division, which last year generated a £500 million turnover from production of 35,000 cars, said the company is investigating the idea now.Ratti cited three “areas for investigation”. Renaultsport must discover whether production of faster crossovers would be feasible where the standard cars are made. It must find out if appropriate performance changes could be made within a reasonable budget. It must also work out whether Renaultsport customers would want such models.Ratti added that the company is proud of its reputation for building top performance hatchbacks and has just launched a sportier, RS 220 version of its fast-selling Clio RS 200 to counter criticism of ‘softness’. As a result, any go-faster RS crossover would have to meet buyers’
read moreRover 2000 versus European Car of the Year finalists
The Rover 2000 was named European Car of the Year in 1964
The first European Car of the Year was the Rover 2000. Today, 51 years on, can it still teach the current crop a thing or two?
Mortefontaine, just north of Paris, 17 February. It’s the annual European Car of the Year (COTY) test event, with nearly every member of the 58-strong jury, representing 22 countries, gathered at the CERAM motor industry test facility to try out this year’s seven-car ranges shortlisted for COTY 2015 and pick a winner.This year, however, there’s an eighth model, a car that doesn’t have to beat any rivals, because it already has. It’s a Rover 2000, the first car to be crowned Car of the Year, and it has returned to demonstrate just how much has changed – and how little – since the award began in 1964.In the 11 October 1963 issue, Autocar in its road test rated the Rover 2000 as “one of the outstanding cars of the decade”. There were many reasons for this, mostly centred around technical innovation, plentiful safety features (including four-wheel disc brakes), a feeling of quality, tenacious roadholding and a remarkable ride.Such attributes are just as important today, although the new-century emphasis on fuel economy and emissions didn’t worry the judges so much back in 1964. Nor did panel gaps as wide as your little finger, the result of cladding a rigid base unit with entirely bolt-on skin panels.The idea was to drive a Rover 2000 to CERAM, get several judges from several countries to make some sage observations about the state of half a century’s progress, remind myself of the attributes of this year’s crop (I, l
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