The gods bore a surprising gift to CAR Magazine the other day: the very first and very pristine Renault Clio Williams, a hot hatch that makes many an enthusiast go misty-eyed at the very mention.
A small logistical cock-up meant that the Willy turned up on a day when we weren’t expecting it – so we rushed out without a camera crew and shot some hasty video footage. Of the Clio Williams against a very modern hot hatch of a similar extreme bloodline, the Ford Focus RS. Well, it happened to be in on the same day, and we couldn’t resist comparing the two pocket rockets separated by nearly 20 years and a whole technological chasm.
Which is fastest? And which hot hatch provided more visceral thrills for our road test editor Ben Barry? Watch the video in our player below, excuse the shaky picture and sound quality and see for yourselves.