172 or valver??

[colm_gti]

Right I'm in a bit of a confused state right now lads, and could do with some input/guidance...

I'm currently driving this..

Bought it standard for 3000 euro, and have since done the following..

Full set of toyo px4's
Had all 4 wheels straightened
Painted wheels satin black
Painted brakes yellow
Fitted DS2500's and brembo HC's up front
Fitted OEM discs and bearings and KTR ultimax pads at the rear
Fitted a full set of new OEM shocks with eibach sportlines
Fitted an OMP rear strut bace
K&N panel filter
Group n ecu remap
Aluminium radiator

This also includes the 6 months tax i put on it, and 2 years NCT (the irish equivalent to MOT)

Altogether it stands me about 5000 euro, and with me being 20 my insurance is 2300 fully comprehensive a year

Now, the problem is that I have been given a good cash offer on the car, almost breaking even, and as much as I love the car I am highly considering taking the lads arm off.

With the 5000 euro i'd get from selling it, I could easily go and buy a clean valver, my insurance drops by almost 500 euro, and tax drops considerably aswel. I would be left with a fair wad of cash that I would be putting into suspension, brakes and tyres to set it up for regular trackdays, as I have done with the 172, but would still be left with money for a good few trackdays. I currently am broke and even tho the car is ready for the track can't afford them, and with college starting back in september, i won't have time to save for one.

So my question to you guys is, would i be silly to sell the 172 that i have put a lot of time into and get a clean valver? Is the valver an easy car to live with? Is it hard to find a clean, rust free one now? Will it handle as well as the 172? (bear in mind it will be getting williams widetrack and coilovers) Is it as good on fuel as the 172?

It will be used for a daily 60 mile round trip commute and regular trackdays.

Sorry for the essay, but hope ye can help me out

Colm

 

[greglesueur]

BUY A VALVER!!!! fooking love em!

 

[Jonny1*2]

get yourself a willy You may as well get something that requires less work for the track. If you can get a minter it will hold its value better than a valver. Defo sell the 172 if you're being offered 5k for it

 

[Sym0n]

I was orginally going to buy a Valver before I bought my Ph1. Ended up buying the Ph1 as it's a newer car, a lot less mileage no rust, more modern engine/comforts/toys and was only £1000 more than a 14 year old rust bucket with moon miles. Don't get me wrong I love Valvers and wouldn't rule out buying one in the future, but they are old cars now and a pain in the arse to work on IMHO.

Just go with what you want. End of the day there are more 1*2s on the road than Valvers and will be more so in the coming years as more and more Valvers are broken, so if you decide to sell the Ph1 and buy a valver you won't have too many problems selling it on, as long as it's not a heap, and getting another 1*2 if that's what you wanted to do.

 

[Monaco Sean]

Well if it was me!

I'd sell the your 172 and buy another cheaper one OR as an alternative I had a Saxo VTS at 19 and was paying £850 a year to insure it. Group 13/14 opposed to 17 on 172. Should be able to get a clean low mileage one for £2250 and TBH was just as much much fun as my 172.

 

[colm_gti]

Cheers for the guidance lads, i suppose its something i'll have to think long and hard about

Well if it was me!

I'd sell the your 172 and buy another cheaper one OR as an alternative I had a Saxo VTS at 19 and was paying £850 a year to insure it. Group 13/14 opposed to 17 on 172. Should be able to get a clean low mileage one for £2250 and TBH was just as much much fun as my 172.

had a vts, and a 106 gti, they're too small and feel like little toy cars now, i couldn't go back to driving one of them now

 

[cat171]

Valvers are nice, if you can find a decent one ! Tbh it's quite a tall order as the last ones came out in 1996 ! That said there are still a few nice ones around, but they are at a premium.

 

[whatisjustis]

It sounds to me like you've already made your mind up fella'.

Buying a mint valver/paying some TLC and bringing it up to mint condition will serve you well down the line. They're still a real head turner IMO.

 

[Monaco Sean]

Cheers for the guidance lads, i suppose its something i'll have to think long and hard about


had a vts, and a 106 gti, they're too small and feel like little toy cars now, i couldn't go back to driving one of them now

Fair enough!
I dont think valvers are much bigger OR grown up than a VTS. 306 GTi-6 I loved mine, was awesome car.

But it does sound like youve made your mind up, find the best one out there and it should be a bit of an investment!

 

[Monaco Sean]

Fair enough!
I dont think valvers are much bigger OR grown up than a VTS. 306 GTi-6 I loved mine, was awesome car.

But it does sound like youve made your mind up, find the best you can out there, and it should be a bit of an investment.

 

[whatisjustis]

Join the clio16valver forum and speak to some of the lads on here who own one, like foxy.

 

[cat171]

I had one for almost four years, i'll help you out with info if you need it.

 

[colm_gti]

cheers guys, appreciate all the info and guidance. i've been looking around over here and on pistonheads, and it's proving to be quite difficult to find a cleanish valver with no signs of rust, and a williams is out of the question as insurance is too costly, as much as i would love one.

i guess i'd budget about 1200 to 2000 cash to spend on a valver if i was to end up selling the 172, as i will have to pay vehicle registration tax of 650 to put it on irish plates

 

[colm_gti]

Right has anyone here owned both for a long enough period of time? And i'm looking for an un-biased answer to these questions

Which car would handle better? A 172 or valver with williams widetrack?
Which car is easier to live with?
Which car is cheaper to run and maintain?
Which feels more solid to drive?

 

[Sym0n]

I've owned my Ph1 since February and driven/worked on my exs old Valver enough to be able to give an informed answer.

On standard suspension, a Valver with willy track.
172.
172 (unless it's a dog).
Valver.

So...no help what so ever lol.

 

[colm_gti]

I've owned my Ph1 since February and driven/worked on my exs old Valver enough to be able to give an informed answer.

On standard suspension, a Valver with willy track.
172.
172 (unless it's a dog).
Valver.

So...no help what so ever lol.

right so its fairly even haha

how are the valvers on petrol?
and are valver replacement and service parts expensive, or is it just that you need to replace them more often?

 

[Sym0n]

I wouldn't say a standard Valver is bad on fuel TBH. Worse than a 172 though, but then I'd expect that with an older engine.

Valver parts are easy to pick up as there are loads of them being broken all the time. On here, clio16valver and williamsclio you should be able to find owt you need. Service parts are cheap as too due to the age. But again due to the age of the car and mileage more things will need replacing than on a newer car although no f**king about when it comes to cambelts like on a 172.

 

[Robb]

Best choice i made getting a valver, what a learning curve! They are great cars and mine always puts a smile on my face. A lot of people will just think it's a 1.2 with a 'turbo vent'. Although something goes wrong near enough every week... I still love it and it's easy enough to fix most of the time. Even then it's more than likely an electrical problem

 

[colm_gti]

I wouldn't say a standard Valver is bad on fuel TBH. Worse than a 172 though, but then I'd expect that with an older engine.

Valver parts are easy to pick up as there are loads of them being broken all the time. On here, clio16valver and williamsclio you should be able to find owt you need. Service parts are cheap as too due to the age. But again due to the age of the car and mileage more things will need replacing than on a newer car although no f**king about when it comes to cambelts like on a 172.

Well if i was to sell the 172 for 5k, i have found a clean blue mk1 16v over here that i could probably have for 2k, and its already on irish plates which is a bonus. That would leave me with 3k pocket money, 1k of which would be going into brand new 172 wishbones, driveshafts, bearings, discs, pads, used 172 hubs and calipers, brand new willy track rod ends and coilovers and a used willy steering rack and ARB, not to mention new bushes all round and rear brakes and a cambelt and tensioner change, I couldnt see much going wrong after that lot is done?

What gives the most trouble on these anyway? PAS pump? Wheel bearings? Electrics?

 

[Robb]

PAS just gets noisey, you can fill it right up but it just over flows when it gets warm/hot but it shuts it up atleast. A lot of people modify this with an overflow res.

I havent had a problem with my wheel bearings but my rear shocks snapped but they're cheap at £22 (each) for some OEM ones

A lot of electrical problems. Not so much comforts like windows and lights just fuel pump wiring, sensors etc as the loom will be pretty tired more than likely.

 

[16v_paddy]

Well if i was to sell the 172 for 5k, i have found a clean blue mk1 16v over here that i could probably have for 2k, and its already on irish plates which is a bonus. That would leave me with 3k pocket money, 1k of which would be going into brand new 172 wishbones, driveshafts, bearings, discs, pads, used 172 hubs and calipers, brand new willy track rod ends and coilovers and a used willy steering rack and ARB, not to mention new bushes all round and rear brakes and a cambelt and tensioner change, I couldnt see much going wrong after that lot is done?

What gives the most trouble on these anyway? PAS pump? Wheel bearings? Electrics?

Was going to say get the valver & put 172 widetrack on it

The only real problems are just wear & tear items due to the age of the cars, no big deal in the grand scheme of things.
In your situation I'd definately flog the 17poo, £3k pocket money and a mint valver would be win win all round