Renault Sport Clio 182 CUP

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In 1999 Renault decided it was about time they revived their sporting pedigree and presented the first officially branded Renault Sport Clio succeeding the brilliant Clio 16v and Clio Williams.

Launched firstly as a 172 based on the humble MkIII three door Clio but with wider arches, restyled bumpers, side skirts and pokey 2.0 lump. It was followed later in 2004 by the refreshed Clio 182 packing 180bhp – rather a lot for a featherweight hot hatch at the time.

In addition to the RS182, was another more track focused, hardcore model, the CUP edition, raved about by EVO magazine at its launch. It featured a specific CUP chassis and style pack including restyled front splitter, rear spoiler, wider chassis track (60mm against 54) with strengthened hubs, lowered suspension, stiffer shocks, springs and anthracite alloy wheels along with a paired back, light weight interior. CUP cars were only available in J45 Racing Blue, or D38 inferno Orange.

This 2005 Racing Blue example has been cossetted by its four owners, spending more time under cover than on the road. The car’s history is excellent, showing ten stamps in the service book, the last stamped at 63,886 miles in March 2018 by Autocare Hereford. The first three were all carried out by Renault main dealers and thereafter by independent specialists. Complete with owner’s pack and Renault Sport Clio supplementary booklet the car also includes the original additional packs for oil container, Renault docs folder along with V5C, old MOTs and both keys.

There are a host of invoices on file showing regular maintenance by JD Automotive of Ludlow including routine service work plus replacement track rod ends, auxillary belt, lambda sensor, tracking and timing belt change inc. water pump in 2014 at 57,776 miles along with a pair of front coil springs costing £1025. Another invoice shows this CUP to have had a stainless cat back system fitted in 2012 by Stainless Fabs of Plymouth at a cost of £430.

The private registration pictured has been retained, and the vehicle returned to its year 2005 age-related plate WJ05 VWK. We like these a lot, but unabused examples are really hard to find – buy this, put it away, enjoy it sparingly and watch it grow in value like its fabled predecessor, the Clio Williams. A proper Modern Classic.