high milage 172's

[Punter]

Hi everyone, Ive been on the prowl for a 172 for a couple of months now, and I was hoping for a few opinions. I've got a budget of up to around the high £4000's which seems to put me in reach of either a 40k-60k, 2000 pre-facelift (is this called the mk1?) or a 70k-90k 2001 mk2.
First off I'm moving over from the land of Honda, so my views on high milage are probably a bit off (my civic I just sold had 235k on the clock), so should I expect any engine related problems from buying a 70k - 90k 172? I expect the same old shocks etc... wear and tear obviously. I'd prefer a mk2 simply because I think it looks far nicer, and has the benefit of the updated interior, but what would you go for??

Also, the alloys on the mk1, are they 15"? They look smaller than the 16"'s on the mk2...

Any advice or opinions would be great! Thanks

Cam

 

[R20 CWH]

greetings to answer: -

172 mk1 is from 99 (V,W,X,Y) - 2001
172 mk2 is 2001 (Y, 51, 02, 52, 03, 53, 04) then
182 version from 2003 (53, 04, 54, 05, 55, 06, 56) then
197 (06, 56 etc...)

id try and get a 172 mk2 myself, tho i am biased as thats what i have, there are alot around the £4k, but mainly with as you point out high mileage. dont be put off, as long as its had the all in important aux belt (36k) and cambelt (72k/ 5 years) done and regular services with decent products then there should be no major concerns.

take a long test drive of both variants and see which you prefer. Look out for suspension knocking, squeeling brakes and oil issues (white gunge).

the mk 1 had 15inch oz wheels,
the mk2 had 16 inch 5 spoke silver alloys, the 'cup' (52 reg onwards) had speedline turinis which are silver and quite nice
the 182 had silver 8 spokes or anthracite 8 spokes as part of the cup packs.

 

[Neil G]

I'd go for the Mk2 as well

As above...solong as the car has been looked after & serviced properly don't be too worried about the mileage.

 

[Middo]

I was in the same position a few months ago and I'd go for the mk1 172, at risk of being ridiculled, i've heard from edde and other renault enthusiasts, the engine is made from better material so therefore is more 'bomb proof' (dont know how true this is), also got the cable throttle, better induction and are a damn site rarer than the ph2's. I'd also choose a low mileaged older car over a high mileaged newer car everytime. As said above, if u really want a high mileaged ph2 just make sure its been well looked after but 5k, i really doubt it would have been tbh, but the market is bad at the mo so migh get lucky. if u wanta ph2 i'd seriously look at this one...

http://www.cliosport.net/forum/showthread.php?t=188582

ph2s also have more toys than the ph1, cruise control, climate control xenons etc that the ph1 doesnt have, also one to consider.

 

[Punter]

This is the time of year to buy, so I'm seeing some pretty decent prices! I hadn't heard about any differences between the mk1 and mk2 engines, anyone confirm this? My thinking is a mk2 is always going to be easier to sell again - i've seen mk1's that have been on autotrader for months. And I do like the extra toys!, but I thought the mk1 had xenons as standard too?

 

[Danith]

for 4k? defo gonna get a better ph1 than a ph2 (suppose it obvious really).
ph1s i think look better but i cant see there bein any real diff in performance between ph1 and ph2. and yeah ph1 are much rarer.
wheels are a bit g@y but thats easy to sort out.

 

[Loopz]

High milage shouldn't be a problem, as long as the car has been taken care of properly...well, at least engine wise.

Mine mk1 172 is on 85k miles at the mo, engine is running strong, but the rest is starting to show its...eeem...frenchiness, lol.

 

[davebem]

I was in the same boat 2 months ago. Then I found this one on autotrader, its had a new gearbox, new renault exhaust! and a full service history. If you look hard you can find some real bargains and I paid well under 4k for mine in the end (its on 62k).

HAve a good look round some and make sure you get one thats had its cambelt/tensioners changed before 72k. All the 172s Ive looked at around this mileage seem to have overcome there teething problems and should be good for quite a few more years.

 

[azzer2000]

new gearbox at 62k :s

 

[StevieGreenstuff]

^^^davebem that's nice. Love that colour^^^

This is exactly where I'm at at the mo, and I'm looking for a peachy phase 1 with about 45-60k on the clock. Seen a few worth looking at just need to save a bit more mulah.

In the meantime the search goes on...

 

[John D]

I'd get a ph1 172 if I was in your shoes. I quite like the front end (bit more aggressive) and much prefer the wheels to the ph2 5-spokes. Also you get cable throttle rather than drive by wire (supposed to be better) and the ph1 is lighter.

The only downside is the interior but I could live with that (saying that ph1's actually have nicer seats than my car! lol)

Oh yeah, the word is RS clio's only get quicker with miles too!

 

[ludaprix]

i got my 172 4 weeks ago for £4050, with the following:

56k miles
fsh
bb tuning gp n ecu
coilovers
310 wp pro brakes
cda bmc carbon induction
k tec stainless exhaust system
install (inc focal speakers all round) + pioneer headunit
interior was spot on with no cracks in the leather bolsters either
silvertecs
clifford
17'' oz supperleggras
full colour coded with ph2 bump strips

all i had to do it get a 60k service!

 

[Punter]

New gearbox? What? Was that serious or not? How much should I set aside for that 72k belt change? Anything else I'd be looking at replacing at this milage? (exhaust, shocks etc...) I'm expecting a degree of french car nonsense, but on the whole are the electronics and interior bits solid?

 

[Englebert]

What i like is that you can pick up a new engine for £500, so i couldn't care less if it goes totally wrong.

I think the key is to make sure it has had belts changed, or you're asking for trouble.

I would only get a Mk1 172 if it was in Sunflower Yellow, otherwise a 172 Cup is the one to have IMO.

 

[Middo]

^ i like your thinking in case you didnt know this is a sunflower yellow, according to jeremy townsend theres only 31 of these ever registered in the uk and i know a couple have been written off so u'll have a job find one. I know only me and craig have one on here, so theres only about 20ish out there! I paid 4600 for this one with waranty on 50k, fsh, alloy bonnet and gear shift light with tax and 12 months mot

 

[Faxo]

Ive just bought one on 95k!

Drives like a dream, no knocks or bangs, it even impressed lads at work with how clean it is!

Full Renault history inc all belts, 10 months tax, but no test because of cracked screen. I took a chance, and paid £3250 for it. Got the screen replaced for £50 excess, and it sailed throught its test, which was £35 from work.

I wanted the Mk2 for the toys, climate control, xenons etc

It just been professionally valeted today, and it looks absolutely mint! I tested a Mk1 172, 56k and it was knackered! ragged, abused, no history etc etc, and they wanted £3995 origionally!

This is my 172 when i bought it

 

[davebem]

You made the right choice with that, shes a bargain beuty.^