Thanks for advice. I looked at car again yesterday and still really want it. The only problem is mum isnt sure about letting her 18yr old son in a 2.0litre. The only insurance company that will insure me is Elephant.co.uk for £1600 with mum as first driver. Why will they do it and no one else??? This is what i am worrying about??
:mad:

I hate to say but I think you should wait a few years before getting a 2 litre. It would be great but I'd hold back and spend the money on getting your own no-claims going.

In response to getting a 182 cheap - I got a quote for 12,650 for a 182 with cup spolier and suspension pack, racing stripes, and 6 cd changer - it was a UK car from a registered UK Renault garage :-) haggle!

Hmmm its a toughy really. I think you've probably made up your mind though :)

I've been in a lot of small fast cars and I mean scary fast - a Porsche beating Fiesta and a Scooby slaying RS Turbo to name but 2 and, yes, they're both fun and both ludicrously fast but both the drivers still love my MINI :D

Mark actually now owns a 182 after the RS Turbo and is thinking of selling it for a Scooby or such like. He says if it had a bit more grunt and was a bit easier on the wallet for what it is he'd get a Cooper S and Dan (the one with the 5th fastest Fiesta in Britain) said the only thing missing from my MINI is more power (I've got a chipped ONE). He also says he's never seen a standard suspensioned (did I just make a word up there :p ) car handle so well.

Anyway, I'm rabitting on now. Basically if you want fast then the 182's for you but like everyone's been sayin - if you want more to it than that then I'd stick with the MINI.

Good luck, enjoy your decision :D

:bone: Pat :bone:

I have a back issue of What Car magazine with an article on a direct compaison between a Clio 182 cup and a Cooper S. It makes an interesting conclusion.

Let me know if you would like me to send you a photocopy.

Tigger.

sorry but my mate has a clio and i have the mini and even though the clio is faster its a step down.
the monet would be better spent upgrading to an s

I had a Clio 172 for a couple of years and would never get another. Not only another Clio, any other Renault. The fanbelt jumped and caught up in the timing belt 2000 miles after it's 2nd service, engine rebuild needed, and even though it was under warranty Renault only offered to replace the fanbelt under warranty (ie. not the rest of the wrecked engine). Also, airbag light on and off like a disco (have heard of this causing the airbag to go off at random during normal driving). The starter motor also was hit and miss, turn the key and it would start sometimes, sometimes nothing, the starter wouldn't even turn over. Renault could never find a fault. I had to find petrol stations on downhill slopes to bump start it after I filled up on the occasions it played up. And I had to find parking spaces on a slope too. It cost me thousands to run. Thousands. A few of my friends had them too, we ALL got rid of them due to faults. Not only are they very badly built, their dealers are an absolute nightmare. I hope that if you do decide to get one you also buy a warm coat and a mobile phone. My friend at work (who runs an Aston Martin) sat down with me one day and we worked out how much it had cost us to run our cars. You guessed it, even with his 15mpg and £1000 a time services, the Aston cost less to run than my Clio.
Incidentally, between about October and April just about any car with traction control will murder a Clio Sport in a straight line, the way it revs makes getting the power down very difficult indeed, I was beaten from the lights a number of times by 2.0 litre Merc SLKs when it was slippery. Coopers left me behind from the lights in the winter, Cooper S's would be gone in a flash. Even in perfect conditions there's just about nothing in it between the Clio and the S.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot, the centre box (in the exhaust) baffles work loose and start rattling after about a year on most of them and the section is a "dealer only part" ie. not available at Kwik Fit and costs more than an entire stainless Powerflow system...

And there's more that I remembered! Clutches! Do you think it's normal to go through 3 clutches in 2 years? Or front tyres in 8000 miles? Or £8500 in depreciation before it's first MOT?
There's something else about the Clio too, and it's something that's intentionally designed-in.
Power-off oversteer.
If you've never had it before, it's a shock when it happens. Especially since it only happens at a speed that you've never been doing around that favourite corner before. Unless you practice in a safe enviroment you will be going off the road backwards at high speed at some point in the future if you intend to drive it like it's meant to be driven. I've seen it happen twice in the past, right in front of me, once to a 205 GTi and once to a Saxo VTS. Both cars were written off, I had to jump into ditches twice to pull the drivers clear of the wrecks.
Be careful.

blumin eck to say all that went wrong with it.........u had it a couple of years! :eek: :eek:

btw as for tires and clutches i'm on 2nd clutch and 3rd set of tires in 30k miles:eek:

p.s. don't talk to me about rattles:rolleyes: :p

p.s. don't talk to me about rattles:rolleyes: :p


Ses you Mr Eibach!!!!!!!!!!!!! :p

Reno have now anounced a 200 bhp clio

blumin eck to say all that went wrong with it.........u had it a couple of years! :eek: :eek:

btw as for tires and clutches i'm on 2nd clutch and 3rd set of tires in 30k miles:eek:

p.s. don't talk to me about rattles:rolleyes: :p

Im on second car (MCS) - first one had as many stupid problems as bianchi's Renault :(
Mini kindly bought that back off me and gave me a brand new one, this ones had a new gearbox, leather gear knob all worn off and gaiter is worn through (although Mr BMW/Mini is going to get asked to replace these under warranty as this is unacceptable on a Mini less than 1yr old) windows constantly squeek like mad and get the body cavity wax smeared up them everytime the windows go up and down - so then you can barely see out of the mirrors, squeeks and rattles arent to bad on this one, oh and the sensor warning light will not go out for the brakes - despite it having a new sensor and pads.
Other than this it has the usual BMW/Mini build quality :D

Reno have now anounced a 200 bhp clio

They still build better cars on scrapheap challenge...

windows constantly squeek like mad and get the body cavity wax smeared up them everytime the windows go up and down - so then you can barely see out of the mirrors
Ive got the same problem with my MCS and its getting very annoying, and can be a little dangerous as it causes quite a bit of glare at night, which is not what you want when crossing a busy junction! Do you know if there is anything that can be done for this (under warranty)?

They still build better cars on scrapheap challenge...

Made me laugh :D

Tigger.

Ive got the same problem with my MCS and its getting very annoying, and can be a little dangerous as it causes quite a bit of glare at night, which is not what you want when crossing a busy junction! Do you know if there is anything that can be done for this (under warranty)?

Ive had the dealership sort both the squeeky windows and the smeary crap, stayed fine for about 3 weeks then came back again, am sure the window squeeking is something that is slightly out of alignment, my dad sprayed some sort of stuff in an aerosol to stop the windows squeeking that sorted it for about 2 months but now its back again, will ask for a perminant solution to this when the car next goes in. I.E let the smeary stuff do its job but makesure it stays away from my windows, because if i have an accident this could be a contributary factor and if it is .... I shall certainly be seeking compo and I dont mean the guy from last of the summer wine :D

I think that even though any car can go wrong, you've got a far bigger chance of a Clio falling to bits than a Mini. You also have to bear in mind that Renault's (lack of) customer care is the stuff of legends, but it appears that Mini dealerships seem to look after you on the whole.
As far as cost goes, if you add how much I lost in 2 years depreciation to all the repairs I had to pay for, it cost me more than the new car did in the first place, (that's not including normal running costs, fuel, tax, tyres etc). If you had told me in 2001 that the new Clio I was about to buy would cost me somewhere in the region of £27,000 to buy and keep on the road for 2 years and I would only get about £7500 for it when I sold it I would have laughed at you.

My 10p worth, so here goes.... :)

My wife owns a Cooper S and I own a Clio 182 with the Cup accessories. Previous to that, I owned a Punto GT turbo and while I was impressed with the performance of it, it couldn't match the MCS in any shape or form in build quality and more importantly, handling. The MCS felt sure-footed, very composed and had nice uptake with the 'charger - even if I do prefer turbo power delivery.

However, my "Ivory Tower View" of the MCS was certainly taken down several pegs when the 182 arrived. This thing is amazing - where it lacks the instant surge of the MCS lower down, it more than makes up for it with the VVT pull from 4,200rpm onwards. 2.0litre in a car barely over one metric ton is good in anyone's books but it works with the Clio's chassis so, so well. Fling it into a roundabout and it grips, push it harder and the lift-off oversteer is so easy to control. In everyday situations, overtaking is a simple downshift and away you go - in fact, with 148lb/ft you tend not to bother downshifting.

In real-world situations, the boot is larger than the MCS, better rear legroom, comes with auto-wipers as standard, has better fuel economy and the half & half RenaultSport interior is not bad at all. The seating position on the 182 however, is awful, yet I never suffer from backache like I do driving the MCS over a period of time.

I think the two final points I'm about to make justify the 182 as a better car (in my opinion) overall. First off, I don't see much point in loading a car with toys, switches, lights, options, etc, etc - after all, aren't we supposed to be concentrating on driving and looking out the windscreen than playing with our 747-style cockpit anyway? Secondly, I get the impression that many current Mini owners attempt to recreate to 'Englishness' and coolness of the original Mini (roof flags, etc). The original Mini was a startling revelation, as was the Mk1 Golf GTi, but in terms of Englishness, it's about as British as a Big Mac.

It all depends on what we want from a car. The 182 is decent to look at (and has far, far better twin pipes on its butt than those weedy things on the MCS!!!) and I feel a lot happier driving the 182 in terms of what people think of it. You sit in traffic with the MCS and can't help but think people look at you and then the car and think "I bet he thinks so much of himself in that" - almost in a snob/to*ser way. The 182 is a Clio at the end of the day - a basic French hatchback, but I get much more positive feedback in it - most people know you've bought it for what it can do and its credentials, rather than the extra bodykit, stupidly large alloys and 86 tick-boxes you've checked on the car's option list of the MCS. Basically, if you want to pose, I think there are many, many better cars out there for the money. I do however, envy you guys of the 6-speed 'box - stupid, stupid Renault - what were you thinking with a 5 speeder?!

D.

:rolleyes: :D

Well your wife has got it right then hasn't she....
Would not want to have an accident in any car but definately not in a Clio...

and I feel a lot happier driving the 182 in terms of what people think of it. You sit in traffic with the MCS and can't help but think people look at you and then the car and think "I bet he thinks so much of himself in that" - almost in a snob/to*ser way. The 182 is a Clio at the end of the day - a basic French hatchback, but I get much more positive feedback in it - most people know you've bought it for what it can do and its credentials

Have to say when I drove 182, I found that it was attracting a lot of unwanted attention from Chaved up Novas.

Becuase its a basic french hatch in a couple of years they will all have ridicously sized spoilers and dustbins for exhausts, just like the Saxo VTS does now.

Its not a bad car but its out of its league trying to compete with the MINI in terms of image.

It's interesting on this 'image' thing as well. My other half used to get flashed at (oo-er?!) or she would let-on to other Mini drivers for the first couple of months, and then things trailed off. Even making a conscious effort, she get's little response these days - could it be that this 'image' is starting to wear a bit thin now? Remember all the hype, marketing and stupid prices going through the roof when the new VW Beetle was lauched? Where are they now? A car has to be based a lot more than on what image people think it has and more importantly, what the manufacturer thinks it has.

As for this price and build quality issue, you maybe right. Renault never has had the highest standard of build quality and I certainly would never claim any different, but in comparison to my ex Punto GT, it's come on leaps and bounds. My wife's Mini on the other hand has had two windscreen replacements, bad rear tracking adjusted, intermittent electronics failing in the dashboard and a penchant for guzzling a fair bit of unleaded - and this came from a price tag of £17,500. Just one option didn't make into my 182 (I wasn't going to spend £1,500 on sat-nav!) and picked it up, fully taxed and ready to go for £12,200. Yes, it will depreciate (like 99% of other cars) but that's the nature of the car industry. It is also one of the safest cars in it's class (view the nCap scores) - matching the 4 stars of the Mini.

Finally, all those snobs that look down on the older Clios and smirk at the 18 year olds adding bodykits to their 1.1 models. Give it time guys - your Minis will fall into their price brackets soon enough.... :cool: Just think of all those after-market abortions that they will be able to add to them then?

Fair Point!

I hate the dual exhaust on the new Clio Sport. I'm sure the clio cup didn't used to have them, much nicer

Fair Point!

Yeah can't really argue with that :D

I miss my Saxo VTS...... :( Wish I never sold it two years ago. Why can't my Cooper be as quick :mad: ???!?!

I Renault never has had the highest standard of build quality and I certainly would never claim any different, but in comparison to my ex Punto GT, it's come on leaps and bounds.

To say a car has a better build quality than a Fiat is hardly an amazing compliment.

;)

I miss my Saxo VTS...... :( Wish I never sold it two years ago. Why can't my Cooper be as quick :mad: ???!?!

If you met a VTS on a nice twisty bit of road, you would beat it.

You would need an S to beat it in a straight line though.

Think of the Cooper as the VTR and the S as the VTS :)

Don't fancy crashing in a Saxo though :eek:

If you met a VTS on a nice twisty bit of road, you would beat it.

You would need an S to beat it in a straight line though.

Think of the Cooper as the VTR and the S as the VTS :)

Don't fancy crashing in a Saxo though :eek:

you can get a Cooper upto speed if you really want to ;) exhaust, air flow etc, but how much do you really want to shell out? :confused:

I strayed to the darkside for 15 minutes today, I sat in the car, started the engine... didnt go anywhere though.
The actual driving position I didn't think was too bad, I could easily live with it. The steering wheel was pretty flat though, kind of like an old mini. Other than that the level of kit was good and its really tempting when its that good a drive, that quick and at that price!