Well, drove all the way down to Devon from Manchester today to part ex the Clio against my new car - a 2006 330i Touring.
Took some finding the right BM in the spec I wanted, hence the distance. But then the Clio never once received any interest despite advertising since July. So if you see a Manchester plated UR 197 in the south west it could be mine. Hopefully the old girl will go to a good home. The salesman certainly seemed impressed with the condition.
It's by far the longest I've owned a car at 4yrs and 8mths. Which is odd as, tbh, I never really gelled with it from a driving perspective. For me its just too accomplished to actually be much fun at remotely sane speeds. The only time it really gave me a buzz was on a truly stonking B-road blast with a friend in his Teggy. And I just wasn't comfortable doing those speeds these days.
But, by the same token, I know it's an absolutely ridiculously great hot hatch. Imo it's one of the all time best looking hatches, and I've had a number of strangers that have complimented me on it over the years. I love that Renault fixed what I thought were issues with the Mk2 Clios, not least giving it bespoke metalwork, striaghtening the driving position, giving it proper brakes with great feel and modulation, and keeping it with a revvy, fizzing n/a 4, with a great noise.
I was very sad to finally let it go. But time moves on. I'm a bit older now and have a new house that will require lots of tip runs, a garage that can accommodate a weekend car, and am doing more miles with work. The 330i was a complete no-brainer really and the drive back from Devon completely confirmed to me that I've done the right thing. Still sticking to my first love though - it's a high-revving n/a petrol :thumbup1:
I'll probably still hang about and pop in occasionally. When you've only ever owned French, and your parents have only ever owned French as long as you've been alive, it's going to be difficult to walk away completely
Took some finding the right BM in the spec I wanted, hence the distance. But then the Clio never once received any interest despite advertising since July. So if you see a Manchester plated UR 197 in the south west it could be mine. Hopefully the old girl will go to a good home. The salesman certainly seemed impressed with the condition.
It's by far the longest I've owned a car at 4yrs and 8mths. Which is odd as, tbh, I never really gelled with it from a driving perspective. For me its just too accomplished to actually be much fun at remotely sane speeds. The only time it really gave me a buzz was on a truly stonking B-road blast with a friend in his Teggy. And I just wasn't comfortable doing those speeds these days.
But, by the same token, I know it's an absolutely ridiculously great hot hatch. Imo it's one of the all time best looking hatches, and I've had a number of strangers that have complimented me on it over the years. I love that Renault fixed what I thought were issues with the Mk2 Clios, not least giving it bespoke metalwork, striaghtening the driving position, giving it proper brakes with great feel and modulation, and keeping it with a revvy, fizzing n/a 4, with a great noise.
I was very sad to finally let it go. But time moves on. I'm a bit older now and have a new house that will require lots of tip runs, a garage that can accommodate a weekend car, and am doing more miles with work. The 330i was a complete no-brainer really and the drive back from Devon completely confirmed to me that I've done the right thing. Still sticking to my first love though - it's a high-revving n/a petrol :thumbup1:
I'll probably still hang about and pop in occasionally. When you've only ever owned French, and your parents have only ever owned French as long as you've been alive, it's going to be difficult to walk away completely
