Clio`s crap in the wet/ice

[cliotuRS]

dont know if its just my cars or my driving but it seems to me that all the cars ive had with firm sporting suspension have crashed over bumps and thrown me over the other side of the road or lose the back end even at moderate speeds in ice and very wet conditions ?? my last car couldnt corner for sh*t but it always felt ok in the ice and wet ?? could it be the tyres are designed for high temperatures being low profiles on my 172??

anyone else supprised since they upgraded suspension or got a better handling car how Alive it feels on bumpy b roads or ice wet or even worse all three.

the other day i had the back end @ 45degree angle going round a slippy corner @ 35mph !?! the car in front (toyota corola) was fine.

is it because the Clio is soo light and with the eibachs is basically like a feather with springs attached or is it because most cars have more tread higher profile tyres with soft suspension and wider track + heavier ??? maybe thats why a lot of people on here are sliding off ??

really dont feel safe driving in these conditions @ the mo especially seen as i live in the countrysie with mud everywhere.

Summers great though nothing can catch up hehe.

 

[tidyclio]

clios definetly are crap on ice i got a 4k bill to prove that!ive driven cars in the cars that youd put ni the same category as my own clio albeit a 1.2 and the handling in them i wouldnt say was any better in most cases worse.

one thing i would say is that for a car of its weight the tyres on most clios with alloys are too wide.possibly because it needs more grip the 172/82s could warrent these but on all the rest their far to big. im not trying to be technical but if the way i see it when your going round a bend especially in ice or in the wet if your leaning on to one tyre that tyres going to be fine dont worry about it,but the tyre thats lifting is going to be the one that matters.you imagine the weight tyring to hold this wheel down,its spread out over to big a surface,half the width of your wheels and twice the weight.

im away to get a set of steelies!

 

[Dazz]

well my mk2 16 clio has 14" 185 tyres and it seems to be worse on the roads so far this winter than my old rt that had 15" 195s.

Touch wood though, ive never had the rear end of the clio go out on me once.

 

[Mondial172]

Ive always thought mine felt nervous in the wet and ice.

Thought it was just because the Cup had such hard springs though

 

[nathanH]

mines awfull in the winter, i also live in the countryside, when i go round corners and hit a mild bump it just jumps slides or seriously understeers, had the backend go a few times, not a nice experience, im running spax adjtables (set at there hardest )and 205/40/17s, its not very confidence inspiring in the wet/ice but when summer comes round its fantastic to say the least.

Bring on those B roads...

 

[stan*]

Quote: Originally posted by nathanH on 04 December 2004


mines awfull in the winter, i also live in the countryside, when i go round corners and hit a mild bump it just jumps slides or seriously understeers i take it you mean oversteer?, had the backend go a few times, not a nice experience, im running spax

adjtables (set at there hardest thatll be why then)and 205/40/17s, its not very confidence inspiring in the wet/ice but when summer comes round its fantastic to say the least.

Bring on those B roads...

 

[clio__chris]

mine aint too bad

not as bad as my mum and dads old passat! that was terrible

 

[stan*]

They are very "on-the-edge" when it comes to lift-off oversteer, but once you master it its all fun and games.....

 

[Paul_P1]

Erm, is there a good car to drive in these conditions? Even with 4WD I can feel my front wheels scrambling, or the back end wondering, all at low speed.

When its like this, i.e. greasy, wet roads, the best idea is not push your car at all.

 

[dazraffan]

ive just just changed from a mr2 roadster too a 182 and you thought a cilo was bad in the winter you want try drivin a light rwd car in the snow

 

[Fred@BTM]

FFS if theres ice on the road, or its damp you should take into account the conditions

 

[Mondial172]

Quote: Originally posted by Fred2001Dynamic on 04 December 2004

FFS if theres ice on the road, or its damp you should take into account the conditions

Like Fred says - its in the Highway Code isnt it?!?!?!?!

 

[Decto]

I cant say Ive noticed a problem with wet handling, if anything Im very impressed as even on cold wet horrid mornings I can just point it into a corner without much thought.

Obviously you cant go tearing down lanes expecting the same levels of grip as a dry summers day but it seems fine.

Have noticed the exaltos dont grip much for the first mile until they warm up a little and maybe its the ESP that takes the drama out of the drive on a wet slippy road.

 

[stan*]

i was talking generally anyway....

 

[davebem]

Clios are crap in the ice in my opinion, not too bad in wet, in snow they are terrible, last year in all the snow a smart car overtook me! Couldnt even get any traction at all, had to be pushed up some hills where other cars went up with ease.

 

[Andyvalver]

Wouldnt be bothered bout ice/snow. Most front wheel drive cars are sh*t in those conditions. My valver is sh*te in the wet though. They jus dont wanna turn or change direction at all in damp/wet conditions. It makes up for it on a dry road though.In a big way.

 

[182_blue]

slow down !!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Turkish]

my 182 feels better than my mk2 172 did but like the guys said in sh*t conditions just slow down, driving like a prick in the wet/greasy/icey conditions is asking for trouble.

 

[m4rk]

lower your tyre presures for wet or snowy conditions, plus most folk on here are driving with wider tyres which are sh*te in these conditions

 

[NaplesValver]

last year i had my MR2 when it snowed, ive got a fairly steep/sharp left hand bent at the top of my road, hahahaha i had no chance, couldnt get up it so had to get the bus to work!!! not had the chance in the clio yet!

-->NV

 

[CraigV6]

Try a V6 in the snow.............................fun and games one time and one time only.

If theres any sign of snow these days the V stays at home!

 

[Lunner]

The reason why it skips when it hits a bump is becasue the suspension is set so hard it bounces more which is great when there is lots of grip but when there is less weight on the wheels they will slide on the slippery surface, and the suddenly grip, hence why my adjustable dampers are now set nice and soft, you will find its the same thign when accelerating hard in a straight line, the wheels skip and spin, and come donw and cus the road is slippery they carry on spinning for a bit

 

[almaghrbi]

My experience with the Clio Cup is fine on both (Dry and Wet). I compete in Sprints and the times to other very competitive cars dont vary much (ofcourse the times from wet and dry vary alot). I guess there is a tendency to expect the same level of grip but it is different all the time. It varies to conditions, car setup, tyres and so many things but above all (DRIVERs experience) and as some said, SLOWDOWN. It is not only you on the road and you have to compensate for others

 

[cliotuRS]

all this "SLOWDOWN !!!" im talking about going 35mph when in the dry people drive @ 50 around the corners im refering to. im not remotely driving fast and the car isnt planted but my bros fabia VRS IS for example. FFS it should be pretty obvious that you shouldnt drive fast in these conditions, if i was such a numpty i wouldnt be able to afford a 172.

what i was trying to identify was if due to my eibachs and the clios lightweight that the grip is more seriously effected than your average family chuff about.

 

[McBunny]

obviously very cold out your way my screens only been icy once

 

[Jim.]

mine goes sideways at barely owt, bumps on bends make it skip across the road.

 

[McBunny]

the clio isnt light either

 

[jonnyboy]

my 172 is positively scary when the roads greasy, took me by surprise at the start of the rainy season after been able to rag it more or less at will though the summer. Have to be pretty careful when theres leaf mulch on the roads. If its just wet there not too bad but its the leaf mulch that makes roads really slippy.

 

[jongsr4]

anyone who has lowered or stiffened suspension will have more problems in the wet and slippery conditions than someone who has a standard i.e softer, set up,

In the cold/wet/ice you need the car to be as soft as possible, if youve got hard suspension...youll struggle basically

When i had my Evo 2, the suspension is set quite high, everyone told me to lower it, but in the wet and slippery conditions it was just awesome

 

[RobFenn]

Stiff suspension will make things more hairy in the wet..but were talking FWD Clios here, though after driving a Cup i found it felt a bit on tip toes.

The things that keep you in contact with the road are the tyres ultimately, so get some new ones!

-Rob

 

[Scudetto]

i like the fact the Clio tells you through its steering that its slippy out there. Maybe it warns you earlier than other cars that its dangerous out there at the moment. Makes me go slower, and if that means I make it to the other side of Christmas then thats a good thing, si?

g

 

[cliopower]

I have also had a big bill because of the ice. No grip at all.

So how would a standard 182 compare to one with cup options in the ice?

 

[Liam]

no difference imo

 

[Willy Williams]

If your car is not gripping, try slowing down. I find this helps alot.

 

[beacytan]

Quote: Originally posted by davebem on 05 December 2004

Clios are crap in the ice in my opinion, not too bad in wet, in snow they are terrible, last year in all the snow a smart car overtook me! Couldnt even get any traction at all, had to be pushed up some hills where other cars went up with ease.

You silly silly little man. i am now the owner of a 172 which is sh*t in the wet/snow/ice, however, its more controlable than my 97 mr2 or my 99 m3 which were both rear wheel drive. u wanna go fast in wet/ice??? u need 4wd. BTW wot clio u got?? v? 17/8/2??? Its a lot harder driving a RWD in the ice than your 1.2...