Considering clio 197 2007 ultra red, opinions?

[Antti O]

Hi !

I am considering clio 197 again, i have had clio 197 nimbus and clio 200 gordini with cup packet.
This car will be my only car, i also will drive in winter.

Some information about this car:

-1. owner 2007-2016
-Ultra red
-no any optional extras (auto a/c, seat heaters, rainsensor is standard i think)
- full fat (no more cup for me because bad roads)
-100% original no any tuning
- full renault service history, 8 services including 8 oil services, 2 cambelt work (last 1/2016), rear discs+pads , front pads, aux belt, brake fluids, coolants etc..
-all vehicle checks done, body anticorrosion warranty valid to 2019.
- next service due 16000km
-mileage 103000km (64000miles)

What i saw this car, winter is not ideal time to do check.. no any big dents or scratches. Drives okay, gearbox and syncros seems to be ok. Left mirror heating not working and thermosthat is somekind of tired, temp was only in the approx 10 o clock, not 12 o clock i think it should be.

Tell me should i buy or pass it. We dont have lot clios to choose if you want 197 or 200 clio.. only 10 was imported in country by renault. Couple of those have been crashed in trackdays.

My future plans for this car:
-Good service by me
-Projector headlights, aftermarket HID kit for lowbeam
-Maybe replacement of rear lights, those are little blurry or worn by sun uv-radiation as you can see for example brake light.

Some pics about this car, click for big pic.

 

[sevenfourate]

Sounds extremely tidy from your description. Looks it too !

Obvious problems and big expenses in these cars (As i'm sure you well know) include:

Crunching gearbox.
Blowing manifold / Flexi's.
Sticking brakes.
Knocking lower ball joints etc.

This example doesn't sound like it has any of those, and you could say the problems you have found are very minor.

As you expect to find on nearly any 9 years old+ car..........

Good luck !

 

[Jimmy]

It looks tidy enough and it seems to tick the boxes for your requirements. Below-average mileage too and full history - although should it be due a service now with it being 10 years old next year??

 

[Antti O]

Correct, service is due in 1/2017 for time, there was still 16000km for next service. This car is currently 3rd car and has no or little use. That is reason for low mileage.
There was no gearbox crunching (okay it was warm).. and no any strange exhaust noise. Driver seat is little bit of worn, or that side bolster is little smashed. I dont know if there is better driver seat or parts available second hand?

 

[Jimmy]

From what I've seen on the forum/ebay etc, the standard sport seats seem fairly reasonable when they do come up for sale, so it might not be too expensive to change to some mint condition ones.

 

[Antti O]

Do you know how difficult rear brake light (top one) is to replace? It is quite sun burn as you can see.

 

[Jordanfaf]

Apologies, slightly unrelated question. what is that in the passenger footwell ?

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[LOCKE]

Looks tidy and good service history. Brake light should be easy enough to replace. If you are happy go for it.

 

[Antti O]

Apologies, slightly unrelated question. what is that in the passenger footwell ?

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Hi
Because we have such cold winter we use electric interior pre-heater, there is heater element in engine water gallery too.
1-2h preheating heats engine & interior , defrosts windows and car is warm and comfortable before start. It uses 230ac from wall socket.

 

[Jordanfaf]

Hi
Because we have such cold winter we use electric interior pre-heater, there is heater element in engine water gallery too.
1-2h preheating heats engine & interior , defrosts windows and car is warm and comfortable before start. It uses 230ac from wall socket.

Ah, interesting. Having a engine pre-heater would be very nice with these cars [emoji23]

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[peter]

you got rid of your BMW?
top brake light should be easy to replace. i think it's held in place by two screws.

 

[Antti O]

you got rid of your BMW?
top brake light should be easy to replace. i think it's held in place by two screws.

Yep, i sold E46 at july and bought Golf VII Highline 1.4TSI with 7 speed dual clutch gearbox.. basically brand new. First i thought it was good idea to buy expensive premium car, but after 5 months i think 197 will be better for my use.

 

[Johnny 99]

The car looks very good from what you say. Given that there are so few in Finland it definitely seems to be worth considering. If I remember correctly your Gordini was an import? Welcome back to the forum by the way.

 

[Antti O]

The car looks very good from what you say. Given that there are so few in Finland it definitely seems to be worth considering. If I remember correctly your Gordini was an import? Welcome back to the forum by the way.

Yep.. we maybe have 4-6 examples left and it is quite rare to see those in public sale.
Gordini was imported from chezch rebuplic. Thanks, i will definetly make some kind of project topic if i buy that car.

Test driving 197 like it should it is really difficult in this time of year. Stud tyres and slippery roads. But i am quite sure it is so f*ckin good when i change summer tyres. I remember it how good my nimbus 197 handling was with summer tyres. Cannot wait.

 

[skny]

Looks nice! I'd take it Studded tires you say must be a blast in the snow with these on, used to rally a seicento sporting with a set of studded pirellis, awesome grip and lots of fun

 

[Antti O]

Hi!
Bought it today. Weather is really dark and cold. I drove 250kilometres today from Helsinki and it is really good even with stud winter tyres.

Happy new year!

 

[sevenfourate]

CONGRATULATIONS !

Happy New Year...........

 

[Jimmy]

Great news, glad you decided to go for it in the end! Nice little NYE present to yourself! Enjoy!

 

[Antti O]

After 3h of washing and cleaning.
Paintwork needs correction.. fast. Horror in fluorescent lights.

Project thread?

I was shocked when i found out that car is 10 years old and there is 0 dents. First owner had this car in Finnish capital Helsinki. How is that possible
Both sets of wheels need repainting and summer tyres are original 2007 Conti sport contact 3.
I think first owner was such a smooth driver.

 

[Big Ben]

Looks really smart in Ultra Red.
Paintwork looks decent from a distance?
Good time to start a project thread again