Thinking of buying a 182

[dasherdiablo1]

Okay so being my first post; Hello To All.

Due to the dreaded tax-man I have just had to sell my BMW MCoupe! A very sad thing indeed. However I recently test drove a used 182 and loved it!

A very impressive little motor. Now dont flame me but is there anyone on here who has had a high performance car and had to trade down? To be honest for the money the 182 seems a very hard car to beat. But could people advise me what I should look out for?

Also I do like my sounds and would be interested in peoples opinions on the best upgrades to the system...should it need it.

Cheers guys I am looking forward to becoming a regular contributor...just as soon as I get my hands on one!

 

[Ang]

*waves* hello and welcome

dont own it but i have use of and EVO 8.......still love getting back in my car though...fantastic fun cars to drive...love my 182 and wouldnt trade it for anything else at the moment.

 

[Lee]

Welcome to Cliosport.

I think youve pretty much just summed up the 182 in a few words "To be honest for the money the 182 seems a very hard car to beat".

On the downside the biggest thing you will notice (other than performance) is the build quality. Its not bad, but light years away from a BMW.

Id be scared of buying a second RS Clio knowing what Ive done with my last 2. Of course buying new you will take a pretty massive depreciation hit, but obviously that wont be such an issue if you keep the car a few years.

Theres not really anything in particular to look out for, just the usual when buying a car which may have been driven enthusiastically or on track. Rattles and vibrations are all part and parcel of Clio ownership unfortunately.

Lee

By the way, some videos here of how much fun they are on track. http://forum.cliosport.net/display_topic_threads.asp?ForumID=13&TopicID=158889&SearchPagePosition=1&search=brands&searchMode=allwords&searchIn=Topic&forum=13&searchSort=dateDESC&ReturnPage=SearchLink

 

[TheCake]

hello and welcome to cliosport

 

[waftywoo]

Dont know wether its just my internet but the link doesnt work

 

[simonr]

I have had my 182 for 8 or so weeks now & love it to bits. I also have a 03 STI PPP subaru which I have had for 2 years so even thou I have not traded down as I am keeping the scooby I love the 182 to bits equally as much as the Subaru. Even went to the ring the weekend before last & took the Clio. Peformed excellently and enjoyed it as much there as I did in the scooby on previous trips. Want to go back 1 - 2 times this year & if I only manage 1 trip I will take the 182 again

cheers Simon

 

[Lee]

Quote: Originally posted by waftywoo on 24 May 2005
Dont know wether its just my internet but the link doesnt work


Could have been because I searched it. Heres a working link: http://forum.cliosport.net/display_topic_threads.asp?ForumID=13&TopicID=158889&PagePosition=9Link

 

[AliasOmega]

Buy my 182.

 

[rcp]

Welcome

As you say, you cant get a much better car for the money.

 

[AliasOmega]

I think the 182 is poo. Dont buy it, dont get the nice little performing engine, dont get the amazing handling, and avoid all the problems you get with renault.

Save your £££ and buy a £100 car from the auction.

 

[JPW172]

dam,wish i would of known that before i got mine....ssssshhhheeeesssshhhh

 

[dasherdiablo1]

ohh youve all got me a bit worried about the build quality now.

As far as dealers go I know what you mean. I went into Renault Watord on Sunday and when I asked the salesman if he could get hold of a 182 he just went "Yeh theyre two a penny" I was gobsmacked! To be honest his attitude as made me very wary of the whole Renault experience. Mind you that said the Head Office is about 5 miles away so I could always go down there and stir up some sh*t!

Having second thoughts now........the rattles dont bother me cos I can sort them myself...plus the stereo can always drown them out! LOL

 

[182_blue]

build on mine was sh*te, renault customer service was even worse, thats why i sold mine after 6 months (from new), in that time i had

2 new exhausts

1 major oil leak

leaking washer jets, cracked jet

alarm problems

banging on acceleration

door went out of alignment

rattles

more rattles

and alot more rattles

i wont be buying renault again in a hurry

 

[Lee]

As much as I hate to say it, thats typical of a Renault dealer. In my experience they are some of the most useless dealers on the planet. Luckily since Renault Birmingham had a total refit last year they seem to have employed some better staff, as in the past they were far from helpful.

As for build issues its not really that bad. Ive had a 172 and now have a 182, both from new. Neither have ever been off the road or had serious faults, just known ones. They have engine mount issues and front suspension strut top issues, both of which are easily fixed by the dealer. They also have poor exhausts which dont last much past 10k in some (mine and a fair few others on here) cases. Interior wise a few rattles here and there arent anything to worry about.

The 172 covered 22500 trouble free miles in 15 months and the 182 has done 17500 in 10 months, including been used at Santa Pod, Silverstone, Spa, The Nurburgring and Brands Hatch twice. Plus a 42 mile round trip to work each day.

Theres obviously something about them, (price maybe) which means Im swapping mine for a new one in July!

The best thing to do is go and give one a go. Youll either love it or hate it. When I purchased the 172 I test drove it back to back with a CTR and the Clio had the grin factor for me. Other people find its the other way around.

 

[Richy123]

Im in the opposite position wishing to trade up as im getting paid more so can afford higher personal loan payments. However selling it is another thing, youd think it would be easy at 9.5k for a few months old 3000 mile example. Clio sport is the car i will probably come back to though when im fed up with expensive running costs.

 

[Toypop]

I have had a couple of problems, one was fixed by myself thanks to this forum - a knocking engine mount that is dead easy to fix. The other the dealer failed to fix but thanks to this forum I know it is not really a problem - occassionally the emissions light comes on for a day, usually after short journeys. If I take the car out for a long spank on an evening the light goes out the next day. It only comes on once a month at most though.

Only rattle is the windscreen heater vent which the dealer failed to sort out. It only rattles on rough roads at 40mph plus though.


Dealers are the real problem as I simply do not trust them to fix something. I havent dealt with Honda dealers though so I dunno if they are much better. Toyota have the best dealers but I dont really want a Corolla T Sport.

 

[dasherdiablo1]

Richy....PM me the details I may be interested...oh and some pics would be good too! I will give you my email addy in return.

 

[Mondial172]

182s just dont seem to be built as well as earlier models. I wasnt around here really when the 172/Cup were the current models but Ive never heard so many problems with them.

 

[ollie20016]

Renault watford are not good at all. I went there when i wanted one and the salesmen was not helpful at all. Only thing is they are only 10mins from my house so its conviniate. Was ur m coupe black remember seein one around.

 

[dasherdiablo1]

ollie....yep black with black leather (most of them have horrible coloured leather). It was probably me or the missus...if it looked like it was out of control it was probably me! LOL

So how good is the service/garage facilities at Watford? And would you buy another one considering the reliability and dealership issues?

ps Titanium looks great......I saw one the other day and it was reallly sparklin

 

[ollie20016]

u prob saw me am always around near the renault garage or i have a mate who lives opposite renault headquaters. I think i saw u goin toward m25 junction 17 up the dual carriage way. Mine has black windows and a magnex exhaust. Its also lowered and always clean. I didnt get from renault in end i did a px with my 53 reg mini one which i made look like a cooper S so i cudnt sell to dealer but swapped for my titanium 182 which was a parallel import. U live near watford then?

As for build quality it isnt amazing but is better than my mini one was. Also have had no problems and it is on 7900 miles. With the mini which is made by bmw i had a new gearbox and others by the time it hit 7000miles.
























[Edited by ollie20016 on 24 May 2005 at 10:57pm]

 

[dasherdiablo1]

Yeh Im sure that was me! One of my mates lives near Ricky. Yeh live in Abbots Langley. I must be honest think Ill be tinting mine too...my missus has her new corsa done and it looks the muts! Am not fussed about colour; they look good in titanium, black, infrno and blue...see whatever comes up & drives the best!