Interested in 197 ownership experience and to look out for...

[Connor O'Brien]

Hello,

I'm interested to know what I should be looking out for when going to buy a 197, what they are like on insurance and running costs. I'm looking at one as a first car I've had my test passed for a long time but haven't needed to drive. I've had decent quotes... But I'm interested in what the consensus is like for you guys.. Secondly I'm interested to know whether anyone has fitted a diff to there car, if not why? have you never felt the need. A friend of mine has the new corsa vxr with the perfomance pack added which has a drexler diff and its grip through corners is something to behold.. Thirdly whats the best tyre or ideal tyre to have on them as a cost/benefit relationship because im looking at an example which looks like it has been well looked after despite having shite tyres on it. My debate with myself is whether to put nankang nsr2's on it or something similar..

 

[DAN@ADRIAN FLUX]

Hi and welcome.
If you need any help with insurance when you have a car in mind then please feel free to drop me a line.
Regards,
Dan.

 

[Connor O'Brien]

Hi and welcome.
If you need any help with insurance when you have a car in mind then please feel free to drop me a line.
Regards,
Dan.

That's great thank you, I will be sure to get in touch.

Connor

 

[link]

Dan, ive just had my renewal offer from AF and its gone up £100... Care to explain, lol

Connor, there's a detailed buyers guide for members here... http://www.clio197.net/threads/clio-197-buyers-guide.19788/

Typical things to look out for are crunchy gearboxes, worn suspension, torn seat bolsters, sticking calipers, melted steering wheels, expensive cambelt change every 5/6 years etc.

Personally i dont think it needs an LSD, if it had the meg lump in it (which is what renault should have done) then yes but it just about keeps its power under control. Its quite a hefty car compared to earlier clios which would happily cock a rear wheel with a bit of steering input, recommended tyres are generally the standard conti's or goodyear eagles for road use.

And oh yeah, the fuel consumption is crap!

 

[DAN@ADRIAN FLUX]

Dan, ive just had my renewal offer from AF and its gone up £100... Care to explain, lol

Unfortunately due to the recent rises in insurance premium tax, as well as recent changes to how the personal injury (Ogden) rate is calculated, premiums are increasing across the industry. If you wanted to drop me a PM I'd be happy to look into your renewal for you to see if there is anything I can help with.

Kind Regards
Dan

 

[Jimmy]

Welcome to the forum, Connor!

If you've had reasonable insurance quotes for a 197 as a first car, then that is some good news already! On here, we are all different ages and living all over the country, so our premiums differ quite a lot from one person to the next. On the whole, they aren't generally too expensive to insure.

Running costs - again, this can vary from one owner to another. Some have had very little outlay in terms of repairs, others have paid through the nose for things... Age is a factor - the earliest examples are now 10/11 years old, so wear and tear on parts is what's going to cost money. Aside from the common faults/issues covered in the Buyers Guide (linked above), they are largely very reliable cars, with very few breakdowns being reported on here.

Fuel costs - it's a 2.0 n/a engine that likes to be revved to get the most out of it.... it ain't no eco machine depends how you drive, but expect anything from low 20s, to mid 30s MPG. They aren't cheap on fuel, but not horrific either.

As for an LSD - they handle superbly as-is. They are huge fun in the corners 'out of the box', which is one of the car's biggest selling points, imo. I've been in @Pav 's Meg'd, LSD'd car, and the LSD does make a difference in the corners: it pulls through really well. Suits the extra power the turbo engine gives. If you have the money to do it, then I'd say go for it. You also won't be disappointed if you didn't - they are good without.

Hope that all helps!

 

[nutnutwelshman]

Welcome Connor the buyers guide will help and its only a fiver to join the Family

 

[Pav]

depends on your budget..a diff is an expensive mod but defo worth it...hope you get a decent example too!!

 

[Connor O'Brien]

Thanks a lot chaps appreciate all the feedback. I read the buyers guide, thanks for pointing me too that.
The only struggle I have really is finding the best one as being honest with myself my budget is really rather tight aiming to get the best i can for under £4000 which means 06/07 cars which I'm sceptical about from the get go just because buying a car between 60-70k+ miles is quite a frightening prospect dont know whether im just being a pussy or sound trivial.. So the likely hood is i might be saving my cash and holding out for a good while until i can afford stuff from 2008 and upward... All sad thoughts as it means ill be waiting ever longer to buy the hoonigan that is the clio

 

[link]

Mileage and age tend to go hand in hand but you do see some nice examples crop up within your budget, as long as its been well looked after it will probably of had most of the common failures done at some point... Just beware the dogs, lol.

Mine has just passed over the 70k mark and ive had to shell out £600 for a major service so make sure its been done, mechanically mines sound and other than a few minor cosmetic issues you wouldn't take it for being 10years old... I recon I'll keep it a few more years yet as it's a cheap hot hatch with "reasonable" running costs.

If your really tight on budget consider a low mileage 1*2, they may be looking a bit old now and i might be burnt at the stake for saying this here but IMO i found it a better car... I like my 197 but its a luke warm kinda like, its heavy weight, lack of low down torque, vague electric steering and naff gear box sully the driving experience. Some days i look at and its fat arches stick out like a poor man's V6 and I can forgo it's foibles but I just wish it wasn't the financial crisis clio stripped of all its luxuries as standard, the mk3 could have been a true great if it was fully loaded with a F4RT under the hood and about 500kg shaved off it...

p.s. http://www.clio197.net/threads/2007-clio-197-in-deep-black-50k-miles.56981/

 

[Deer_Dodger]

If your really tight on budget consider a low mileage 1*2, they may be looking a bit old now and i might be burnt at the stake for saying this here but IMO i found it a better car... I like my 197 but its a luke warm kinda like, its heavy weight, lack of low down torque, vague electric steering and naff gear box sully the driving experience. Some days i look at and its fat arches stick out like a poor man's V6 and I can forgo it's foibles but I just wish it wasn't the financial crisis clio stripped of all its luxuries as standard, the mk3 could have been a true great if it was fully loaded with a F4RT under the hood and about 500kg shaved off it...

I couldn't agree more!

Whilst I love my 197 like you, I also found my 182 quicker, had better steering feel, had a more useful overall power delivery for driving on the road and I was never worried about a synchro going bad.

 

[Jimmy]

I wouldn't let high mileage and age necessarily put you off. Of course, a newer, lower mileage car will always be the more attractive prospect, especially if you're looking at keeping the car for a while.

If an older car has been well maintained over the years and given the attention its needed, then it can still be a great car - as said above, you'll have the reassurance that all work that's been due has been done. History is probably the most important aspect - you could get a newer, lower mileage car, but it could have been abused and not serviced on time....