sir_dave
Paid Member
Picked this up on Saturday from Steve Murr - who had very kindly kept it for 3 weeks for me whilst i sold the fleet of BMW's ... Generally in pretty mint condition, after no doubt having approximately 15 layers of polish/wax/other detailing things lavished on it 
Spec wise, its Nimbus, which seems to be fairly rare on the Cup, with Recaros. No aircon though, although i cant actually remember the last time i used it anyway, so not overly bothered.
First impressions are pretty good:
Brakes are epic, albeit a little sharp, resulting in some rather embarrasing moments where Sarah nearly went through the windscreen.
Steering is light but fairly direct & weighs up considerably at speed.
Gearbox is fantastic, with nicely spaced ratios and a really short throw!! A pleasure to use in fact, really keeps the engine on the boil.
Engine seems nicely torquey at under 3k rpm, so i can pootle around in traffic/town with ease, then seems to go slightly berserk at 5k and scream towards the redline - more so than the Trophy i think, & feels considerably smoother, almost v-tec like.
Exhaust is some handmade aftermarket thing, sounds awesome from 6k onwards - kinda like a cross between an angry darth vader and a hoover - and then pops on the overrun. It will p1ss me off after about 2 weeks of motoway use though, so ive got the standard one as well.
Seats are uber comfy, although set quite high, although being fairly vertically challenged this does help me see over the dashboard.
Interior is ok, dashboard isnt as bad as i was expecting and it doesnt rattle, much. The steering wheel trim moves around though, so might have to get the superglue out. Have bought an armrest already though, having nowhere to rest my left arm is irriating after all those BMW's.
Looks wise, compared the 1*2 it seems massive!! Although it is quite obviously the 'sporty' variant with bulging arches, big wheels/brakes and that silly aero valance thing. The addition of the 'SX' (i think) spoiler also finishes the rear end of nicely. Dont think the Speedlines or Cup soiler suit nimbus, so the outside will most certainly be staying standard. Bar some silvervisions of course.
Negatives so far are fairly limited, although i havent really stretched its legs yet. The pedals seem further apart than the 1*2 so heel & toe is going to need some technique changes. In addition, the acelerator pedal seems somewhat lifeless, meaning that blipping the throttle for H&T is going to need far more of a 'push' than in the Trophy.
Also, while we're on the subject of pedals, they vibrate really badly at anything over 50mph, almost like the feeling you get through the steering wheel when the wheels are imbalanced - although through the pedals instead? Hopefully this has nothing to do with Renault fitting a new 'box 500 miles ago ...
So, some pics ... though id take some whilst its clean, probably wont be again
Girlfriend also hates it. Apparently im a pleb for selling an M3 for 'another sodding clio' ... :bash:
Spec wise, its Nimbus, which seems to be fairly rare on the Cup, with Recaros. No aircon though, although i cant actually remember the last time i used it anyway, so not overly bothered.
First impressions are pretty good:
Brakes are epic, albeit a little sharp, resulting in some rather embarrasing moments where Sarah nearly went through the windscreen.
Steering is light but fairly direct & weighs up considerably at speed.
Gearbox is fantastic, with nicely spaced ratios and a really short throw!! A pleasure to use in fact, really keeps the engine on the boil.
Engine seems nicely torquey at under 3k rpm, so i can pootle around in traffic/town with ease, then seems to go slightly berserk at 5k and scream towards the redline - more so than the Trophy i think, & feels considerably smoother, almost v-tec like.
Exhaust is some handmade aftermarket thing, sounds awesome from 6k onwards - kinda like a cross between an angry darth vader and a hoover - and then pops on the overrun. It will p1ss me off after about 2 weeks of motoway use though, so ive got the standard one as well.
Seats are uber comfy, although set quite high, although being fairly vertically challenged this does help me see over the dashboard.
Interior is ok, dashboard isnt as bad as i was expecting and it doesnt rattle, much. The steering wheel trim moves around though, so might have to get the superglue out. Have bought an armrest already though, having nowhere to rest my left arm is irriating after all those BMW's.
Looks wise, compared the 1*2 it seems massive!! Although it is quite obviously the 'sporty' variant with bulging arches, big wheels/brakes and that silly aero valance thing. The addition of the 'SX' (i think) spoiler also finishes the rear end of nicely. Dont think the Speedlines or Cup soiler suit nimbus, so the outside will most certainly be staying standard. Bar some silvervisions of course.
Negatives so far are fairly limited, although i havent really stretched its legs yet. The pedals seem further apart than the 1*2 so heel & toe is going to need some technique changes. In addition, the acelerator pedal seems somewhat lifeless, meaning that blipping the throttle for H&T is going to need far more of a 'push' than in the Trophy.
Also, while we're on the subject of pedals, they vibrate really badly at anything over 50mph, almost like the feeling you get through the steering wheel when the wheels are imbalanced - although through the pedals instead? Hopefully this has nothing to do with Renault fitting a new 'box 500 miles ago ...
So, some pics ... though id take some whilst its clean, probably wont be again
Girlfriend also hates it. Apparently im a pleb for selling an M3 for 'another sodding clio' ... :bash:
Will offer some more thoughts on handling once my 4 x Hankook are fitted ...
