Clio Sport 172

The Renault Clio Sport 172 is a three-door/front-engine/front-wheel drive hot hatch designed by Patrick Le Quement and assembled in Novo Mesto, France, from 2002 to 2004. This much-improved version of the Clio II includes restyled bumpers, side skirts, and 15-inch OZ F1 alloy wheels. The Renault runs with a 2.0L 16-valve inline-four engine delivering a power output of 172 PS and 200 Nm of torque, coupled with a five-speed manual transmission able to take the car from 0-62 MPH in 7.3 seconds, with a maximum speed of 137 MPH. It has a combined fuel consumption of 7.9L/100Km and a curb weight of 2280Lbs.

The Renault Clio Sport 172 has set the gold standard for an affordable hot hatch as a near-perfect, low-cost daily driver. This compact comes with a McPherson coil spring suspension, equipped with an anti-roll bar front with a torsion axle in the front and an anti-roll bar on the back. It touches the ground with 195/45/15 tires on the four wheels from stock, using ventilated discs with ABS for braking power. The Renault Clio Sport 172 is around 3,795 € nowadays, an affordable price for any aspiring driver to build the skill set necessary to progress in the tracks.