During the past 25 years, the ClioSport website has gone through many changes.
Below is a brief overview of the various changes that have happened, and a look back at how things used to look for those of you not old enough to remember!
2000 - eGroups
On September 17th 2000, an online group called ClioSport172 was set up on the website www.egroups.com (which around the same time merged into Yahoo! Groups). The description of this group was "A Group of Clio 172 owners swapping knowledge + arguments etc!!". The groups system was very basic but allowed simple discussions and a section for photos to be posted.
The RenaultSport Clio 172 had recently been launched by Renault, and a number of people started to use the group to discuss their opinions after taking ownership or awaiting delivery of their new 172's. One such member was Jason Thomas (Jas), who had taken delivery of his 172 a week earlier, after previously owning a Clio 16v.
Jas quickly started to become a regular poster, and began arranging meets in his local area (Essex), in collaboration with users of the Clio 16v egroup. In October 2000, Jas announced to the egroup that he was setting up a website for everyone at www.cliosport.net, which also had a discussion forum. ClioSport was born!
2001 - ClioSport.net foundations
By early 2001, the basic elements of the ClioSport website were developed, with detailed Car Specifications, Buyers Guide, Tuning Guide, Interior and Exterior Styling tips, Press Articles and reviews, a Photo Gallery, and of course the all important Discussion Forum, which formed the basis of the community and club that we know today.
2002 - The 'Blue' Forum (phpBB)
In 2002, ClioSport had evolved from being just a website to an owners club, taking paid memberships at a charge of £2, which included a laminated membership card, and full access to the forum, club discounts, club events and prize draws.
The website had been enhanced graphically, and there was the addition of an online merchandise shop allowing users to purchase membership, club logo car stickers, and keyrings.
By the end of the year there were around 500 members on the site.
Over the next four years the club grew from strength to strength, growing to over 1000 members.
2006 - A much needed upgrade! (vBulletin)
In 2006 Cliosport went through a major change, moving to the vBulletin forum platform. The old forum had overgrown its intended capacity, and was struggling to handle the number of users that were now online at peak periods, so a major upgrade was required.
With the problems of the old forum, and the move over to the new forum to contend with, the admin team at the time decided to stop paid memberships and the posting out of membership cards in an attempt to streamline the running of the site. Memberships were later resumed at the usual £5 rate, which simply provided an increased level of forum access and features.
2008 - A fresh start and a new look
In 2008 a largely new admin team focussed their efforts on bringing back some of the old elements of the club, specifically reinstating the membership packs. The new packs included a credit card style membership card, club sticker, keyring, and promotional flyers.
A decision was made to invest in the clubs future and the website was rebranded with a new logo. The logo now reflects the badges of the newer generation of RenaultSport Clio's, whilst still respecting the early years of the Clio. A new homepage was also built.
In addition to the new membership packs, new merchandise and event equipment was purchased sporting the new logo to give the club a more significant presence at national events.
2010
In 2010, marking the 10th anniversary of the club, the site moved to vBulletin v4, a major change both visually and technically. The homepage was replaced with a new content management system, which helped the admin team to keep the home page current, and allow articles to be created from members forum threads. New content was steadily created, with the intention that in the future there would be much more to the ClioSport.net website than just the forum alone.
There were many new features added to improve the site, offering more for members. With membership numbers at their highest ever level and growing at their fastest rate, the future was looking bright!
2012
A minor upgrade with a visual refresh and a new more usable shaped logo!
2014 - Switch to Xenforo
After a lack of development and modern features in the older vBulletin software, in 2014 the website was migrated to the Xenforo forum software platform. This meant a new look and new functions and features.
2018 - Xenforo v2
A move to the latest Xenforo v2 software meant a chance to develop a new visual theme, and bring in the new logo to match the current Renaultsport branding that had been introduced.
This is where we have remained stable for some years now, but plans for a refresh in 2026 are in progress.
Below is a brief overview of the various changes that have happened, and a look back at how things used to look for those of you not old enough to remember!
2000 - eGroups
On September 17th 2000, an online group called ClioSport172 was set up on the website www.egroups.com (which around the same time merged into Yahoo! Groups). The description of this group was "A Group of Clio 172 owners swapping knowledge + arguments etc!!". The groups system was very basic but allowed simple discussions and a section for photos to be posted.
The RenaultSport Clio 172 had recently been launched by Renault, and a number of people started to use the group to discuss their opinions after taking ownership or awaiting delivery of their new 172's. One such member was Jason Thomas (Jas), who had taken delivery of his 172 a week earlier, after previously owning a Clio 16v.
Jas quickly started to become a regular poster, and began arranging meets in his local area (Essex), in collaboration with users of the Clio 16v egroup. In October 2000, Jas announced to the egroup that he was setting up a website for everyone at www.cliosport.net, which also had a discussion forum. ClioSport was born!
2001 - ClioSport.net foundations
By early 2001, the basic elements of the ClioSport website were developed, with detailed Car Specifications, Buyers Guide, Tuning Guide, Interior and Exterior Styling tips, Press Articles and reviews, a Photo Gallery, and of course the all important Discussion Forum, which formed the basis of the community and club that we know today.
2002 - The 'Blue' Forum (phpBB)
In 2002, ClioSport had evolved from being just a website to an owners club, taking paid memberships at a charge of £2, which included a laminated membership card, and full access to the forum, club discounts, club events and prize draws.
The website had been enhanced graphically, and there was the addition of an online merchandise shop allowing users to purchase membership, club logo car stickers, and keyrings.
By the end of the year there were around 500 members on the site.
Over the next four years the club grew from strength to strength, growing to over 1000 members.
2006 - A much needed upgrade! (vBulletin)
In 2006 Cliosport went through a major change, moving to the vBulletin forum platform. The old forum had overgrown its intended capacity, and was struggling to handle the number of users that were now online at peak periods, so a major upgrade was required.
With the problems of the old forum, and the move over to the new forum to contend with, the admin team at the time decided to stop paid memberships and the posting out of membership cards in an attempt to streamline the running of the site. Memberships were later resumed at the usual £5 rate, which simply provided an increased level of forum access and features.
2008 - A fresh start and a new look
In 2008 a largely new admin team focussed their efforts on bringing back some of the old elements of the club, specifically reinstating the membership packs. The new packs included a credit card style membership card, club sticker, keyring, and promotional flyers.
A decision was made to invest in the clubs future and the website was rebranded with a new logo. The logo now reflects the badges of the newer generation of RenaultSport Clio's, whilst still respecting the early years of the Clio. A new homepage was also built.
In addition to the new membership packs, new merchandise and event equipment was purchased sporting the new logo to give the club a more significant presence at national events.
2010
In 2010, marking the 10th anniversary of the club, the site moved to vBulletin v4, a major change both visually and technically. The homepage was replaced with a new content management system, which helped the admin team to keep the home page current, and allow articles to be created from members forum threads. New content was steadily created, with the intention that in the future there would be much more to the ClioSport.net website than just the forum alone.
There were many new features added to improve the site, offering more for members. With membership numbers at their highest ever level and growing at their fastest rate, the future was looking bright!
2012
A minor upgrade with a visual refresh and a new more usable shaped logo!
2014 - Switch to Xenforo
After a lack of development and modern features in the older vBulletin software, in 2014 the website was migrated to the Xenforo forum software platform. This meant a new look and new functions and features.
2018 - Xenforo v2
A move to the latest Xenforo v2 software meant a chance to develop a new visual theme, and bring in the new logo to match the current Renaultsport branding that had been introduced.
This is where we have remained stable for some years now, but plans for a refresh in 2026 are in progress.
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