Clio 172 Cup
I recently bought a clio 172 cup in May 2003, it was 6 months old, 9000 miles ---- £10 K – bargain……. So I thought.
Im now having loads of problems with it. And im slowly going insane as i drive around 70 miles a day. Im not a mechanic and I don’t know where to start, or whether the Renault people are being serious saying nothing is wrong the car, or whether they cant be arsed doing anything as the car is still under warranty. The car has been in the garage three times already, and they insist nothing is wrong with it. Or if they do find something they say yes its been sorted, and that’s it. They never explain what was wrong. And then as soon as I drive off in it nothing has changed.
The problems are with the steering. The car tramlines like crazy and it pulls around way too much. The steering is unbelievably heavy, and it’s not the tyre pressure as I check it nearly every day. What pressures do u guys use? I’ve got the original Continental ContiSport Tyres on, 195/45 R16. When the car is stationary do your front tyres look to be down a little? Or do they look rock solid? Mine look as if they are down a little although I have inflated them to the standard pressure. It think it’s 33 PSI for the front and 30 for the back, as it says in the manual.
I’ve read articles about tramlining, and people have told me because there is so much torque the car will pull a lot as it looks to find grip o the road, but it even pulls when I am not even accelerating!!! It’s like having a gym workout when driving; I have to wrestle with the car to get it to stay in a straight line. When the engine is off, and the steering lock is on, the steering wheel lies slightly to the left. Is this normal, or should the steering wheel be exactly in the centre when locked? When braking the car vigorously pulls to the left. And I mean vigorously. I nearly knocked a cyclist over the other day at the traffic lights, and there was not much I could do about it. Renault & Quick Fit have checked the tracking and said it’s perfect. I have had one of those AA inspections, and the guy said its fine, but it needs the suspension balance checking with gauges, as there is a mark in the tyre where I have hit a large pot hole. Does that not mean check the tracking???
I’ve noticed a very loud rattling noise when turning sharply under 5 miles per hour over a bumpy surface. It sounds like its coming from the area around the right-hand side tyre. Also the front–right suspension creates a sound like a puff of air when you push down on the front right wing. The front-left however does not make this sound.
Could this be a worn out shock absorber or faulty suspension? Could this be the cause of the steering faults? Help me please!!!!!!
Ive also noticed something very strange with a loss of power. When accelerating, the car sometimes stops accelerating around 3500 revs, and it does it in every gear. The car gets stuck at a certain speed, and if I try to accelerate more it just doesn’t want to go anywhere!!! I have to release the accelerator, wait a while, and try again to push it past 3500 revs. This is usually first thing in the morning when I first set off to work. I don’t have a clue what that is? I’ve also noticed a loss of power too. The car just seems to have lost that ‘edge’ at around 5000 revs where it all used to happen, now it doesn’t as much. The guys at Renault said, oh we have reset the car’s parameters on the computer. What doe that mean? Is that possible?
Can you guys please help me on these issues; I want to get this sorted. I’ve got a really nice car, but its just not performing right and it puts you on a downer. I’m so P****D OFF.
If any of you guys think you know what I should get checked out from what I have told you, please tell me what you think the problems are and where I can get them checked at any clio 172 cup specialists in the North-West area (preferably Lancashire). Renault are crap, I want someone who actually cares if the car is working properly, not someone who doesn’t give a S**T.
Also where and how do you fit the flexible tube that comes with the KN induction kit (air filter)? I’ve got the filter on, but where does the tube go, and will it make a difference if its not on??
