172 ride quality

[oneseventwo]

How does everyone feel about the ride quality of their 172's (those still standard)? I'm trying to gauge opinion, as I still don't think mine feels right - it's as though it reacts to bumps in the road that aren't there sometimes. Do you think your 172 rides better or worse than an average sports spec hatch (Cupra R ,CTR, etc.)?

Opinions welcome

 

[Turkish]

Compared to a CTR (standard to standard) the CTR is far more harsh/crashy on poor surfaces but corners alot flatter/less bodyroll as for a cupra cant comment as I'm yet to drive one.

 

[Neil G]

I've got no problems with the ride quality of my 172 (on standard springs & shocks)....you do get a lot of feedback from the road but isn't that what makes it fun to drive?

 

[philbolton]

I've got no problems with the ride quality of my 172 (on standard springs & shocks)....you do get a lot of feedback from the road but isn't that what makes it fun to drive?

Agree! As expected for a hot hatch, try a 182 with the bigger wheels and cup suspension! I thought that was awful!

 

[Turkish]

I've got no problems with the ride quality of my 172 (on standard springs & shocks)....you do get a lot of feedback from the road but isn't that what makes it fun to drive?

Agree! As expected for a hot hatch, try a 182 with the bigger wheels and cup suspension! I thought that was awful!

They're both on 16s unless you mean the phase 1. My 182 does feel firmer as standard than my phase 2 172 did but it also feels quicker/sharper on turn in and more stable in a straight line at high speed.

 

[Englebert]

Of late i have been grumbling about the ride of my 172, but then it's covered 36k so i can't expect the dampers to be at their best anymore.

 

[smiles]

I really like the ride on my standard 172. Its supple on the motorway and taut enough on the twisties. I think the short wheelbase of the clio makes it 'hop' sometimes - something you might not get with an LCR or similar. Also, I think you get used to a hard ride after a while - my old ITR was solid but only seemed to bother passengers!

 

[richlawson]

the cupra i owned for a while was like driving a boat it was far to soft

my clio has always felt harsh

 

[oneseventwo]

Thanks all, I'm glad it's not just being being paranoid!

Of late i have been grumbling about the ride of my 172, but then it's covered 36k so i can't expect the dampers to be at their best anymore.

Will dampers deteriorate over this kind of mileage even if they aren't leaking then? When should I be considering replacing them (not that I can afford it after having my cambelt done )

 

[Englebert]

I wouldn't let standard dampers go past 50k myself... luckily i have some coilovers waiting to go on.

 

[cliovicky]

I think my clio has quite a crashy ride. I would much rather be in my B/f's car on a long journey.

 

[DebV6]

I thought that's how hot hatches were supposed to be? Can't say it really bothers me, I'm used to it.

 

[Neil G]

I thought that's how hot hatches were supposed to be? Can't say it really bothers me, I'm used to it.

Exaclty

I've driven some real boats in my time (Golf TDi) and some really rattly, bad handling c**p (Renault 5s) so the 172 to me is fine.

At the end of the day that's the rub with cars like thw 172/182.....confort has to be compromised to achieve the sharp handling.

 

[philbolton]

Agree! As expected for a hot hatch, try a 182 with the bigger wheels and cup suspension! I thought that was awful!

They're both on 16s unless you mean the phase 1. My 182 does feel firmer as standard than my phase 2 172 did but it also feels quicker/sharper on turn in and more stable in a straight line at high speed.

Didnt know about the wheel sizes, thought the 182 were an inch bigger than the phase 2 172. I can appreciate that the turn in is sharper etc, but where i live the roads are so terrible that i cant cover ground quickly with firmer suspension.

 

[edde]

Didnt know about the wheel sizes, thought the 182 were an inch bigger than the phase 2 172. I can appreciate that the turn in is sharper etc, but where i live the roads are so terrible that i cant cover ground quickly with firmer suspension.

Nope phase 1 172 have 15's the rest have 16's

 

[cliobritt]

pretty harsh, but i do have 17's on

 

[tameracingdriver]

I enjoy the ride of my 182. Gives plenty of feedback, but isnt really that harsh at all for a hot hatch.

It is pretty hard compared to my old Golf Mk2 GTI, that had very good ride for a hot hatch. However, compared to some other cars, which have back breaking suspension the clio is fine.

 

[jiminy]

compared to an ITR, i think its lacks feedback, its not as compossed, it is more comfatable. but the ITR is in a different league

compared to my old mk2 golf (modified), its much more comfatable, but lacks some feedback and composure

overall im very happy with the handling of the clio,
ride is fantastic, smooths out a lot of the roads imperfections
high speed curves are the weak point in my opinion, where it feels unstable.
at lower speeds the cornering is very impressive

 

[cliobritt]

high speed curves are the weak point in my opinion,

Might whack some eibachs on to try and sort this........

 

[Billygotta172!]

Yeah, i've really been thinking my suspension or something's f**ked lately...really feel every bump in the road and it sounds quite 'crashy' is the only way I can describe it really...is this what everyones is like?

Mines on standard shocks/springs, blah blah blah...

 

[oneseventwo]

Yeah, i've really been thinking my suspension or something's f**ked lately...really feel every bump in the road and it sounds quite 'crashy' is the only way I can describe it really...is this what everyones is like?

Mines on standard shocks/springs, blah blah blah...

That's exactly how mine feels - what I find weird is that I can be crawling slowly up to some traffic lights, on what seems to be reasonably good quality tarmac, and and still seems like it's running over little lumps in the road.. Strange.

 

[Billygotta172!]

Yup, definitely how mine is...been told by mates that it's just because it's on low profile tyres and it's got hard suspension?!

Also seem to have lots of bounce when I go over certain bumps but sure my shocks aren't f***ed...sh***y vibration through the wheel at about 80mph too!

God help me, I love my car when it's going well...hate it when it aint!