Clio Williams Questions

[Bennn]

Im thinking about buying a Clio Williams and just wanted to know a few things, so if some of you guys could help me Id really appreciate it!


What are the differences between the Williams 1, 2 and 3
Are there any common faults to look out for
Do they all have power steering, electric windows/mirrors etc
Im looking for an unmodified one, and have about £3000 or £4000 to spend. Will I be able to get a fairly decent one around this price or am I likely to end up with one thats just been thrashed?

If theres anything else that I should know about please let me know

Thanks!

 

[Mikey16vClio]

I think u should save or budget another 2 grand for a minter. 5k seems bottom/average looking on autotrader.co.uk.

Have u considered a Clio 16v as u should get a good 1 for that money but i think a decent Willy is pushing it.

What Fiesta hav u got. Im looking for a nice black FRST at the mo if u know of any?

 

[Bennn]

Ive just got a G-reg 1.1 Fiesta which is why Im looking for something a bit racier. I dont know of a FRST im afraid. Ive just always wanted a Williams and now Ive got the money Ive started having a look round. There seem to be a few around for £4000 but I was a bit wary, not really knowing much about them. Are they likely to have any major problems or are they probably just cheaper because they arent completely mint? Also, what are the big differences between the Williams and a Clio 16v?

 

[Mikey16vClio]

Check http://www.autotrader.co.ukwww.autotrader.co.uk mate. Do a search for differences but low down torque is the only main difference really.

 

[Tiger]

alright mate, i was in your position a few months ago, i had an xr2i to kick about in, then got a job with a bit more cash, ive also wanted a williams for years, absolutely love them! i had 5k to spend, i just kept checking autotrader and found one i was keen on, it was a williams 2, it was down in preston and only had 56k on the clock, with refurbed alloys, brand new f1 tyres, decat pipe, magnex and k+n, exactly what i was looking for! he had it advertisedat 5k and i asked him if he would take 4500 cash, he said ok and i was down getting it a week later, i was absolutely mint, like brand new with full renault service history all reciepts etc he aslo gave me the reciept for the motor when he bought it, 6500 he paid for it a year and half ago, all in all it was a great deal, the car has been going like a dream ever since, feels so sturdy compared to the 2i, the handling is amazing and so is the speed, look about mate and try and get a good one, i would go for a williams 2 personally, i hear too many storys about willy 3s having dodgy sunroofs, and most of williams 1s have higher mileage, dont dive in, also do an hpi check to be sure, hope you get one soon mate, its the best 5k ive ever spent, i love it!



Tony

 

[Tiger]

also williams 1 doesnt have leccy windows, williams 3 has a sunroof and abs and is monaco blue compared to williams blue for the other 2

 

[aaronc]

Push your budget to £4500, you should be able to get a gooden for that.

Look out for:

- Rear arch rust

- Steering column movement (play in the steering wheel)

- Make sure cambelt has been done

- Get one with FSH



Dont worry about one with:

- Noisy power steering

- 200 ratles inside the car!

- Slight gearstick movement

 

[Bennn]

Thanks for all the replies - I dont feel quite so lost about what to look for now!

It seems that most of the ones Ive seen mention the cambelt in some way or another - is it something that goes wrong with the Williams often, and is it easy and cheap to fix?

 

[Kelly]

Cambelts need to be changed on every car - its just the Williams is such a pain (wow I used a polite word! lol) to work on labour charges are sky high

I found a common problem to be gearbox and engine mounts - but they are a cheap fix. Oh, and wheel bearings

 

[woots]

Williams 1s do have leccy windows. There have been loads of detailed threads on this in the past so do a search. Cambelt change is about £200 and should be done well before 70k other than that engines seem pretty strong. Clutch is another expensive one, £400-500. The buying guide on the main page of this site is very useful.

PS plug - mine is for sale, see the for sale board has probably dropped down a page or two.

 

[talizman]

I seem to remember reading the Autodata book one time and it says a timing belt change is a 6-8 hour job!

My alternator went on my Williams 1 and to replace it, the bonnet had to come off, the o/s headlight out, and the radiator had to be dropped out just to get the damn thing out, so you can see why labour is so high, it a bloody great big engine shoe-horned into a small bay!

Any BTW. the Williams 1 have most things the other do except manual mirrors and no sunroof! If your has manual windows I think you have a hum-dinger mate!

 

[aaronc]

6-8 hours????

No dont think so matey, just had mine done 2 hours labour. and bonnet stayed on.

 

[eves]

just washed my williams and shes gleeming! i love the feeling when people stop and stare as im roaring towards them, theyre great fun and you dont see thatmany either. williams 3 are slighty rarer, and the colour looksamazing in the sun!!!

 

[talizman]

aaronc, get a hold of an Autodata book and see what it says, Im only quoting it!

And I dont remember saying the bonnet has to come off either????

 

[Tiger]

Quote: Originally posted by woots on 05 June 2003


Williams 1s do have leccy windows. There have been loads of detailed threads on this in the past so do a search. Cambelt change is about £200 and should be done well before 70k other than that engines seem pretty strong. Clutch is another expensive one, £400-500. The buying guide on the main page of this site is very useful.

PS plug - mine is for sale, see the for sale board has probably dropped down a page or two.







ooops meant to say leccy mirrors!

 

[aaronc]

Quote: Originally posted by talizman on 05 June 2003


I seem to remember reading the Autodata book one time and it says a timing belt change is a 6-8 hour job!

My alternator went on my Williams 1 and to replace it, the bonnet had to come off, the o/s headlight out, and the radiator had to be dropped out just to get the damn thing out, so you can see why labour is so high, it a bloody great big engine shoe-horned into a small bay!

Any BTW. the Williams 1 have most things the other do except manual mirrors and no sunroof! If your has manual windows I think you have a hum-dinger mate!

Talizman

Just to remind you again.....as above

 

[sledge racer]

there are all kinds of prices out there for williams, but best way is to have a look at teh car and see what state it is in, either of teh 3 is an awesome drive, teh willy 1 is 10 years old now, so not many about and generally high milage as they are old, but if maintained properly and well looked after should be fine, Things to look for are well heavy cluthes, when was the last clutch cable doen, as they tend to snap them especially if the clutch is getting pretty heavy , and also as avbove teh cam belt, also looking for teh usual stuff envolving prangs atc, and HPI it too. have a look about and worth doing some research. i shold be standard regards teh exterior interior trim and also have teh original williams wheels else it will look naff.

Shoudl be able to tell from meeting teh owner, i can say for myself as many otehr williams owners, i have reciepts coming out of my ears, which indicates a well looked after car i would guess!!

Oh as well they can tend to get broken into so make sure it has at least a cat 1 alrm imobiliser! Enjoy you wont want another car again!

 

[talizman]

Quote: Originally posted by aaronc on 05 June 2003


6-8 hours????

No dont think so matey, just had mine done 2 hours labour. and bonnet stayed on.

aaronic.........

I never said the bonnet had to come off for a timing belt.

If you read my post again and perhaps a little slower, you will see I spoke about timing belts times. Then a full stop. New paragraph.

Change of subject now..... I then made another example of the hassle of doing certain jobs on the Clio, citing the alternator as an example, stating that the bonnet had to come off for this job. (not the timing belt, still with me?)

Now if you are still confused, then email me privately and I will be glad to spell it out for you in even simpler terms.

So please, if you are going to quote me, at least get it right.

Thank you.

 

[Louise]

Gearboxes are defo weak points. Loads seem to go. Mine went at 80k a few months ago, and also an engine mount snapped on it. I was lucky on mine, it didnt break for the first 16k miles I had it for (got it at 64k), but they ARE high maintenance, so either have the money, or have it off road for ages at a time lol. SOOOO worth it though.

 

[Eddd]

I sold my Willy just before Easter with a new timing belt installed for about £4,400. It was high mileage and needed a bit of work, possibly a new gearbox in the near future, the dampers sere the originals and needed replacement.

If you are handy, it is a great car. Ive not driven a more entertaining little car. At least not with a back seat and a hatch.

Be patient in your search and you should find one that suits your budget.

 

[Chris_H]

My bit, the gearboxes are not weak. They just seem to be busted by idiots with clios. I have owned a fair few amount of renaults (about 30 or so) and the exact same bearings etc are used in the Esprit, if they can handle the turbo V8 I am pretty sure they can handle the pathetic output of a 4 pot.

I have a box in my 19 which has now done 170k miles, including 20 k on ASDA brand engine oil (dont ask), it still wheel spins away in the 1st 3 gears quite happily, is it dying? No, is it worn yes (end case bearing chatter at less than 700rpm), is it abotu to explode? No.

What kills them is the idiot boy racers with their hand on the knob and ramming the thing in as hard as they can.

Bearings, wheel bearings are meant for the service life of the car, i was a bit pissed off when I had to do mine at 150k miles. When they are changed they tend to be badly installed so expect to change them every other fornight from then on.

Engines are generally fine, they are tractor engines so have a low rev limit due to having a longer stroke than a swimmer. Cambelts are not that hard to change. Ignore the crap about 6 hours labour etc, on the clio I can do it in under 2 hours, on a 19 in about half an hour (can do an energy 19 in 10 mins lol).

Brown coolant means that like 99% of other crenaults the cars been neglected, tyhe resovoir and coolant should be clear. if its not then the water ways in the head will be clogged with crap. Give the hoses a squeeze, the matrix ones especially) if they crunch then thats metal rusty sh*t stuck to the hoses due to a neglected cooling system.

I would pay more than a grand for an A1 16V and about 1500 for a Willy.

In fact buy a 19, half the price twice the car (that will kick off an argument! lol).

 

[aaronc]

Im still waiting for my order of willys chris, you sourced them yet?

You said you can get em for £500 each..................im still waiting?

Remember the incentive, 300 quid in your pocket for every willy you get...

 

[Chris_H]

not looked aaron had better things to do with my time, like eat a big sandwich, swapping engines, porting a head, working, knocking down a wall in the bathroom and various other crap that involves not looking for a car.

 

[Chris_H]

but I have seen a 2.3 FPT saab 9k for 150 quid, 120k miles, full leather all the toys, 225bhp (which can be upped easily). If you want I can secure that for you, need to be quick.

 

[Dafydd]

a grand for an A1 16valve, i love it when you come out with lines like this one, it cracks me up.

 

[aaronc]

According to Chris my clio is worth a £1000! I cant belive it! I paid £6500 for it in 1999. That is serious depreciation i cant belive it im gutted, i wish you hadnt had told me that Chris, i better sell it quick for a grand as by next week it will only be worth 500quid.

http://members.lycos.co.uk/aaronchap/car/10.jpg

http://members.lycos.co.uk/aaronchap/car/9.jpg

Any takers for a grand?

 

[007]

I would pay more than a grand for an A1 16V and about 1500 for a Willy.

In fact buy a 19, half the price twice the car (that will kick off an argument! lol). so you will get a mint 19 for £20 then - lol

Sorry aaronc but £1k - way over, at that depreciation it will be worth 50p in a year!

 

[Chris_H]

you know you lot amuse me greatly. Its quite sad when you think there is no better car than your clio.

I can get you a 1.4 GTS-x 19 for 25 quid, needs tax next month though and it still has 4 months mot.

There was a ph1 19 valver for 250 the other week which I was told about but its gone now.

 

[aaronc]

Quote: Originally posted by Chris_H on 06 June 2003


you know you lot amuse me greatly. Its quite sad when you think there is no better car than your clio.

I can get you a 1.4 GTS-x 19 for 25 quid, needs tax next month though and it still has 4 months mot.

There was a ph1 19 valver for 250 the other week which I was told about but its gone now.

Wheres these Mint 16v clios and willys for the money your talking about? Yes i saw a P11916v yesterday for £500. It was an absolute sh*tter, clutch was gone, suspension was shagged, honestly it was a danger to the road.

Chris, come on mate £500 for a Clio Williams??? Are you mad? Mint clio valvers are selling for the market value which at the moment are about 3500-4000 max. A mint 16v for £1000 is just dream land.

A clio 16v is much more of a diresible car than a 19 FACT!, thats why there are selling for more now!

Anyway on a serious point if you can get me a mint renault 19 1.4 or whatever (dont want a 16v) for £250ish i may be interested as im after a 2nd run around. Has to have 12 month MOT, doesnt matter about TAX Cheers

 

[Dafydd]

im not saying my clio is the best car in the world , far from it but its what i wanted and all the cash i had, no body has said that there clio is the best car in the world. but you are not going to get a very good car for 1 grand, have you checked the autotrader recently.??

 

[sledge racer]

agrreed my clio is not the best car in the world, could not afford the carrerra 4 i was after, that was 2 grand! They are great little, cars , fantastic fun, an din THEIR CLASS i guess we feel they are up there. Whole can of worms opened, they just need a bit of enthusiam to keep them going and on a 10 year old car things do tend to break, they are not all the same from the factory, and so some have duff componants, and they may need replacing - shocker a car that needs maintenece, must complain to reno!

 

[007]

Chris - we are all coming to your planet to buy some cars if you can get mint 16vs and Williams for the prices your quoting!! Ever heard of something called "market value" Its the price the market dictates you car is worth not the price Chris reckons its worth Lmao!!! And this is my first clio - its no world beater but its good - and it isnt ugly like a 19 - thats on reason why 19s are cheap - they arent in demand = cheap prices.

 

[007]

Oh and we await some examples of these cars!! Mint 16vs and Willies for £1k lol

 

[Illusion]

I managed to get a Willy 3 with 47K for £3800

With that in mind, the Willy does need a respray and the wheels need to be refurbished, but i still reckon i got a bargain.

So if you shop around u should be able to get one fairly cheap.

Love it to bits!!!

 

[aaronc]

add on respray and wheel refurb - 1500-2000 = 5k/6k

But yes you did get a bargin there.

 

[Paul16V]

You can pay a lot for a nice car. Depends what people are willing to pay. I have to say I haven;t seen many mint valvers and williams to be honest. Some of the club cars are extremely tidy but there are loads of sh*tters out there for sure.

You can get a 16v for £250 but it wont actually be yours hehe.

 

[sledge racer]

1500 quid = a williams with shagged wheels, no SH(because it never has been ) and every panel that is bent i would laugh at any one who offered me 1500 for mine, they could sing!

 

[pennga]

the sills can start to go as we,, i have a 95 williams 3 but little patches of rust are starting to come through.

Also its right the headlamp comes out and bonnet off for alternator,

Every service / mot i have had is expensive, it is a high maintenance car as you need a service every 6000 miles.

Great car but be careful, i dont thrash mine too hard but the gear box is a bit sticky at times, and the clutch was done about 20,000 miles ago but it can slip at a high rev change up, esp 2nd to 3rd.

Have fun

The other difference is insurance willy is 17 or 18, 16v is 11 or 12

 

[Paul16V]

yeah, best bet is a willy engine in a 16v

 

[White16valver]

Chris is just here to wind us up peeps - dont be rising to it!

Market forces dictate car prices - same as in house prices. People will ask what people are prepared to pay to secure a good car/house/whatever. Im sure if Chris had a Willy (in any form ), he wouldnt stick it up for sale at £1500 knowing he could get £4500+ for it. Or maybe hes just a reeeeally nice bloke whos happy to give cars away...

[/cynic]