197 Test Drive today

[rich_84]

Hi all,

My car was in having it's first MOT today, so I took the chance to go out for a spin in their 197. It was in Ultra Red, had the cup chassis, and new gear ratios.

I had been driving a 1.2 Campus as a courtesy car, so stepped into the 197 slightly forgetting exactly what the 182 felt like. The 197 felt very together, nicely substantial and planted. Yes it's a lot more comfortable inside with better feeling materials and generally feels a lot more solid. The clutch still seems quite meaty but not as heavy as the 182's. First impression of power was pretty good, and I have to admit being able to push through the first few gears on full attack it felt nicely fast and sounded good. I really appreciated the differences to the 182 and was wondering if I could really justify the extra money needed to make the change...

I got back into my 182 hoping I wouldn't feel too let down, and as soon as I got moving I appreciated what the 182 has that the 197 doesn't seem to have. The engine feels more tractable and picks up harder from earlier in the rev range, the steering feel is superb and suddenly I didn't care about the nicer materials and more polished interior.

I see the 197's appeal, and will seriously think about a change sometime in the future, but right now I am very happy with the 182.

Hope that wasn't too much of a waste of your time, but just some of my thoughts!

 

[FlameR]

Similar view to mine after a test drive mate, nice cars and well put together. The power delivery is very linear as well I thought. brakes are miles better too.

Not sure I'd be happy chopping the 172 in plus about 8k for one though

 

[Neil G]

Go for it...loads of used 197s on the market for good prices as well.

 

[dandycaptain]

Yeah pretty much my sentiments. If only the 197 could lose 200kg without losing any quality I'd have my name on the order sheets faster than you could say 'just buy a used one.'

 

[Paul M]

The 197 is up on bhp but 0-60 quoted is about same as the 182 and top end is slightly down - 134mph compared to 139 for 182. Although I haven't driven one it looks as if there is no obvious performance advantage on paper over the 182!

 

[rich_84]

If only the 197 could lose 200kg without losing any quality I'd have my name on the order sheets faster than you could say 'just buy a used one.'

Think you've captured the ideal situation there, but seemingly an impossible one for Renault to bring us.

 

[DebV6]

Similar feelings to mine after driving one.

 

[jayxx83]

Having looked at a few vids of the Civic FD2, these will defo hold their value better and handle amazingly. 197 is a side step imo.

 

[Se7en172]

The new gear ratio allows the car to do 139 mph now. Not that I ever drive at this speed anyway! Just thought i'd let you know

 

[Se7en172]

The 197 isn't a side step from a 182, not at all.
It is without a doubt an upgrade.
Looks, build quality, handling(feels a bit strange for the first 20 miles,) but is handles better than the 1*2's without a doubt, the Chassis can feel a bit too good at times, The engine has had slight upgrades to cope with the extra weight, which is great, the clio is fast enough as it is. BUT I wouldn't say no to a clio with a meganesport engine slapped in it.

 

[MikeLYR27]

The 197 isn't a side step from a 182, not at all.
It is without a doubt an upgrade.
Looks, build quality, handling(feels a bit strange for the first 20 miles,) but is handles better than the 1*2's without a doubt, the Chassis can feel a bit too good at times, The engine has had slight upgrades to cope with the extra weight, which is great, the clio is fast enough as it is. BUT I wouldn't say no to a clio with a meganesport engine slapped in it.

+1

Me and my mate did some traffic light dragging in my r27 and his 182, the lights went green and my r27 pipped it by about half a car length, and were both doin about 70-80.And you could visably see me pulling away. We then swapt cars so he was driving mine and me in his. Felt good to be in a 182 again. More tourqe at 2k revs but otherwise feels the same as my mighty R. My mate said the R27 felt quicker, and out of the roundabouts the 182 wasnt as good, i was trying my hardest but my mate kept pulling away much quicker in my R27. Was a fun day. especially as i beat him at the lights lol!:rasp:

 

[Timmay]

i really must test drive one myself at some point soon

 

[Se7en172]

The 197 isn't a side step from a 182, not at all.
It is without a doubt an upgrade.
Looks, build quality, handling(feels a bit strange for the first 20 miles,) but is handles better than the 1*2's without a doubt, the Chassis can feel a bit too good at times, The engine has had slight upgrades to cope with the extra weight, which is great, the clio is fast enough as it is. BUT I wouldn't say no to a clio with a meganesport engine slapped in it.

+1

Me and my mate did some traffic light dragging in my r27 and his 182, the lights went green and my r27 pipped it by about half a car length, and were both doin about 70-80.And you could visably see me pulling away. We then swapt cars so he was driving mine and me in his. Felt good to be in a 182 again. More tourqe at 2k revs but otherwise feels the same as my mighty R. My mate said the R27 felt quicker, and out of the roundabouts the 182 wasnt as good, i was trying my hardest but my mate kept pulling away much quicker in my R27. Was a fun day. especially as i beat him at the lights lol!:rasp:

People just find it difficult to take to new generation cars for some reason?
In a few years time when the next cliosport comes out people will be saying that the 197 is far better than that or its not as refined as this, where in reallity it will not be better going by Renault standards, they have always improved their cars from the williams to the 197 cup, each car released since has been better in some shape or form. Alot of people cannot let go, thats my opinion. I have an extreamly deluded friend who believes his pug gti 180 is a beter alround car than the 197, and I have another friend who has a slightly better comparision in the form of his Ford Focus ST but he is still diluded as the 197 is a better alround car. If I felt the latest Corsa, Focus, Megane was any better than the cup I would have bought one of them. At the time in my hot hatch price range I felt the 197 cup was the best alrounder for me.

 

[socrates]

i bought my R27 F1 because i liked 1. How it looked. 2. Handling and stopping. 3. interior (as good as any even the mini) 4. finally performance.
i was lucky enough to have some cash to spend and i chose this over more expensive cars for the above reasons. i.e R26 (ugly imho), Alfa Brera 2.2 (sluggish and I couldn't stretch to the 3.2) and as for a BMW mini i woudn't be seen dead in one.:dead:
if a tenth of a second here and there was that much of a deal I'd get myself another 911.
and no i'm not being a snob ,its not a my car is better than yours my favorite car of all time is my proper mini it's not that fast and handles ok, and it's rusting in places it's no world beater but i cherish this and will be still around long after the R27 is gone.

 

[rich_84]

Se7en, I understand what you are saying and actually had that conversation with the sales guy as we drove about yesterday. I in no way feel its a downgrade, but they do have a different feel about them and that's what I was trying to get at.

I understand some people might be a bit aggresive when it comes to comparisons, and I know that my test drive hasn't shown me what the 197 is all about at all, but it did show me that its not obvious that it is an upgrade to the 1*2's either.

Each to their own in the end I suppose, and one day soon I might be swayed into thinking about a 197 more seriously - but right at the moment I cannot justify the extra money it would take to buy one. I was quoted £6k as trade-in value for my 182 - I nearly cried... lol

 

[evolution]

Technically 197s are much better cars.... but they do feel like they've lost a bit of rawness and character compared to the 182s.

Point to point, i reckon a 197 might just pip it because of the cornering speeds and brakes... but if u asked me which is more fun.... i might be inclined to say a 182.

 

[Chili Red]

R26 (ugly imho)

How very dare you!!

I'm going for the meggy over the R27/197 because I feel it's more of a step up.

I do like the R27's looks though.

 

[MikeLYR27]

197 FTW!!!!

 

[jayxx83]

No need to take offence mate. What I meant was imo its not an upgrade because the performance isnt significantly any better than a 182. Its just like a EP3 CTR, I wouldnt say its an upgrade but a sidestep.

I judge my cars mainly on performance, not build quality. If your talking about the 197 being an upgrade in terms of build quality then I would agree.

For my cash, I wouldnt chop my 182 in for a 197 because it doesnt really offer anything that is worth the money in my book. Plus the fact that the depreciation is quite heavy from the outset on them.

Im currently looking for a "new generation car" as you put it, but it isnt going to be a 197. Hence investigating the FD2 as an option. That imo is an upgrade, purley in performance terms, build quality does not come into the equation although being better than a 182 in this aspect helps.

 

[socrates]

Originally Posted by socrates
R26 (ugly imho)
How very dare you!!

beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, ask my wife some recon she must be blind her being so gorgeous and me such a pig

i already have a grand scenic and I sort of gone off le grande derriere

 

[Paul M]

The 197 isn't a side step from a 182, not at all.
It is without a doubt an upgrade.
Looks, build quality, handling(feels a bit strange for the first 20 miles,) but is handles better than the 1*2's without a doubt, the Chassis can feel a bit too good at times, The engine has had slight upgrades to cope with the extra weight, which is great, the clio is fast enough as it is. BUT I wouldn't say no to a clio with a meganesport engine slapped in it.

The handling seems to be in the 197's favour but it sort of defeats the object of power to weight ratio in that the 197 engine has had slight upgrades to cope with the extra weight. Its gained weight but no tangible extra power and the performance figures reflect that.

 

[Gaz_]

What performance figures? As said previously in this thread about how the R27 pipped the 182, well so far thats my findings. I've had a 172 Cup, 182 and 197. When my 182 was standard a mate had a 197 on demo for the weekend through work. We had both cars up against each other and there is no difference in a drag up to 100 or so, proven a few times. It really depended who got on the loud pedal first tbh, and only the the advantage was very tight. No Clio 182/197 will pull massivley from the other. Fact.

 

[zack40]

Originally Posted by socrates
R26 (ugly imho)
How very dare you!!

beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, ask my wife some recon she must be blind her being so gorgeous and me such a pig

i already have a grand scenic and I sort of gone off le grande derriere

lol someones after something..

 

[Fletcher]

Similar feelings to mine after driving one.

+1

 

[Paul M]

What performance figures? As said previously in this thread about how the R27 pipped the 182, well so far thats my findings. I've had a 172 Cup, 182 and 197. When my 182 was standard a mate had a 197 on demo for the weekend through work. We had both cars up against each other and there is no difference in a drag up to 100 or so, proven a few times. It really depended who got on the loud pedal first tbh, and only the the advantage was very tight. No Clio 182/197 will pull massivley from the other. Fact.

The performance figures quoted by Renault

 

[Chili Red]

i already have a grand scenic and I sort of gone off le grande derriere

Nothing wrong with a big bum

I used to hate the meggy's backside, but I've finally warmed to it...

 

[alanc1000]

I have a 182 with cup packs, but its out of warranty now, so tomorrow i am test driving a standard 197 - none of my local dealers have F1 R27's, which is the car i really want. I say i really want an R27, because it looks nicer and I want the xclusivity to be honest! However, there are a couple of things which might mean its not my cup of tea - any pointers on these..

1) i know the R27 has recaro seats, non height adjustable, i'm only 5'6" and when i sat in a 182 trophy, it was just too low for my liking - is the R27 going to be the same?
2) i cant see any online spec for the R27 and wondered if it has the extras like auto lights / wipers, folding mirrors as options or standard (or not at all)?
3) Is the handling on the standard 197 failry decent? I remember thinking my 172 had good handling, but when i drove my 182 with cup packs for the first time, i could massivly feel the difference - is this going to be the case between the 197 and R27??

anyone test driven both of these??

 

[Paul M]

R27 spec here http://www.renault.co.uk/NMNewsItemDisplay.aspx?nid=562&nc=18&pc=6

Standard RS197 spec with a few extras

 

[Iridium]

A 197 with the Cup Packs is basically an R27 anyway without the plaque

Dan

 

[MikeLYR27]

The recaros are height adjustable. There is a lever down on the right of the chair. Im not that tall either, im only about 5,8 5,9, but i always have my chair on the floor, like an F1 car LOL!!