I test drove both cars in November 2001 - I was going to buy one or the other. I posted my thoughts on the Yahoo 172 group at the time. Heres what I wrote:
Last week I posted my views on the Civic Type R on the Type R group -
they were subsequently cross posted here. This afternoon I took the
opportunity to try the 172. I pretty much had to make my mind up
today, owing to the imminent demise of my current company wheels.
Its bound to be a silver one, I thought, pulling into the garage
(W.A. Lewis, Telford). But no, there was a Flame Red 172, and pretty
splendid it looked too. After a bit of pulling and shoving to find a
reasonable driving position, off we went down the same broken up road surface that had left me so disappointed with the ride of the CTR
last week, No such problems with the Clio; although pretty firm it
doesnt threaten to dislodge your contact lenses, although I do
detect a squeak from somewhere over my right shoulder.
This car has done 200 miles from new, and the engine is stone cold.
It doesnt feel too smooth, but warms up surprisingly quickly. Once
out on the dual carriageway I give it some welly and begin to
undrstand what all the fuss is about. Its maybe not quite as
powerful at the red-line as the CTR, but the torque and HP can be
enjoyed from 4000rpm right through to about 6750, which made the
whole experience much more satisfying.
Out in the country I began to really enjoy driving the 172. It feels
somehow more intimate that the CTR - size matters as they say.
Cornering is pretty flat, and the wide power-band means that mid-
corner changes are unnecessary given a little forethought. I pushed
it harder and harder, but time and time again I failed get to the
limit of the grip that it offers. The steering is a little less
direct than the CTR though, and the gear-lever needs a good yank,
although changing from 3rd to 4th and back again along the country
lanes soon becomes instinctive.
This car is a lot smaller than the CTR, and once Id found enough
space for my 5 10" frame there was very little room left in the rear-seat behind me. Needless to say the boot is similarly miniscule.
Despite this the Clio didnt really feel like a small car to drive -
theres lots of headroom in the front and the steering-wheel and dash
have a big-car feel to them.
Its got lots of goodies - CD autochanger, and a climate control
system which seemed to work really well, as well as driving lights
and a trip computer. The CTR has none of the above, which matters to
me but may matter nought to others. The alloys look a bit heavyweight
to my taste though, the narrower spoked items on the CTR were more my
cuppa.
Returning to the garage for the obligatory post-thrashing cup of
coffee and sales pitch, I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was
suffering none of the Jesus_Im_knackered_let_me_out_of_this_thing
symptoms that Id experienced after driving the CTR. I could live
with this car through the week and enjoy a blast at weekends knowing
that I wouldnt be fed-up with it.
So I ordered one there and then.
