While our road testers were rigorously testing the latest metal for Britain’s Best Driver’s Car 2025, photographer Jack Harrison and I decided to mark the occasion in our own way – by reuniting two former BBDC contenders from a very different era.
Last year I bought a 2005 Renault Clio 182 Trophy, and have spent the past year returning it to factory order by refitting its trick Sachs remote reservoir dampers, restoring the alloys and upgrading the interior.
Read: Britain’s Best Driver’s Car 2025
Jack, meanwhile, recently acquired a very tidy 2004 Toyota MR2, which has been lightly fettled with a Toyota Team Europe exhaust and obligatory ‘Autocar’ sticker affixed to its roll-bar.
Both of these fine sporters took part in Handling Day in the early 2000s, and between them represent a period when driver’s cars were not only fun and engaging, but also affordable.
Indeed, the cheapest car at this year’s contest was the Alpine A290 GTS, but even that cost more than £37,000. Both the Clio and MR2 cost less than half that when they were new.
Today they’re driver’s car bargains: Jack’s MR2 was only £200 dearer than the paint on this year’s winner, the Porsche 911 GT3.
The Clio faced fierce competition back in 2005, with the likes of the Ferrari F430, BMW M5 and Ford GT vying for top honours. In the end the Trophy finished 11th out of 19 cars, narrowly missing out on the top 10 by one point.
“It’s so willing and communicative…as a driver’s car it’s the one to beat,” is how Matt Prior described it, having pitted it against other hot hatch rivals at a very damp Rockingham race circuit 20 years ago.
The MR2 faced equally tough competition at BBDC 25 years ago (Lamborghini Diablo GT, Porsche 911 Turbo), but finished in a more impressive sixth place out of 16 cars. “The more you drive it, the more fun you can get from it,” was how the judges described the ‘Midship Runabout’.
In many ways, both verdicts remain true today: the Clio is constantly transmitting feedback through the steering and pedals, and feels taut and agile on a flowing b-road; the MR2 can equal the Trophy for engagement thanks to its mid-engined layout, sharp steering and zippy 1.8-litre engine.
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