Top Car

OUR CARSJanuary 2016|TOPCAR.CO.ZA 105``````WHILE SWEATINGATthe lights on the way to theairport – the Clio’s stop/start system cuts both th eengine and the air-con –the ot her day, two oldsayings came to mind: size matters, and, thereain’t no repl acement for displacement. Theinternalcombustion engine beneath my bonnethas a swept volume of 898c c while the one inthe three-year-old C63 AMG inthe lanealongside measures 6208c c. Not a fairfight Iknow, and yet, we’re both obligated to cruisealong the highway at no more than 120kph withhis fuel pump squirting almost atomisedunleaded into eigh t cyli nders (or should that bebuckets?) and mine into just three (thimbles?).How quickly he got to 120kph and how muchfaster he could stillgo are completel y irrelevanthere on this speed-regulated public road. Allthat really matters is how much fuel we use andhow many grammes of carbon dioxide we spew.Not a fairfight, I know. So size doesn’t matter``````LOGBOOKRENAULT CLIO GT-LINE>Odo reading start/now6 155/11 226km>Distance covered5 071km>Fuel consumed354.54ℓ>Average fuel consumption6.99ℓ/100km>Service inter val1-year/15 000km>Service costCovered by3-year/4 5 000kmservice plan>Total fuel costR4 42 1.51>Running cost87c/kmMatters of sizeWhen less-than-a-litr e is more than six point two. ByWayne BattyMONTH 4RENAULTCLIOGT-LINEand I win.There’s a new C63 on sale no w, with a radicallydownsized turbocharged engine measurin g3982cc and it, much like the downsized turbo inmy Clio, exists only beca use of European Unionregulations aimed at reducing harmfu l levels ofCO2 inthe atmosphere. These new-fangledturbocharged motors performparticularly wellinthe officialNew European Driving Cycle fuelconsumption tests – a monstrously unrealisticset of shor t, slow urban and extra-urban drivingsimulations.Our Clio recorded an officialNEDC figure ofjust 4.5ℓ/100km. Now properly run-in, I triedthis month to see just how close I could get bydriving as ifEarth itselfwas on the line. Withmind- and throttle response-numbing Ecomode enga ged I managed 637km on 42.27 litr esequating to 6.64ℓ/100km. Prettygoodconsidering that involved a properly real-worldmix of stop-startsuburb , citydriving andheavily trafficked freeway commuting split overeigh t days. V8 wanted, but not required.``````Lessthirstythana V8Not asfrugalas claimed``````Ups/downsPHOTOGRAPHY:PEET MOCKE