I also hired a Renault Clio 1.2 Turbo a few months ago on holiday. I also felt a similar symptom with the throttle response. It was either on or off and in-between was a slight hesitation. As Renault and Nissan share many components then I assume this behavior could be normal on many newer cars.

Hi. It certainly improved the symptom but never completely eliminated it. I eventually changed the coil packs, then spark plugs and then the throttle pedal. After all that and no difference. Spark plug colour was fine, neither lean nor rich. Luckily the coil packs, MAF sensor and throttle pedal wher...

Quick update.

Engine hesitation during very light throttle has been fixed.
Turned out that the O2 sensor was not tightened onto exhaust. It was virtually loose. Tightened and the problem went away. If only I had known earlier.

I have recently purchased a 2009 Qashqai J10 1.6 Petrol. The problem I have is engine hesitation during very light throttle. When I test drove the car it was driven hard and therefore this problem did not surface. The engine is smooth during normal/hard acceleration and driving with no throttle (ie ...