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Honda Civic vs Renault Clio

What's the difference?

VS
Honda Civic
Honda Civic

$47,200 - $72,600

2024 price

Renault Clio
Renault Clio

$11,999 - $19,990

2018 price

Summary

2024 Honda Civic
2018 Renault Clio
Safety Rating

Engine Type
Turbo 4, 2.0L

Turbo 4, 1.6L
Fuel Type
-

-
Fuel Efficiency
8.9L/100km (combined)

5.9L/100km (combined)
Seating
4

5
Dislikes
  • Price, maybe
  • Limited availability
  • Likely a swansong

  • No AEB or rear curtain airbags
  • No CarPlay, Android Auto part of expensive option pack
  • RS Monitor no longer standard
2024 Honda Civic Summary

Before we dive in, this isn’t your typical road test. 

That’s because there’s no road, per se. Instead, the majority of what you’re about to read comes from The Bend Motorsport Park in South Australia.

You’ve read the headline, though, so you’re probably putting it all together: a Honda Civic Type R on a well-liked race track must be bliss. Let’s find out.

A very quick catch-up for those not in the know. The Honda Civic Type R (or CTR if you like) is the brand’s only performance model on sale after the demise of the NSX supercar. 

The current (FL5) CTR is a little over a year old, having been launched internationally in late 2022, but has only been on Aussie shores for a little while. In fact, we’ve already reviewed it for the road, back in April.

But Honda Australia was keen to get media behind the wheel in a setting it says the CTR thrives in - a racetrack. Its predecessor was a car loved almost universally, can this one live up to the new standard?

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2018 Renault Clio Summary

I'm going to reveal something of myself here - I used to be a RenaultSport Clio owner. This is what the purists call what we now know as Clio RS, and I find myself constantly corrected yet unrepentant. It was a 172 - a nuggety three-door with wheels that looked too small, a weird seating position and a 2.0-litre naturally aspirated engine that was big on torque as long as you belted it.

It was a classic and you could still see the links back to the epoch-making Renault Clio Williams, that blue and gold Mk 1 Clio we never saw in Australia that redefined the genre. The current Clio has been around for four years now and I even drove this current RS Clio at its launch in 2013, memorable for the sudden bucketing rain that drenched the circuit and made things very interesting indeed.

This Clio was a big change from the cars that went before - slimmer-hipped, less aggressive-looking and with a 1.6-litre turbo engine, five-door-only body and (gasp!) no manual, just Renault's twin-clutch EDC transmission. It was a hit, at least with enthusiasts. Back then it was the dawn of a golden age in small hot hatches. But that was then, this is now. With a small power bump and a couple of features thrown in, is the ageing RS still at the pointy end?

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Deep dive comparison

2024 Honda Civic 2018 Renault Clio

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