2025 Renault Clio E-Tech Hybrid

E-Tech

1.6L I4 Full Hybrid

A deliberately simple 1.6 four (no turbo, no variable timing) backed by two electric motors and a clutchless dog gearbox, so the car always pulls away in pure electric and shifts with EV-like smoothness. The result feels more electric than petrol around town.

Renault's E-Tech full-hybrid system, launched in 2020 on the Clio, Captur and Mégane, with a two-motor series-parallel layout and a 'dogbox' gearbox. The architecture is protected by over 150 patents, many drawing on Formula 1 energy-recovery thinking.

• The gearbox borrows the friction-free dog-clutch (dogbox) principle from racing, but uses the electric motors to synchronise shifts so there is no clutch or synchromesh at all.
• Roughly a third of the system's 150-plus patents cover the gearbox alone.
• A second, smaller high-voltage motor spins the gearbox up to speed and also serves as the engine's starter, enabling fully electric launches.