I owned a 205 gti, 309 gti, and r5 gt turbo, loved them dearly, and they had pros and cons. My friend had a clio 16v, williams 2, and another friend had a clio sport172. They are fantastic cars for sure, the pedal box was a little cramped for my size 11 feet. ❤ At that time i had an alfa 145 clover, but had started to desire bigger cars due to being 6 ft 3, so got an alpina b10, but these french hot hatch will always be very special to me.

SEATS Jack SEATS, not chairs! My mum calls them chairs and she's 83, mind you, she also calls a soft top roof on a car a "Shed"? She used to say to my dad when he had an Austin A40 Sport " Russell, put the shed up, I'm cold!". 😁

What a little gem. You could spend a lot more than that and still have something not as cool or as much fun.

People tend to forget how light these cars were and therefore how fast they felt. The lower weight also allows for the softer suspension and greatly adds to the driver comfort. Compare that Clio Williams' weight of under 1000kg to a modern hatch weighing in at 1200+kg and you understand why the new cars need both more horsepower and stiffer suspension.

went to school with a guy who died in one of these, after crashing it burst into flames and burnt him alive. People could hear the screams. He was a boy racer, about 21 if i remember, happened back about 20 years ago.

Love the passion and honesty in all your reviews! Great videos!

True story. In 1996 I went for an IT centre job (quite senior role) at Argos in Milton Keynes. It came with a company car budget. On my application this car is that I chose over the usual repmobile stuff (though I've had plenty of those and still do). They were epic in the original spec like that. Once they were airbagged they went a bit off the boil.

Great review as always... I hope one day someone offers you a Megane R26 to review! Always loved the look of those.

Back to the days when Renault made interesting and great cars. I remember the Williams Clio so very well, at the time I have a Clio 1.9d, I used to drool over the Williams. Jack, you got it perfect regarding the softness of the seats. They were soft but you weren't thrown around even in my diesel. Loved this review, brought back great memories for me. Thank you, another great review to add to your superb and growing list.

I started looking at these about 5 years ago and price were starting to creep up then, growing up with theses cars in my late teens and early 20’s I wanted to recapture the ethos of what a hot hatch was. As with all these types of cars they are more expensive than what I am willing to pay/or can’t afford with prices of 20k plus for 205’s, 5 Turbos etc, I ended up with a Clio sport 200 bought from a work colleague and absolutely love it, yes it’s grown some weight since the old cars at 800kg but still light by modern day standards and a cracking rev happy engine the likes of we will never see again, thought I’d best jump on one of these before prices go up on them. Great video and would love to see a nostalgic trip down memory lane with some other hot hatches of the era.

Absolutely brilliant video jack❤👍I've never had the version of clio but had the clio baccarra which had the leather interior and walnut dash there a beautiful car clios brilliant

I wish that we got cars like this in the United States. That or the Peugeot would be an absolute blast to drive. Nice job as always Jack.

I had a Renault 19 16v and loved it. The engine was a masterpiece and reguarly found it on the rev limiter, it just loved to rev. Great car and I can only imagine what the Clio was like. Why can we not have cars like this today?!

Would love one of these, looked at getting one a few years back. Couldn’t justify spending the money when a 182 Trophy was less than half of the price! So bought a Trophy. Not disappointed, would certainly still love a Williams in the garage though.

Yet another awesome car reviewed in your inimitable style, always loved these cars, I too appreciate the way older cars were more compliant and provided clearer feedback. They were so much more dependent on driver skill and effort and thus so much more rewarding when you got it right. Just a minor point :) They were not the only hot hatch with a real link to Formula 1 or even the first :) Honda released a CRX and Civic SI in 1986 called the "F1 Special Edition" which ironically also celebrated a Williams F1 World Championship albeit with a Honda rather than Renault engine. You have now driven the trinity Renault Alpine A310, Renault Clio Williams and Renault Clio V6!!

I remember a friend of mine was buying a Clio at the time. The dealer had a Williams in the show room I think it had not long arrived. I looked it over very carefully and was impressed. We jokingly asked if we could 'have a spin' but they said they were not allowed to take it out! That may have changed later I don't know but nonetheless I could see it was a good car. I don't remember the price when new but it was a lot more money than my friends 'humble' model. A good review Jack thanks once again. 👍👍

Jack, you should really drive a 309 GTi 16. Preferably one without a catalytic converter. 160 hp and a free revving 1.9 16v engine with a glorious roar. Also a car with an interesting history, meant to be a Talbot.

Great video Jack! I've had my Clio Williams 1 since 2008 and they were alot cheaper back then!

Ace vid, Jack. I’ve had a 1.8 16v since 2008. Most fun car I’ve had, against stuff with much more power and badge kudos. Was brilliant till I blew up the engine last year 😂 but a “new” one is on the way - for €700. Try that when your Fezza goes pop. Williams is awesome, but even a scrappy 16v will make your toes curl. Less is so much more.

Thank you for this video! Ah a car from my childhood! Big engine, small car, very much the shape of things to come! 🙂

Owned a 1,4l RT Phase 1 at that time. A Williams was not affordable for me. Anyhow I made nice modifications to it and had a lot of fun with it. Drive it until 240 tkm and then sold it.

I'm a big fan of these. For me these set-up the next run of fantastic small Renault hot hatches perfectly. Clio RS172, 182 Cup... and Trophy. I was the proud owner of a phase 2 RS172 and it was an incredible little car. On a tight and on twisty B road, very difficult for most cars to keep up with. My friend loved my 172 so much; he was lucky enough to get his hands on the the very limited 182 Trophy which was the pinnacle of the Clio hot hatches in my opinion. If you could borrow a Trophy to test and review, you won't stop smiling for weeks...

I had the Renault 5gt turbo on a E plate great car and so much fun

In the late 1980s I rented a 1.9 205 GTi for a weekend and went from Sydney to my brother's place in Canberra, about 3 hour drive. It was the best experience I've ever had on four wheels. I would love to have a drive of one of these Clios.

Another Great Review really enjoyed the Comparison. The Williams was a friendlier car to drive at the Limits. A 205 GTi would quite often feel it was about to bite and with no power steering it was quite the effort to correct lift off oversteer, so in that way it was probably more engaging where the Williams never feels like it was going to bite you hard with lift off Oversteer. It was definitely on the menu but you could use it to your advantage on, and can almost drive it from the back with front end grip being so good. A well driven Williams will leave a 205GTI ( especially in the wet) because it can be driven on the limit more and still feel there's more to be had, so you end up covering ground at a relentless rate only for you to run out of road quickly, so you end up turning around for another go!!! Thanks Jack, definitely a Car you need to get on your list of cars to get next😊

Good content Jack. Love the Mk1 Clio's, especially the Williams. I never got round to owning one, close though. I ended up with the 106s at the time (late 90s), which turned into a love affair for over 20+ years. I'm now in a tidy Clio 172 phase 1, grunty N/A hot hatch at its best for me. My 1st Renault, probably not my last to!

Nice! What you said at 7:54 reminded me of the slogan they used for the Clio ads in France back in the early nineties: "Elle a tout d'une grande" (literally "She has everything of a great one" - one would say "she has it all" in English I guess...) Anyway, I had seen a couple around at the time (in France), but they were already standouts at the time!

Great review Jack, remember these back in the day but I was an RS Turbo kind of guy! Just looked on autotrader and there’s only one Clio Williams 2 for sale in the whole country at the moment for £38,995! OUCH!😬

Back in the day all my mates had Ax Gt's and a couple of saxo vtr's , I had a clio 16valve " a valva " and my car was so much faster than everyone else's.....I was the king 😂, always longed for a Williams tho, great cars the clios of that time..... great stuff as always buddy 👍

Another great video. I think the hard the ride of today's sporty cars is due to the extra weight they have to carry for safety, convenience and extra thin sidewalls on the massive alloys.

Had a 205 1.9 gti back in the day and wanted a 16v clio…fast forward nearly 30 years and my clio arrived, loved the 205 but the clio is such a great car, love it!! You must do a 16v video if you can jack, be great to compare!

I had a clio williams for about three months back in about 1995. A brilliant little car. My favorite hot hatch is still the Civic EP3. But the clio did handle sweet. I think the williams is more desirable to me than the V6. The first one I spotted on the road was being driven by the footballer Ryan Giggs.

The first (legal) car I had was a 1997 Clio. Motor-wise, it ran fine, didn't really have any big problems with it bar one day shearing the bolt on the power steering pulley which quickly threw it into steering like a bus! But the bodyshells of Clios were so flexible and moved around so much that any car with a sunroof leaked incredibly....which mine did. The water would also trap in the roof, and then piss out all over you when you went around a corner. And of course, the immobiliser sensor unit was above the mirror, exactly where the water would pour out!

I once tested the standard diesel version of this generation of Clio and was knocked out by its go-kart handling. I can truly believe what an incredible drive this Williams version must be.

Back when I was in high school some one in our town had one of these, and always eyed it up every day on the way to school dreaming like you of driving one

TY J! 🙏🙏

French hot hatches are legendary 👌

Nice video mate. I've not sat in a Clio Williams before, but I've always thought the seats looked like the most comfortable seats I've seen in a car, so cosy looking! As for whether I'd take it over the 205 GTI, probably not, there's just something right about the way a 1.9 GTI looks, and it's just that bit more retro and old school. Although it sounds as though the Clio might be the better hot hatch overall.

What a great little thing, it’s looks so right

Grande Jack! Non ho mai amato le auto francesi, ma la Clio Williams è una vera leggenda, tutti i tester nel corso degli anni ne hanno parlato benissimo. Però il monoblocco soffre alti kilometraggi 🚗⛽

Still got mine #0215 it's a labour of love but well worth it 😎 always get looks and people wanting a chat when pulling into petrol stations. 👍🏻

A lovely little hot hatch - I’m amazed at how much power they got out of the engine. I remember a friend had a base model Clio - and lusted after a 16v or Williams……..they still look fantastic now, but I’ll bet the interior feels a bit low rent - it’s a Renault after all!

Sat in the those seat styles, leather clad, in a 19 convertible 1.8 16v owned by my brother. Best seats I have ever sat in to this day. Also that 1.8 16v is high up on the list of best sounding 4 cylinder engines I've heard to date.

I had the 16v and always dreamed of this blue angel.

Cool video Forgot about these Looks wise no where near the pug but a great car I’d imagine. I preferred the 182’s

Great video Jack

Modern hatches are all very well but they don't give the same involvement that you got with a light car, and a relatively large rev happy engine. I had the later 172 Cup and it was great fun (when it wasn't broken down)

I remember your Pepe videos and some scoundrel hit it didn’t they 🤬 I owned a H reg non sunroof 1.9 a good few years ago, you hardly see them about nowadays though. I saw one of these Williams at Shed Fest this year, I thought it might have been that one that you’re in so I went and checked my photo’s, different reg so not this one. It was a pleasure to meet you there. You was up in the dad car area and saus hello then sorry I’m not actually subscribed….. I since subscribed haha.

I had driving lessons on a 205 Sacré Numéro (diesel) and then switched to a Clio (diesel), what a jump in time, driver inputs were so much nicer on the Renault. You could definitely tell the 205 was about to be replaced when the Clio came out.

I think the most popular mod for 205s was the mi-16 engine conversion. I always wanted a mk2 uno turbo ie. Never had one , iv had many Vauxhalls over the years though.👍

Best car I've ever owned or will ever own mainly due to nostalgia and sentimental reasons but I can confirm even with another however many kilos of subs amps tvs and speakers it still drives amazing even round the track

Would be fun if you drove the Renault 19 Chamade 16v. And campare it. Would be fun if someone had a Toyota Corolla Gti 16v Ae92 with the 125hp for u to drive. Great video and this Clio looks more angry/sportier than the 205.

My favourite 80s hot hatch is def the Renault 5 Turbo. A mate had a red some and I was in awe, I was a student and my budget couldn't stretch to one.

I was happy to own both at the time. For me, the Clio was the better ( and faster) car. The 2.0 16v engine had a sporty power delivery in contrast to the 1.9 engine which was out of breath after around 5800rpm, and the suspension was refined . Also, I felt the Clio had a better built quality.

Had a Williams 1 as a daily for 15yrs . Thashed it everywhere without an issue . Sold it 2 yrs ago for 3 X what I payed for it 👍🏻. To get the full potential you need to get the hang of lift off oversteer. Then it will go round corners like a RWD . Watch Jean Ragnotti drive the rally cars and that's how to it. Awesome cars.

Great video! I never liked the R5 Turbo, the ridiculous skirts were far too ostentatious for my tastes. The standard late R5s were great little cars, i had a 94 1.4 Campus as my first car but I only ever seem to see the Turbos now. The Clio Williams had the right idea on styling- far more subtle, even with the gold wheels! My brother had a 205 1.9 GTi, I've heard many say the 1.6 is a better car, but I feel like that's cope from those who couldn't get the bigger engine for whatever reason. I'd be interested to see a video investigating whether this is a myth or not.

Thanks, Jack. 👍👍

The Clio Williams handled insanely well. I remember driving in 1999 on the A7 Serravalle-Genova (a highway designed like the Nordschleife, 70km of insane curves and short straights) with my Maserati Ghibli Biturbo and I could not for my life shake away a guy in a Clio Williams. I could out-accelerate him but at every curve he was right on my tail. Eventually I had to let him go and I tried to follow, but over a succession of sharp left-right curves I lost him. Damn that thing handled well.

God i love these seats they are like the lovechild of a bucket seat and an armchair, bonus points for the velour which grips you like nothing but grabs and holds dust better than a vacum cleaner. The only modern seats that give a similar vibe are the srt seats on hellcats. I always loved the williams but for a top of a line vehicle no ac is a big minus, my dream mk1 clio would be a fusion between a williams and a baccara which had many luxuries and nice features like ac a suit holder and more. for me the best clio still is the 182 which has the same engine but more modern yet maintains this old school charm.

I owned a Gordini which was bulletproof. I then had two 205GTis and the three 309GTis - one a 16v. Halcyon days!

The 205 1.9 is a decent match for a 5 Gt Turbo the Clio Williams is in a different league.

what a car !!! - try to get into a peugeot 206 GTI for the more modern take - a real scorcher - should never have sold mine

Having converted a 205GTi to 16v Mi16 power myself, you should try and find a well sorted, otherwise largely stock example and test what could have ended the hot hatch wars for good, if Peugeot had made a factory version. It would have also been interesting to do a comparison of the Williams with a modern Clio 4 Rs, which is my weekend toy at the moment. A good car but does suffer from the "modern performance car" issues you mentioned in the video. I'm in NZ though, so not easy for me to let you borrow it.

There was also a phase 3… And believe it or not, the blue’s are slightly different.

I owned an AX GT in the 90s. Carb version. Only 1.4 but such low weight and it gripped like a leech. I test drove a 1.9 GTI which I was considering buying. But liked my AX GT! The Williams was a legend! But the Clio 192 always seemed super special. And still go for cheap money. Can upgrade the dampers to Williams spec.

All them clios were very solid cars, the only problem I know of is the exhaust had insufficient hangers and they would snap in the middle.

Small point of order. All 3 versions of the Williams came out before the mk1 facelift, which has more rounded headlights and a centre boot stop light.

Makes me want to get my 182 back on the road.

I had a mk2 Williams 3. Miss it sooo much. I bought it for £1200. Sold my silver valver to buy it. Oh to be young again as that money was chump change really lookin back

Jack, you're absolutely producing consistently superb content, thank you, your the best, everyone like, subscribe and tell your mates, Number 27,

The Gold wheels were there in the late 60s and early 70s Alfas and Ferraris

Back in the day I had a 91 r19 16v.137ps.great car rev limited at 7k which I got to in 5th. My mate had the williams.looked amazing,the gold alloys.just so much quicker than mine.😢😢

Clio 182 Cup was the best little hatch I had .Way better lateral g than any Mini I owned including any JCW .Only bettered by the 4 Mégane RS I had .

the willy was much better as the 205 gti i drove both

I rented a standard Clio of that age, the steering was fabulous I was not sure if it had power steering I had to coast it in a car park to find out. At the time my road car was a Citroën Visa GTI

I live just down the road in Lechlade. I have Z4M which is horribly compromised but I still love it. Ii'd love you to trash it if you fancy!

I had 3 Clio,s a182 2 Williams plus a 205 gti 1.9 and there all good but the 205 was a fabulous drive so it wins,not by much though.

My mother had a 1.6 205 GTI, then I bought a 1.9 205 GTI, both in the late eighties. The 1.6 seemed to have stiffer springs, but was under damped so could be a little bouncy. The 1.9 always seemed softer sprung, but better damped by comparison and felt a little lazy like a bigger car. The 1.9 had loads of low to mid range torque, but little above 4500rpm where it sounded awful. I agree about the steering feel of cars back in the eighties - my current BMW 3 series steering has virtually zero feel and is nothing like as fun to drive. Comfortable, quick and efficient yes, but fun - no.

I loved my 16v and always wanted a Willy. But in hindsight, the Valver was essier to have fun in because it was a £1,700 car.

Jack - if you liked this...which you clearly did 😂 - do please review this car's bigger brother - the 21 Turbo. The French Sierra Cos worth, I had one of these fantastic, interesting cars: as standard - tilting bucket seats, dual shocks on the rear wishbones amongst others. The only real negative - slightly disastrous placement of the fans in front of the radiator so they could fit the engine and turbos in the available space meant that snow, stones and more regularly knocked them out.

Sounds like a spitfire

I had or drove most of the 80s hot hatches and the 205 was my favourite , but the 1.6 not the 1.9. You had to work the 1.6 whereas the 1.9 was like driving an automatic. In 5th gear it would keep up with anything on the road. My R5 Turbo was great but fragile, The Escort RS Turbo was brilliant (it was a company car) but the abs system was terrifying when it activated. The Clio Willy was amazing but the pedals were too cramped for me, the Golf 16v GTi was ok but felt heavy and sluggish compared with the French cars and wasn’t for me. The only hot hatch I never did any serious mileage in was the Astra GTE. I have an Abarth 595 now which has a little bit of all the older cars in its DNA and huge fun.

Loved my 1.6 205GTi back in the day, but replaced it with a 16V Clio after wanting something a bit newer and whilst the 205 was good, it's the Clio that I miss the most. I replaced the 16V with my first 964, but really wish I had kept it! Time for a comparison between the Williams and the 16V?

I had a 1.4RT surprised to read it only had 88BHP, felt great fun with just me, but it was sluggish with only one passenger.

French cars have more wheel travel. This results in more tire to road contact compared to cars with stiffer/shorter suspension, which will tend to lose contact and actually be more difficult to drive fast on bumpy twisty roads.

I had a Williams 2 about 20 years ago. I paid 3k for it and was one of the best cars I ever owned. It sadly ended up in an accident and I sold it for parts to keep others going. Only sold the seats last year ! 😂

Dont worry about how soft the suspension is . Its still to this day the best handeling car i ever owned and if nigel Mansel has a hand in developing it im even happier

Lovely example, can't recall the last time I saw one, in any condition! Really got to love the brand to sink 20k+ into one....

I owned a Citroen BX 1.9 GTi which I bought for £450 from an auction. It was a brilliant car, after a bit of work, but it just drank fuel so I didn't keep it long.

Now then Jack, great video and subject matter. As a Ford man there's nothing at the time that could touch this , size for size. I think the only two Trump's (not the blonde idiot) the Fiesta RS1800 had were the seats with wings on (also used in the identically engined XR3i 130) and the iconic Badge ie RS1800 which in Ford rally circles is THE badge of badges, so yes the Clio was nice , I did actually like the Clio 16v alloys as opposed to the "Banditalike" gold ones! However, despite having a weight and power disadvantage I still say this, my dad's Citroen ZX Volcane would have given it a very hard run for it's money. I so wish that i had more driving experience of. J601FCX to tell you more, but as I've said before, this car unbelievably had the measure of the identically engined (lovely) 205 1.9. You must try and find one jack, and hopefully it'll be as good as Dad's was!!! Best wishes Jack. Keep up the good work. Ben 🇬🇧🇺🇦🇨🇵🚌🚐

25k for the Clio, when things like the GR Yaris exist for that money today. That's a very hard sell no matter how cool it was for the older folk

Such a desireable car, where have they all gone? You don't see any Uno Turbos nowadays either.

Clio Williams now we are talking, Clio 16v too, when did you last see one of them? Anyway a great alternative is Alfa 145 Cloverleaf... same power, fab engine, slightly heavier, same softness, about 90% as engaging and 1/10th the cost.

Nowadays cars have electric assisted steering, while the old ones had hydraulic assisted steering. That’s why the new ones lack the “feeling” you’re talking about, the character. Not to mention you can fix a hydraulic system with a set of gaskets, while the electric ones need replacement which is more expensive, of course.

I had a Williams 3 clio in the mid 2000s it was an absolute riot to drive 🥰 a back road blaster it got covered in 🐄💩 i was not kind to it but but it never let me down very reliable 🤗

I'd love to see how it compares to the 2.0l 16v golf gti mk2

Owned a valver, special little car... Only can imagine what bigger, torqier engine does to the chasis

God help us. There are no hairpins on that fecking road. A hairpin is a 180 degree bend.

Very cool!

Is it missing a lugnut on the front left wheel?