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TWR prototype for sale???

Chris V6 255

New Member
Just spotted this on Pistonheads

http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/ ... pe/4457743

This pre-production LHD Renaultsport Clio V6 255 is finished in Titanium Silver and has covered just 12000 km (approx. 7000 miles). Chassis VF1C61U62****001 is the first complete, fully finished and working Clio V6 Phase II with a production chassis number ending 001. It was built much earlier than any other Phase II in February 2002 and registered in June 2002. The only recorded keeper is TWR Group, Leafield Technical Centre, Langley, Witney. Notable features (differences to production version) include:

• 18” OZ Racing ‘Mito’ wheels. Custom adaptors/spacers bolted to front wheels.
• Tyres 255/40/18 Rear 215/35/18 Front. Michelin Pilot Sport.
• Front grille (version fitted is as pictured on Clio V6 parts fiche)
• Wheel arch liners have large white writing on the hidden side ‘piece valable uniquement pour essai conditionement’ which means roughly ‘part only valid for test use’. Also some names and a date ‘02 2002’.
• Rear boot carpet carries a label with text ‘Alpine. Sample’
• Plenum chamber badges are metal embossed (but the same design as the production version).
• Plenum chamber and other engine parts have temperature strips fitted.
• All coolant hoses have plumbed in temperature sensors to green wiring.
• Exhaust has plumbed in temperature sensors.
• Expansion bottle and plenum chamber have blue anodised pressure connectors.
• Lower engine cover carries text ‘Random Glass’ and has measurements of thickness tested at various points written on the inside.
• Lower cover has blue temperature strips stuck on in various places.
• Top engine cover is pre-production sample.
• Steering wheel is light grey leather with no texture.
• Trim panel above glove box has slots cut for hangers for data logger, laptop or similar. There are cable tidies stuck to the RH side of the glove box.
• No Xenon lights. (Auto lights, cruise control, rain sensing wipers all present).
• Front bumper has coarse inner fibre glass and lacks definition. Holes drilled for easy removal of headlamps have been filled. Pre-production version.
• Rear brake callipers and discs were missing. Production items have been fitted. Possibly a different size / brand were trialled.
• RHD mirrors fitted in Iceberg. (Now painted Titanium).
• Wing to body seals are blended as Phase II but not production quality.
• Radio illumination is white.
• Rear spoiler is smaller and not colour coded.
• Tailgate rams open fully as per Phase I.
• Exhaust note is different. Subjectively feels faster than regular Phase II.


Nice piece of history to own but joe public would just think it is a badly modded 1.2 :rollseyes:
 
Possibly some similarities:
I was at the SWVA classic car auction yesterday, near Poole, Dorset.
Lot 50 was: "Austin Healey 100/4 Le Mans Pre Production 1953 entered into the July 31st Classic Car Auction.

We are delighted to offer for auction, what can only be described as a piece of motoring history. NUE855 is an Austin Healey 100 Le Mans (M) right hand drive and is number 19 of 20 planned pre production models built by the Donald Healey Motor Company in Warwick prior to production at Longbridge. Only 19 were built in total (as it is believed AHX10 was never built at all). These 19 cars were produced for publicity tours and for the press and members of the public to inspect. Due to many of the cars remaining unregistered to avoid purchase tax, most of them were consequently scrapped meaning that very few of them remain today (it is believed no more than 10 survive)." The details continue on: http://www.swva.co.uk/lot-50-austin-hea ... tion-1953/ - but will probably be moved to the 'Classic Car Auction results' link early next week.

The Estimated sale price was £60,000 - 80,000. Sold price = £155,000!! Add to that buyers premium @ 6% (£9,300) + VAT (£1,860) = £166,160. Fast forward some years and perhaps the TWR car could be a smart buy.
 
What a fascinating car David, and I'm sure you're right about the Clio V6 prototype standing out from 'the crowd', although in the case of the Clio, it's a very small crowd!

The 'first' and the 'last' desirable classic cars do seem attract quite a premium over the mainstream cars, with prototype or pre-production cars commanding one-off sums of money. Pre-production cars shouldn't really exist as manufacturers usually insist on them being scrapped, but a few obviously got away.

For me the ultimate Clio V6 has to be the Tom Walkinshaw Ph1 car, which sold only a few years ago for normal money for a Ph1. I'm sure that the next time it changes hands it will be for a large sum. The other is the yellow pre-production car T649 BFC, photographed with Tom Walkinshaw and Daniel Audetto in the Clio V6 Story book.

I have a chunk of the bumper of that car, bought with a load of other bits salvaged from the scrapyard when TWR was cleared out when it folded. The chap I bought the bits from watched as the yellow car was crushed, and with 3 others in the queue awaiting the same fate. I wonder if any of the Ph1 prototype cars survived?


[album]15006[/album]
 
That is indeed an interesting car, and owned by the same owner for 60 years.

Seems like not having the original engine didn't affect the price. Its provenance is without question though.

Fascinating!
 
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