ThesameappliestotheRS-markedBridgestone
PotenzaS007tyres,whichtradeprogressivegrip
drop-offformorebiteandhigh-temperature
performance.TheÖhlinsdampersareadjustable,
asarethesprings,aspecialtoolallowinga
ride-heightdropofupto16mmfortrackuse.But
RenaultclaimstheRisadeptevenonbumpyroads,
althoughadmitsitdoesn’ttestintheUK.
Theweight-savingisobsessive.Here’sa
run-down:thenewrearaxlesheds32kg,ditching
therearbenchisa25.3kgsaving,thetitanium
Akrapovicexhaustis7kglighter,anoptionallithium
batteryremoves4.1kgfromthenose,andtherear
sideglassisthinnerandnowfi xed,saving1kg.
Itgoeson.There’snorearwiper–that’s3kg
savedforthewiperarm,motorandharness.The
bootcarpet?1.3kgless.Thefrontbumperloses
1.8kg,thecarbonfibr eandglassfibrebonnet(with
NACAcoolingductandheat-extractingvents)isa
full7.3kglighter.
Thewheelsare1.9kglighterpercornerthanthe
regularTrophy’s,butchoosetheCarbonCeramic
Pack,withitscarbonfibr ewheelsproducedatarate
oftwoperdaybyCarbonRevolutioninAustralia,
andyoushedafurther2.1kgperwheel.Thepack
alsobringsBrembocarbon-ceramicbrakes,extra
coolingductsinthefrontbumper(replacingthe
‘RSVision’fogandcorneringlightunits,andsaving
2kg),andthatbeautifulandeffectivecarbonrear
diffus er,whichhas30percentmoresurfacearea
thanthestandarditem,istwiceasefficientand
savesanother2.3kg.ThetipsoftheAkrapovic
systemareslash-cuttothesameprofile.
Theinteriorisspecialtoo.Gorgeous16kgSabelt
seatsreplacethestandard21kgchairs.A7-inch
‘THESPRINGS
ARE ADJUSTABLE,
A SPECIAL TOOL
ALLOWINGA RIDE-
HEIGHTDROPOF
UPTO16MM’
IGNITION
infotainmentdisplayreplacestheusual,larger
portraitscreen.Thismeanslessweight,andequally
importantlyforsometheairconcontrolsarenow
‘proper’knobsandswitches.Thesteeringwheel
isAlcantaratrimmed,whileinthebackthere’sa
bracingbarthatalsoservesasafi xingpointforan
optiontoholdfourwheelsandtyresfortrackday
use–neatlyaccessiblethroughthereardoors.
Ifyou’rethinkingnoneofthissoundscheap,
you’dberight.UKpricingisyettobeconfirme d,but
thebasepriceinFrancewillbe€55,000(c£49,200),
whilethedesirableCarbonCeramicPackwilleasily
addanotherfi ve-figur esum.Intotal500Rswillbe
built;theUKhasbeenallocatedjust30ofthose,
FranceandGermany100each,whiletherestwillbe
splitbetweenSwitzerlandandJapan.Andjust30of
the500willgettheCarbonCeramicPack.
Betweenthosetwobadges,then,isthemost
extremecarRenaultSporthasevermade,with
everycomponenthavingtojustifyitsworth.Andif
we’vebeenunderwhelmedbythecompany’slatest
Méganeuntilnow,theTrophy-Rmayfi nallybethe
cartomakeusreconsider.