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Costs of running a valver?



D

donsrno1

  S2000
I am now seriously considering getting valver but I need to work out if I can afford it TBH. I was just wondering what they are like in terms of fuel economy and things.

I currently own a Mk1 1.4RT. What has anyone else who has moved up to a Clio 16v from 1 1.4RT found the running costs to be like in comparisson?

It'll probably cost me a few hundred to change and about £300 more for insurance which I should be able to afford but I want to check about other costs in general.

Thanks.
 
J

jzr

  RenaultSport clio 172 mk2
well i have to be honest when i had a few years ago ( petrol lot cheaper) he used to drink the juice but it had been modified. i am un sure what the petrol is like on a normal one also mine had been lowered a hell of a lot an it used to eat wheel bearings
 
B

BRUN

  Skoda Fabia vRS
mine does 30mpg

how much disposable income do you think you will have per month after insurance and petrol costs ?
 
D

donsrno1

  S2000
BRUN said:
mine does 30mpg

how much disposable income do you think you will have per month after insurance and petrol costs ?
Click to expand...

LOL, that's what I'm trying to work out mate and it won't really be too much. I'm trying to work out how much of a difference it would be compared to my current situation with the 1.4RT and I'm not sure if it would be that much worse.
 
TomS

TomS

  Vee dub
The 6,000 mile service intervals can add up but the service is relatively cheap (I provide own oil)

They aren't cheap to run, I use mine to commute to Uni and it does like the fuel, but it's not excessively bad. I get around 350-380 miles out of a full tank.

Well worth the costs in my view

Tom
 
ViolentJ

ViolentJ

  Not a Clio
Fuel isn't really an issue... it's replacing stuff as it goes wrong that is.

For the first few months of owning my valver it was in the garage every week for days at a time. I called the AA out more times than i can remember.

When you finally get on top of it i.e. replace just about every bloody thing on it then you have nothing to worry about.

When buying one get one with a HUGE portfolio of recent receipts.
 
Scott

Scott

  Beetle
mine has been very reasonable to run since buying it back in may, if i take it steady on the right pedal i can easily get at least 85 miles to a tenner, obviously if you drive it everywhere like you stole it its gonna drink the juice. only costs apart from fuel and insurance has been £70 to get it through the m.o.t. which for an 11 year old car isn't bad going really, £50 of which was labour costs.
its only ever failed to start once and that was after not being run for 3 weeks due to me being on holiday, all it needed was the battery charging up and the earth sorting. touch wood its been a very reliable valver so far :D
 
Daz

Daz

_simon_ said:
Fuel isn't really an issue... it's replacing stuff as it goes wrong that is.
Click to expand...

Exactly.
It gets crazy. I've spent so much in parts for my Williams.

Altho, a lot of things were done just because they were easy - the engine was out, so I took the chance of replacing stuff which *might* go wrong.. heh..
If Mat didn't do all the work on my car and I had to pay specialist Renault prices (Wouldn't take my car to any garage - gotta be done right), it'd have been sold way back.. just couldn't afford it.

On the other hand, when they are running how they should, I very much doubt anything in it's class can compete with it's "fun factor". (Another reason I still have it). They really are, *that* good IMO.
 
TomS

TomS

  Vee dub
Luckily so far i've not had many issues to deal with so fuel and servicing have been the main issues for me
 
D

donsrno1

  S2000
Yeah I would hope to do most of the servicing myself TBH.

As for the cost of parts I'm hoping it wouldn't be too bad as a lot of work appears to have been done to the car and it recently had a new clutch, alternator, wheel bearings, timing belt, exhaust and engine mounts. The car is on about 86K miles with FSH.

The main problem is that insurance would be £1000 TPFT for only ten months. I had been getting quotes of about £800 but that was with the car being a couple of years older and without any modifications (it's been lowered and had alloys put on).

I don't really know what to do as I could probably afford to run the car but it would probably end up with me going into my overdraft slightly (student one so 0% interest) but I could probably pay it off in the summer.
 
D

donsrno1

  S2000
It's also had new pads and discs all round a few months ago and it's on pretty much new tryes so hopefully that would mean that most of the usual wear and tear parts have been done.
 
Daz

Daz

If you think you can afford one, go for it.. great cars.

Sure you'll enjoy it - I love my Williams (when it works, hehe)
 
D

donsrno1

  S2000
The one I am considering is actually on an auction website online but unfortunately that means I might not be able to see the car before buying as it's a bit far away which could be another problem. It sounds quite good thought so I'll just keep an eye on it and see what happens.
 
Daz

Daz

Well, I'd never buy a car without seeing it.

We went to see a "mint" Williams once - supposed to be really mint etc.. and we drove for 4 hours to get there and it was shocking. Definetly way off what we'd have called mint. We looked at it for 10mins and left - for the 4 hour return journey.

Everyone's idea is different - so when someone says something's "mint", it might be "tidy" or even "rough" to someone else.

Shocking. Heh.
 
D

donsrno1

  S2000
Yeah I know what you mean. The thing is that if I bought it on the auction I wouldn't be paying for it till I got there and if it wasn't as described I would just refuse to pay.

That's also the reason I was checking in another thread to see if anyone nearby would be able to have a quick look at the car for me.
 
Scott

Scott

  Beetle
what colour is it mate? is it on ebay?


best colour to get that is mate ;)
 
Last edited:
Nafoff

Nafoff

ClioSport Club Member
i went from a 1.4 to a valver...i am also a student and commute to uni....the valver doesn't cost that much more in petrol than my rt did..obviously the insurance is a bit more as is Tax... but touch wood its been fine..i got one with a full service history and then got a mechanic to check it over before i bought it...only paid for services and i think i have had one other problem of a wheel bearing..

but overall its been great and driving it is awsome
 
D

Dancliovalver

where u from mate and how much do u want to spend, have always thought about sellin mine for the right price!!!!
dont know how much its worth though!!!
 
D

donsrno1

  S2000
I'm in Edinburgh mate and I'm looking at £1000 max and I don't even know if I can afford that LOL. Where are you based and how much are you wanting for you car?

What year, milage etc is it?
 
midge

midge

nah, not realy, when i was looking for mine i set a limit of 1500 and ic ame across many for 1k or less i found a naples for just 750 66000 miles, but i dont realy like the colour so held out.. then i came across the one i bought was up for 1500 on ebay buyitnow i went and saw it the guy said he wanted at least 1k for it, i showed him 900 and took it away.. there was a few things withit as expected.. play in steering and wheel bearing, crack in rear bumper, small dent in bonnet... the main reason for buying this one though was the fact it has fsh and every reciept for everything that had been done on it, milage a bit high at 99000 but theres valvers about that are on 150000..
 
M

Matbrown

  Trophy
He's looking to see if he will be able to afford petrol and insurance so i doubt very much he will be able to afford anything that might be wrong with it when he buys it.



Mat.
 
T

-TA-

  LiquidPhoto.co.uk
get yourself handy with the spanners! its saved me thousands!

not cheap to run, and most will have been ragged! ( mine was totaly and uterly shagged! doh! )

rebuilt the engine myself, got to know it well, still has its niggles, and things do keep going wrong! ( gearbox is on its way out )

i dont wana add up how much its cost me, its lots!

worth it? hell yea!
 
M

m4rk

hi donsrno1, btw i sold my rt for 1350 with the alloys, i was going to buy a valver too but thinking french/ performance and old really didnt sound like a good idea, yes you can keep it running but they will require alot of running repairs parts compared to other old performance cars, i ened up going down the jap route, got a 93 k plate mr2 turbo for £2750 thats minter valver and williams territory with toyota reliability, ok fuel insurance etc are a bit more, but in 4000 miles all iv done is new brakes which i new it needed and a £30 steering part. imo folk on here will say and there will be cases that a valver is resonable to run but really the cars have had their day and its enthusiasts now keeping them going plowing money in thats not really worth it. (i expect a few to be upset by this but its simple economics and the smarter people on here will understand) but i understand the love of a car, and how no-one outside clio ownership really knows that a working valver is pretty quick.
 
D

donsrno1

  S2000
£1350!!! how did you manage that?

I'm maybe selling mine (in the for sale section) but am only asking £1000 with the mods. When I looked at yours I was tight for cash anyway and I just didn't get a great feeling about the car TBH. As for the valver I can see what you mean but I think (from what I have read on here) that you can be OK if you get one that's been well kept. The reason the one I am looking at is particularly appealing is that all the usual wear and tear parts and some other things have been replaced recently so it shouldn't cost too much to keep it running for a while.
 
cat171

cat171

Tbh if your buying one for 1k then you will be asking for trouble, however if you can find one thats got a pile of paperwork with it for items which have been replaced (clutch, gearbox etc) then you will prob be fine. If you are getting one for a grand the chances are it will have been round the clock, the engines in them are good & I have heard of some doing almost 200k with minimal wear to them.

In the three years I owned mine (a totally un modded mint M reg ph2 with factory leather:approve: ) I had a new clutch, a new engine :mad: (it was on 90k when the oil pressure pump went & caused the engine to seize - very rare for that to happen i've been told, so I had another valver engine on 60k put in) other than that the usual, tyres,brakes etc.
The insurance went form 1200 a year f/c with no ncd when I was 21 - to £400 f/c with three years ncd at 24:D

It might be worth getting a haynes manual as well to do work on it yourself, as because they are a bit of a pig to work on most places charge loads.

As with any car, if it looks suss & the bills & history aren't there - walk away.
Goog luck finding one - sorry to say bit I think you might need it.
 
Nafoff

Nafoff

ClioSport Club Member
well said cat171 - donsorno1 i really think you should hang on for a bit and save the pennies a bit longer til your sure you can afford it..cause as said above for £1000 your most probably asking for more trouble than its worth..

you really want about £1800+ to get a decent valver but as cat171 said you never know if theres one with history its down to you....good luck
 
M

m4rk

donsrno1 said:
£1350!!! how did you manage that?

I'm maybe selling mine (in the for sale section) but am only asking £1000 with the mods. When I looked at yours I was tight for cash anyway and I just didn't get a great feeling about the car TBH. As for the valver I can see what you mean but I think (from what I have read on here) that you can be OK if you get one that's been well kept. The reason the one I am looking at is particularly appealing is that all the usual wear and tear parts and some other things have been replaced recently so it shouldn't cost too much to keep it running for a while.
Click to expand...

you saw it without the wheels though, the guy who bought it keeps in touch, said it was a good car. 1350 well, im a good salesman.,
 
D

donsrno1

  S2000
I know people keep saying to get one for around £1000 is aksing for trouble but the one I am looking at is on an auction site so the usual valuations don't apply so much TBH. The guy said he would sell it outside the auction for £1500 but I can't afford that and I do't think the auction will reach that price. The car does come with a load of receipts and has had a lot of work done (clutch, timing belt etc) fairly recently. If I could see the car then I would almost certainly buy it if it was Ok but it's too far for me to go and see it unfortunately so I don't know whether I should just bid on it as that way I could always refuse to pay if the car wasn't running well etc as described.
 
cat171

cat171

donsrno - tbh i'd try to go & see it before bidding on it, you never know the dude might cancel the auction if you like it & offer him the cash straight away.
The other option would be as you said to buy it unseen & if its not as desriped tell them to shove it.
This will sound obvious, Just don't rush into buying a car because its within your budget.
You may live to reget it, as it might turn out to be a money pit !
 
Daz

Daz

I think buying a car like a 16v when it's on your absolute budget, is probably a bad idea.
My Williams is mint - but it's still costs a fortune - you never know when anything is likely to just stop working, and the majority of things arn't always cheap.

You only need something like a gearbox to go bang, and it turns into serious money (and even more serious if you have to pay a garage/specialist to change it for ya!)

But, it's your choice. You could buy it for 1k, and it never ever go wrong. ;)
 
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