Clio 197 - Test Drive

[DEMONKNIGHT666]

Well, took the 197 out on Sat morning for a good hour and for me it didn't cut it.
Build quality seemed very good, all soft touch and heavy doors but that made a big difference when under accelration in 2nd and 3rd, blunted is the word I would use.

194 hp sounds good but to much weight to drag around makes a big difference.

Now if you are in the market for a wellbuilt(?) safety conscious car that goes a bit the 197 is fine but it's just not as visceral or immediate as my 172, I really didn't like the eletronic power steering it just didn't weight up enough for me.

It was a nice place to sit, nice thick steering wheel and plenty of adjustment of seat and wheel to get in a good position but it felt very electronic not agricultral enough for ME.

Everyone has an opinion and mine is that I won't be buying a 197.

 

[Dave]

Argricultural? Try a tractor!

Common complaints though

 

[Fletcher]

Imo the 197 should be £15,999 fully loaded, not something silly like £18,000.

 

[DEMONKNIGHT666]

Argricultural? Try a tractor!

Common complaints though

as opposed to Space age.

 

[DEMONKNIGHT666]

Imo the 197 should be £15,999 fully loaded, not something silly like £18,000.

I wouldn't buy one if it was 12k

 

[Fletcher]

I wouldn't buy one if it was 12k

Even if it was 12K i'd still go for a trophy.

 

[tameracingdriver]

Somehow perhaps I think the 197 would have been better with a turbo motor. I know its what everyone else seems to be doing these days, but with that weight to drag around, it would have benefitted from extra torque. As long as they made it a high revving turbo.

Anyway, I can really see no reason any longer why someone would not choose say a Megane 225 Cup over this car.

 

[gazcaddy]

Anyway, I can really see no reason any longer why someone would not choose say a Megane 225 Cup over this car.

couldnt agree more, the 182 and 225 were different beasts. Now the 197 is so similar to the 225, throw in the fact that they both cost pretty much the same at the moment and with that I cant see why anyone would buy one over the 225.

Another point, On its own the 197 feels and is a quick car, when i went for the test drive the missus thought it was very quick (all though she doesnt like going fast!), after the test drive she i tookj her in the 182 and she thought that was scary quick. I dont think theres any doubt the 182 is faster but it feels so much faster.

They should have put the meg 225 engine in the new clio, now that would be some car!

 

[Graham Gooch]

couldnt agree more, the 182 and 225 were different beasts. Now the 197 is so similar to the 225, throw in the fact that they both cost pretty much the same at the moment and with that I cant see why anyone would buy one over the 225.

dont need the extra space...........and the megane is a good size bigger than the clio

maybe they dont like the styling.....................(remembers back to when EVERYONE slated the meganes apperance when it first appeared......pattern there)

Maybe they want the NA engine

Dont assume all people are the same or stupid for making different choices

 

[Graham Gooch]

Im test driving the 197 on saturday, so will post my thoughts up on it then

 

[gazcaddy]

dont need the extra space...........and the megane is a good size bigger than the clio

maybe they dont like the styling.....................(remembers back to when EVERYONE slated the meganes apperance when it first appeared......pattern there)

Maybe they want the NA engine

Dont assume all people are the same or stupid for making different choices

I never said anyone is stupid or that everybody is the same, i just said I couldnt see any reason for buying the 197 over the 225.

Its just my opinion, no need to get touchy about it

 

[Graham Gooch]

I never said anyone is stupid or that everybody is the same, i just said I couldnt see any reason for buying the 197 over the 225.

Its just my opinion, no need to get touchy about it

lol im not getting touchy haha, tbh I dont care that much just saying really

 

[dave b]

i came across my first 197 today ,tbh i thought it looked very smart in the bright red ,surprisingly wide at the rear and looked a pretty serious machine to me.
Lined up at the lights with him ,and... well you got to havent you!!! ......it wasnt very quick tbh ,folks keep saying "maybe its not run in ,maybe he was a crap driver "etc etc.I reckon they just honestly arent that quick in a straight line , i would love a go in one though as i enjoy corners more than straight lines.

 

[Darren S]

Even if it was 12K i'd still go for a trophy.

Snap, sir.

D.

 

[tameracingdriver]

dont need the extra space...........and the megane is a good size bigger than the clio

maybe they dont like the styling.....................(remembers back to when EVERYONE slated the meganes apperance when it first appeared......pattern there)

Maybe they want the NA engine

Dont assume all people are the same or stupid for making different choices

The 197 is much closer to the size of a Megane than the 182 ever was.

They look pretty similar - this is subjective - but in my eyes the 225 is much better looking.

Fair point on the NA engine, but its now a heavy beast and it sounds a bit gutless. They could have perhaps just employed a small turbo, or better still a twin sequential turbo to give similar characteristics and help with grunt - mind you that probably would have costed a bomb!

 

[Graham Gooch]

The 197 is much closer to the size of a Megane than the 182 ever was.

They look pretty similar - this is subjective - but in my eyes the 225 is much better looking.

Fair point on the NA engine, but its now a heavy beast and it sounds a bit gutless. They could have perhaps just employed a small turbo, or better still a twin sequential turbo to give similar characteristics and help with grunt - mind you that probably would have costed a bomb!

they should of held off till the 250ps megane comes out,

then they could of used the 225 units remapped to 210 odd bhp made it suit higher revving maybe a low pressure turbo application, would of had better torque and the split between the two would of ensured they wernt making either car redundant with the other.

I will reserve my judgement until saturday, next to SMC woking is such an amazing b road, if it dont shine here then all is lost.

part of me likes the megane, and i enjoyed my test drive, just stupid niggly things i dislike, like the fact the dash lights up white(well it did on the f1 i drove) and i prefer orange, etc........lol

 

[portland]

Pretty much everyone is saying the same thing. Guess Renault are pitching at new RS owners rather than hoping people will "upgrade". If my Trophy got written off and I couldn't get another one, I'd be looking at the Meggy or ST, not the 197.

 

[jph172]

Portland- Before you even think about it- ST,s in my opinion are slow! Ive already left one behind. (focus) Plus i was reading in fast ford magazine a tuning company tweeked one up to 300bhp 0-60 was 6.58secs and 1/4 mile time was only 14.8 which i thought was pretty poor!
I know there heavy cars but once the turbo spins up they should fly.

 

[tameracingdriver]

Someone on another forum I was on showed a speedo vid of his tuned ST, and I was surprised to discover it was no quicker up to the ton than mine (i posted a vid of mine too). I dont think he was too impressed to discover this! They *should* be quicker, but it didnt seem to be (although I am sure it would be after a ton).

 

[Ex-User (19928)]

I thought the main arguement for owning a RS Clio was that you can have fun within the speed limit

7 seconds to 60 is hardly slow, especially considering it's price. With Brembo big brakes and a decent suspension setup it's still a good little car, main difference being it's now a nice car to be in.

But then it comes to the price... If I were thinking of buying (or 1 year financing) a 197, I think I'd just have to put that money on a deposit for a bigger and better car, so I see where people are going. There is still a big market for them though.