Stereo distorts slightly above volume level 28 - my ears are bleeding by then though!
Absolutely superb. The first few days I had it I followed the manufacturer's guide to keep it below 3500 rpm, and found it to be merely "nice" to drive, and the engine hinted at being pretty powerful. That couldn't last of course, and as soon as I started to drive it a little more enthusiastically, I was rewarded with outrageous performance and power. I have read a lot of reviews that don't rate the steering and handling, but I don't agree - I think it is very responsive, and sticks to the road.
Interior is very well designed, very comfortable, especially the seats.
I had a 2L Golf GTi before this, and the difference between the two almost makes me laugh with contempt for the Golf.
Not a family car, and not one to take more than one passenger over long distances, as it is quite small, but then what would you expect from a hatchback?
The 172 is a total ANIMAL, I know I own one...
Total FUN
Almost S--
Yeah I have to agree. It's not perfect - the handling for instance is not as balanced as my old 306 GTI-6, and the steering is nowhere near as communicative. It's also appallingly built.
However, the 172 is just so damn fast, it makes you giggle like an idiot. For that alone, it's worthy of respect. A great little car that feels truly exciting - rare in this day and age.
I used to own a 172 and while I agree the car is a lot of fun, I used to like my Clio 16V more.
The 172 gave me loads of trouble, the build quality is very poor (might be better on the mk2) rattles and squeaks came from everywhere. I needed 2 new alloys which had buckled on bad roads (this has NEVER happened to any other cars I've owned) and the clutch pedal wouldn't return to position correctly even after 3 visits to the dealer.
Added to this the fact that ALL Renault dealers are complete clownshoes and you can see my 172 experience was not fantastic, I did love that car though, go figure?
I am now driving a Civic Type-R which is much better built and faster, but it struggles to put the power down, oh and you don't get the extras you do in the 172.
Still i'd have the Type-R over the 172.
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