Is it a hot hatch, a sports car or supercar?

[GPH]

The age old question for the V6 and IMO I think it is a rare car that fits no category, being a combination of all three mentioned above instead, but over on Pistonheads there was a thread about a supercar meet which stirred up the usual pompous who is allowed in and who wasn't.
One post put the following criteria which made me smile as our little Clios fit nearly every one apart, of course, from the badge snob one.......

"a supercar is a mixture of many things to me...
- badge (Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Maserati etc)
- racing heritage (F1, le mans, WRC etc) YES
- limited supply YES. ( less than common Astons, 911s)
- one of those cars you had on the wall as a kid (in red black or yellow please ) (mines yellow
- can be testing or even very testing to drive YES
- you would not want to leave it just anywhere for more than a few hours and in sight YES
- wide enough to worry most road control speed bumps and narrowing things YES
- pain in the arse turning circle . YES HILARIOUSLY SO
- low; outward and rear visibility was not top priority in the designers agenda . NO - A BONUS!
- amazing aesthetics that turn heads and get people clicking or pointing . YES MORE SO THAN MOST THIS SIDE OF A LAMBO
- not an every day hack. CAN BE
- somthing that is going up in value. YES
- over 3 litres in capacity YES
- enough to want me to give up a Sunday am to come out driving and see other enthusiasts (not show everyone how loud my exhaust is , that I can spit flames if revved hard enough and I can spin the tyres and use launch control buttons. hooorraayy well done)
HIS WORDS NOT MINE BUT YOU GET HIS DRIFT Laughable though considering supercars are now all about loud exhausts and showing off from what I've seen..........

 

[Jamesv6]

Renault Press.... Clio v6 mid engined supercar by Renaultsport.

 

[Noyzboy]

My RX-7 has been insured by REIS for years. Then I got the Vee I contacted them, but they wouldn’t touch it “cos it’s a hatchback”.!!!

Oh well…off elsewhere then!!

 

[Sunbeam Lotus]

There is no need to be in one of the above categories. Just say to a petrolhead that you have a Renault Clio V6 and it will arouse that knowing smile, that slight nod of the head and the occasional "Wow!"

A Vee is a car in its own category that is time consuming at petrol stations because someone will always come up to you to chat about it or ask if they can take a photograph!

 

[ed_harland]

Last time I was in Scotland (end of last year) I was driving to the foot of Ben Nevis, early evening just getting dusk. I had noticied a car following me for some 10 miles and was getting a little uneasy so pulled into a layby in a wooded area to let it go by. The car pulled in at the entrance to the layby some distance behind me and just sat there. Suddenly out of the woods came half a dozen moto x bikes surrounding my car riding around it like demented hornets, three of the riders jumped off got out there mobile phones and started taking photos or videos, jumped back on their bikes and roared off back into the trees. Having been diverted by this I looked into my wing mirror only to see a huge Scotsman a few steps away, I jumped out ready to throw my car keys into the undergrowth (fearing a hijack) to be confronted by an extremely nice chap who explained that the Vee was his dream car, he had wanted one since they first came out, had never seen one on the road before and would have followed me until I stopped where ever that may have been ! It was all very sureal but nothing like that has ever happened to me before despite owning some 'super' cars and having many adventures.
It could only happen with a Vee !

 

[Sunbeam Lotus]

I recently had a following incident that was rather more sinister. I was in Kent one Saturday teatime at the start of October and noticed that I was being followed by a painter's van. He followed me through Maidstone from South-East to North-West (I was heading to a Shell fuel station that I knew to fill up with Super Unleaded fuel). This involved me doing a u-turn at a roundabout, so I slowed and slotted in behind the van in the right hand lane. At the roundabout, the van shot round the roundabout like Lewis Hamilton in the F1 Mercedes and carried on North West. I turned off the roundabout and went in to fill up with fuel. After paying for the petrol, I returned to my Vee to find the painter's van behind the car once more. I smiled but there was no acknowledgement. I left the fuel station heading south-east (back towards where he had picked me up) and, of course, the van followed me out without filling up with fuel! Though a stranger to the area, I had spotted the Police Station earlier in the day so headed there. It was shut - b*gger - but a Police van was leaving the side gate so I pulled my car onto the pavement opposite and stopped. The van just pulled up behind me in the inside lane. I looked at the driver, he said nothing, so I walked across the road to the Police van that was coming through the gate. The Transit pulled away. The Police Officer said he couldn't help me as he had to go off and assist other officers but I told him that he had, in fact, helped me as the van driver had been following me. I continued my journey (to stay overnight with friends) and never saw the van again.

We googled the painter and, lo and behold, a picture of him and the (signwritten) van came up on his Facebook page. On the following Monday morning, I rang his number (my number witheld from work) and told him that I was rather unnerved by his behaviour two days earlier and asked for an explanation. He said that it "was just a coincidence". I told him I was not satisfied with that and said that if he could not explain what he was up to, I would be phoning the Police. He declined to explain himself so I reported the incident to Kent Police. A telephonist listened to my story, took down the details and was passing it to their intelligence department. I asked her to let me know if anything came of my call but, six weeks later, I have heard nothing.

As I said, this was rather unnerving. If I feel this way again, I will be looking for a petrol station or some other (witnessed) neutral ground to invite a conversation. I am lucky enough to have several interesting cars and am quite used to pleasant, spur of the moment conversations about them with fellow enthusiasts, but this incident was certainly not that.

Simon

 

[GPH]

Ed. Driving the Vee gets the heart beat going as it is, so you could do without a swarm of motocross bikers and being followed!
Simon. Yours definitely makes me think he was hoping to find out your home address........The police will do nothing unless you now complain about them doing nothing...... In my experience even if you have a car broken into (twice) and its on cctv both times you still never hear anything.
Thankfully I have always only ever had positive reactions to the car which according to many Ferrari owners is not the case for them in this country anymore, so thank heavens the Clio is not your regular supercar!

 

[ed_harland]

I think it all adds to the overall experience of owning one (or two). I've only ever had positive reaction to the car in all the thirteen years of ownership.
Have you noticed how other drivers let you out at junctions etc. In a Ferrrari you'd be stuck there forever!
So my answer to the title of this thread is 'it's all of them' a hot hatch, a sports car and a supercar. Add a daily driver and a touring car. Oh and a real fun track car ! Oh and on top of that almost totally reliable and cheap to run. I could go on it just gets better and better !

 

[Lankan]

Interesting thread, and agree with most of what has been mentioned above as regards the Vee, and where it fits in the spectrum of motors that have a special significance.

Never had a bad experience along the lines of what Simon describes above, only positive reactions/experiences so far. Would certainly have been rather perturbed if something like that did happen though. Simon, sincerely hope that the one you describe above will be your first, and last, experience.