200: No service history

[robby71]

Reason i was put off with the 200 was reading about all the problems - now reading on the VXR forums about the Corsas i'm waiting for something to fail on this (i do have 4 months warranty left).
Are the 200s much improved over the 197s in reliability, etc? do they still suffer from gearbox, steering, etc problems?

 

[Willis]

Neither the 197 or 200 suffer from reliability issues. Granted, the Gearboxes do seem to be a week point and the Recaro seats (if fitted) do seem to wear quite quickly. But beyond that they're a very solid car really, mechanically if they're looked after then you're laughing. Not entirely sure what steering issue you mean, presumably about them pulling slightly to the left? It's just that they're very camber sensitive, if you're on a track they don't do it...

The thing with forums and the internet in general, is that most people will use it to vent frustration about a car and p!ss and moan about things and tell everyone that the grass is greener etc.. It's the same with garages, it's very easy for a garage to get a bad reputation these days thanks to the ''flame'' mentality of internet forums. Thorney Motorsport being one of the garages that has had some appauling things said about it over the years...

Test drive a 200 (if you've not already) and if you prefer that to the VXR then see if you can swap.

Any car that you can think of will have bad points and past owners with a horror story.

According to the internet, VAG cars never break and VTEC units don't fail. :rofl:

 

[robby71]

i do agree with what you say about forums and negative comments, etc
With the Clio im wary of the gearbox, power steering problems, seat bolsters, steering wheel wear, manifolds cracking, etc - are these such a big problem or only really occur on high mileage cars?
I'm looking at a 59 plate with 25k, cup pack, fsh at £9400 - i think i can manage to get a warrantywise platinum warranty out of the dealer which should cover most things but i need a reliable car to get to work for 6.30am every morning so can't have something which will give problems as i don't get chance to get to a garage during the week.

Is a ff with cup pack as uncomfortable as a corsa VXR with 18"s over crappy roads or is it not as bad as reviews say?

re VAGs - i've had many and the last few have all had problems - radiators leaking, waterpumps, electrics, etc - been put off for life

 

[Willis]

The problems with the Gearbox has no rhyme or reason to it at all, it's just luck of the draw. From the members on here it's around 1/4 that have had problems with theirs, some low mileage, some high mileage, some driven hard, some pottered about in. There's no real answer from Renault either as they seem to be dodging the issue but people have had contrtibutions towards new 'boxes out of warranty and some people have had them changed under warranty too.

Power Steering? Never heard of a problem with it on these...

Seats, well the standard ones do wear a little as the bolsters are deep, but the Recaro's are pretty sh!t for it yeah. They do wear quickly but if in warranty it's no issue as they just change the covers anyway. It's the same Recaro seat that's in the VXR by the way, but they're leather in those aren't they? Probably why they wear less if they are leather.

Steering wheels do wear, they're crap. The perforated leather splits and distorts when the foam underneath it gets hot in the sun. Again, it's something that people have had replaced under warranty and it's something that Renault are fully aware of. A new wheel costs in the region of £150, not too bad really. All cars will suffer wear here, it's just that these seem to wear quickly.

Manifolds... There's been a few crack on here, but it's not a huge number really. The more common problem with the Manifold is the flexi section starts to blow/split. It can be repaired though, although it's a bit of a ballache of a job. Again, it's not common as such, certainly not as common as the Gearbox issue but it has cropped up on here a few times...

It's hard to say how stiff a Cup is really, it's all down to personal preference. I don't think they're that bad, but some people do.

 

[Gez]

Wear a gum shield in the Clio.

Corsa isn't a patch on it for stiffness lol.

My brother has billstein suspension on his corsa vxr and they're still softer than the cup suspension lol

 

[930Tech]

According to the internet, VAG cars never break and VTEC units don't fail. :rofl:

:rofl:

The cups don't seem to suffer with steering wheels but it is a cheaper wheel.

 

[N0ddie]

i do agree with what you say about forums and negative comments, etc
With the Clio im wary of the gearbox, power steering problems, seat bolsters, steering wheel wear, manifolds cracking, etc - are these such a big problem or only really occur on high mileage cars?
I'm looking at a 59 plate with 25k, cup pack, fsh at £9400 - i think i can manage to get a warrantywise platinum warranty out of the dealer which should cover most things but i need a reliable car to get to work for 6.30am every morning so can't have something which will give problems as i don't get chance to get to a garage during the week.

Is a ff with cup pack as uncomfortable as a corsa VXR with 18"s over crappy roads or is it not as bad as reviews say?

re VAGs - i've had many and the last few have all had problems - radiators leaking, waterpumps, electrics, etc - been put off for life

I wouldnt say uncomfortable no. I used to own a Corsa VXR (Also fitted the Janspeed springs to it) and didnt find the Cup suspension too firm.

We're now running even harder KW Clubsports and they are bearable.

 

[robby71]

I wouldnt say uncomfortable no. I used to own a Corsa VXR (

Hi
How would you compare the VXR to the Clio (better/ worse to drive as a daily, as comfy, more/ less reliable, etc)? would you make the change again or have you had regrets?

 

[N0ddie]

I will own another VXR one day. Really like the look of the new Astra.

The Corsa was probably a better day to day car. Much easier to live with. More fuel efficient etc. wasn't without its problems. Needed a new turbo and other bits and bobs.

The 200 is my preference though. They say you've got to be in the mood to drive it but whenever I step out the front door and she's sitting there in all of her Alien Green glory, that's me right in the mood. Have had the door seals and gearbox replaced on the 200.

One thing I would say though. The Renault dealers are much easier to deal with when there's a problem as opposed to the Vxl ones.

I do regret selling my old Corsa yes. Though at the time I swapped it for a diesel SRi Corsa which was a more sensible option when I do 400 miles a week. The wife uses the 200 for commuting to work so the poor MPG doesn't matter.

 

[robby71]

The gearbox problem is the only niggling thing - do Renuk help if the car is out of warranty or do they not want to know?

I'm getting over 30mpg around town, what can i expect from a 200?

 

[N0ddie]

They do in some instances. Other times they don't.

As for MPG. We get 31mpg. That's 70% motorway 30% normal roads.

 

[Willis]

They will help if you fight for it if it's out of warranty...

MPG, well it isn't the Clio strongpoint. If you do a lot of stop start in the rush hour traffic then you'll be in the 23-25MPG range... They do fair better on longer runs, not too bad on the motorway or dual carriageways but on short journeys and in town traffic they seem to drink quickly.

Saying that, it all depends on wether you trust the MPG gauge or not...

 

[robby71]

So what range do you get to a tank if the reading isn't telling the truth

23-25 is what i got from 3 Imprezas, Golf ED30, remapped Astra VXR, etc - reason i got the Corsa was 30+mpg, don't want to go too far below this again

What are the 200s like going up steep hills (i have 2 on my work journey)? are they torquey enough or do you have to get them revving? - the joys of a turbo mean low down grunt, might miss that again?

The car i'm after is 80 miles away so i really need to find if it's going to be suitable before i go over as i'm buying it online (subject to viewing) - don't want to miss out on it but don't want to buy it if i'll have regrets again (only had Corsa 3 weeks)

 

[Willis]

It varies, I'd say I get an average of 300Miles to a tank (12Gallons).

Obviously it will depend greatly on your driving style and the roads you're using, on a long motorway run I've had 375-ish Miles from a tank from a steady 75-80MPH cruising speed. They're really not very economical... The hills, well it depends how steep they are hahaha!!! In 6th at 70MPH you'll be around 3,500-4,000RPM depending on which gearbox you have, that's just below the powerband but at 2/3-3/4 throttle at that point it should pick up nicely.

 

[Paddy_R]

I'm currently getting 430-440 from a tank (37mpg apparently) but I'm rarely if ever in traffic as I turn onto a country road at the bottom of my drive and stay on that road for about 20 miles until I'm at work. In fact if I sit at 50-55mph I can get to work without touching the brakes!