New Clio scoops 2012 ‘Golden Steering Wheel’ award

Just weeks after claiming the RTL/Auto Plus ‘Best Production Car’ prize at last month’s Paris Motor Show, New Clio has scooped another international award in the form of the 2012 ‘Golden Steering Wheel’ which was presented to Stefan Mueller, Executive Vice President, Chairman of Europe Region, at a special ceremony in Berlin, Germany, yesterday evening.
 
New Clio was named best ‘Small Car’ by the Axel Springer Group’s weekly BILD am SONNTAG, Germany’s best-selling Sunday publication, and AutoBILD, the world’s best-selling car magazine. In addition to its European sister magazines including Auto Express in the UK, AutoBILD produces numerous local editions in eastern Europe and Asia. Total readership amounts to some 73 million, all of whom were invited to vote for their favourite model.
 
Now in their 37th year, the 2012 Gold Steering Wheel awards attracted 44 entries divided into six categories. In the MPV and coupé/cabriolet classes, the winners were decided directly by readers. In the four other categories, the final vote was preceded by an exhaustive road test of each of the five finalists by a panel of personalities at the Balocco test facilities in Italy.
 
Drivers included Mattias Ekström, Hans-Joachim Stuck, Walter Röhrl, Christina Surer and Vanina Ickx, who were joined by the chief editors of the AutoBILD group’s European magazines, as well as by celebrities from the worlds of sport and show business, like Franz Beckenbauer and Boris Becker.
 
Renault, 10-time winner of the Golden Steering Wheel
 
The Golden Steering Wheel has been presented annually since 1976 and, with a total of ten trophies to its name, Renault is one of the award’s most successful car manufacturers. Previous models to have secured the prize are the Fuego Coupé (in 1980), the compact Renault 9 (1981), the Renault 25 (1984), Clio (1990), the second-, third- and fourth-generation Espace (1991, 1997 and 2002), the Renault 19 (1992), the Scénic MPV (2009) and, now, New Clio (2012).
 
The reasons behind the praise for New Clio
 
The vote by readers and by specialists mirrors the favourable welcome Renault’s latest styling identity has received from the public. New Clio is the first model to feature Renault’s new design cues, the most notable of which is the prominently-positioned logo, along with the emotion generated by its sensuous curves and refined lines.
 
New Clio’s appeal is further enhanced by its range of smaller engines that have given rise to fuel consumption savings of up to 20 percent over their predecessors. The most efficient engine in terms of low CO2 emissions is the turbocharged petrol ENERGY TCe 90 which returns fuel consumption of just 65.7mpg, equivalent to CO2 emissions of 99g/km.
 
With the diesel ENERGY dCi 90 eco² under the bonnet, New Clio has established a new fuel efficiency record for its class, with consumption of only 88.3mpg, equivalent to 83g of CO2/km. These figures are comparable with those of significantly more expensive hybrid cars.
 
Thanks to its architecture, suspension, extended wheelbase and wider track, the chassis of New Clio continues to stand out as a benchmark in its segment. With a five-star EuroNCAP crash test rating to its name, it is also the benchmark in terms of passive safety and obtained the best score in the small car class in three of the four parameters that are taken into account.
 
Another of New Clio’s compelling features is its in-dash multimedia system which sets a new standard in the model’s segment. The Media Nav system comes with a seven-inch (18cm) touchscreen display and incorporates a 4x20-Watt audio system complete with the Bass Reflex System, plus comprehensive connectivity (Bluetooth®, USB, jack) which allows occupants to enjoy music stored on portable devices.