Newbie... buying guide for earlier clios?

[Hyndee]

Hi all, I'm new on here Basically someone has offered me decent money for my current car (Corsa.. I know, I know!) so it can get gone.

I am looking at spending around 800-900 for a bog standard spotless car and the Clio 1.4 RT springs to mind. Possibly interested in higher spec 1.2's also, don't especially need it to be quick but a bit of poke would be nice...

Can you guys give me some pointers of stuff to check for, things that go wrong (and how easy a fix they are) etc?

I notice almost all Clio's I see have rusty rear arches... puts me off a bit, whats the rest of the car like for rusting? Is underneath ok also?

Cheers guys, it's much appreciated

 

[Ingram]

One thing to remember is that all cars for 900 pounds is bound to be rusting, im selling my 1.4 RT For 1195,its modded but has rust,some people are put off by it,Dont be lol,hope u find a gud 1

 

[Justin]

yeah its a common problem with mk1's now.. also check for a leaking sunroof.. welcome to CS

 

[mrpink]

My RSi will be for sale soon, no rust, no leaks, electrics all work, frsh, unmodded, remote alarm immob, mot jan07, prob want 'bout £1150.

 

[Duncx]

I looked at 3 mk1's before buying mine, all had rusty arches (including the one I bought for £475), one had rusted through sills and more.
If you look hard enough for £800-900 you should be able to find one that is rust free, there are 3 that live on my estate that are spotless one of which was recently bought for £675.

 

[Peperami]

maybe get a huge bank loan, buy a cup 172, never have any money, and pay shedloads for insurance... like me, lol

 

[Hyndee]

lol I'd love to do that but buying a house with the missus soon which kinda stops that idea dead in it's tracks.. doh!
I fancy a newer shape one but they still fetch good money so... old styleee it is lol I'll keep digging, it's a shame they rust... is that the biggest problem?

 

[Hyndee]

Also whats the score with the 3 phases, which is best and why? A lot of peeps on here dislike the phase 3's it seems, is that purely because of the lights or something else?

Thanks guys, I'm itching to get one instead of my Corsa now

 

[Hyndee]

help lol i wanna go look at a couple tomorrowwww, I'm sure you wonderful people have some interesting stuff to tell me

 

[BRUN]

the phase 3 thing is purely because of the lights i think, thats my reason for not liking them anyway lol

problems on the Mk1's can be lots of different things but most if not all are known so fixes are available, like the high idle which is caused by the speedo cable earth, coolant temp sensor can cause problems but is a cheap fix

one problem can be the ECU, because of where it is, it gets damp, but replacements are easy available if you ever needed one, ive got one in my shed i think lol

the main thing is rusty rear arches, the rest of the car doesnt seem too bad, look at the tailgate thats another spot, oh and leaking sunroofs

apart from rust its just like any car, check the basics

not bad cars at all for the money, id get the 1.4 over the 1.2 any day as its faster and wont cost hardly any extra on the insurance

 

[Hyndee]

Cheers Brun mate knew you'd have some useful stuff to say lol I remember your RT, was a well nice looking motor, you still got any pics of it mate?

Gonna write all this lot down and take it with me when I go see some, nice one