Good Evening

[andynewcar]

Good evening all,

i am currently in the market for a change of car & been eyeing up the 2009 - 2012 clio rs 200

i am currently driving a Subaru Impreza GB270 fully forged running at 361bhp, so will be trading down as such in power
when i say currently driving ive covered only 2k miles this year, with having a work van & using the mrs car for trips to the shops etc
i have come to the realisation that i cant really justify the £600 tax anymore after buying a house
so really looking to move to something fun but also abit cheaper to run which will leave with with a decent chunk of cash after selling the Subaru

my only experience with Renault i had a 04 megane 1.6 as my first car and well i dont think anything worked when it was moved on

id say ive got about 5-7k to spend maybe abit more, can anyone give me an insight into the rs200s?
& has anyone come down from a higher performance car to the clio

thanks
andy

 

[Darren S]

Not quite the same scenario as yourself, but I nabbed an Evo VI with low 300s in terms of power, whilst I also had the 182.

They were chalk and cheese in terms of driving. The 182 I can push to a point where it makes it known that you're getting close to that limit. The Evo just smashed a bottle over its own head, thanked you and ask for another. Then another, then it would lose all control. Did that on a track day on Anglesey with it, where it just did a full 180 - completely my fault of course, but the time-frame between warning me and actually flipping out was miniscule.

I've still got the 182 and the Evo has long gone. I loved the latter and would have another in a heartbeat. But there's something far more exploitable with the RS Clios. Sure, I've pelted along at fair rate on the open roads of Scotland - but doing 50-60mph there feels more rewarding than the licence-losing speeds in more grippy 4WD machinery.

And while we still pay laughable tax (£315 for a 182 for twelve months now) - it's still more manageable that the more powerful Jap stuff.

 

[andynewcar]

Hi Darren

Thanks for the reply. some good insight
Subaru is hitting £600 a year now and for doing only 2k miles it seems a waste of money

maybe not something i should shout out about on a Renault site but im just wary of the bad reputation which comes with the brand
otherwise id buy one tomorrow

 

[Bluebeard]

Reliability shouldn’t scare you. The engines in the Clio’s are pretty much bomb proof. Plenty around with over 200k on them.

buy one based on condition and service history and not what the Speedo says.

Cambelt is a big expensive job and due every 5yrs/72k. Budget 6-700 to have it done at a specialist.

Gearboxes are weak, crunching from changing gear is common. A rebuild is circa £800 so ideally find one that’s had it done already.

Don’t be afraid to buy the dearest one you can find. I’ve fallen in to the trap (many times!) of buying a cheap one and thinking I’ll get all the work done myself but ended up massively out of pocket compared to if I just bought a nice one to begin with… 😂

lastly, whatever you buy, book a track day. These things come alive and make so much more sense on track.

good luck and welcome to the best car club - bar none - on the internet.

 

[Mr Underhill]

What he said ☝️Although I haven’t had any gearbox issues at all and I have 3 of them, one on 133k now.

 

[Bluebeard]

What he said ☝️Although I haven’t had any gearbox issues at all and I have 3 of them, one on 133k now.

Gearbox issues tend to arise from people basically having Zero mechanical sympathy.
my 182’d Kangoo has a crunching from 2nd to 3rd but I’ve done about 5 track days in it and I kick it’s head in every day. It NEVER crunches when I drive it. Ever.
But as soon as someone else drives it, hey presto the crunch has made a comeback! 🤦‍♂️

 

[Mr Underhill]

Gearbox issues tend to arise from people basically having Zero mechanical sympathy.
my 182’d Kangoo has a crunching from 2nd to 3rd but I’ve done about 5 track days in it and I kick it’s head in every day. It NEVER crunches when I drive it. Ever.
But as soon as someone else drives it, hey presto the crunch has made a comeback! 🤦‍♂️

Yeah I know the type - Tesco car park launch control 🚙💨