Hi,
Well, I've been without a Clio for a whole 9 months now after swapping the RB 182 Cup for a 225 F1. I've had a couple of 172's as well as the 182 and 225, but always had a Mk1 itch that I needed to scratch. Would love a Williams, but I don't have £5k to spare on one sadly. I've toyed with the idea of selling the 225 as it's epic on a good road, but has had loads of niggles (all the common ones at once, just a bit of bad luck really) and doesn't delight me as a daily. Which is a bit of a pain when it only managed it's first track day two days ago and pretty much just gets used for work. After agreeing a deal to part ways with the 225, that then fell through because of funds with the buyer, I decided to keep it and get a Mk1 project. This way I'd have something to use while I sort a handful of jobs on the 225 and also to have some fun with as a project.
Before buying the 225 I'd looked at Valvers but didn't think I'd get one for the money I had. I was trawling through eBay a few weeks ago, with nothing particular in mind, when I found one. It didn't show up strangely when I searched "Clio 1.8 16v" but did when I searched "valver" despite both words/phrases being in the title. It only had a few hours left and hadn't been bid on. Long story short I bid on it without viewing and won it for just under £600.
It was blue and had been made to look like a Williams, it had 2.0 badging, Williams stickers and gold 17" Wolfrace alloys. I expected a ropey example needing quite a bit of work as it had been stood 3-4 months, despite the assurances of little rust. I was pleased to find that in the main it's a nice car. It has a few small bubbles above the rear bumper on the n/s arch and that's about it. Additionally it's only got 93k miles on it and no major mods, just a pipercross filter and a full stainless which are both almost new. Also had the cambelt done at the start of the year.
Pleasingly it only cost £119 to insure fully comp for a year with the wife and my brothers on the policy, as it qualifies as a classic.
Initial job list is/was:
Replace rear wiper
Fix the runners on the front seats (mismatching runners for some reason, one is loose and the other the handle doesn't work)
Fit a head unit
Re-attach rear view mirror
Source a standard or nicer steering wheel
Replace cracked fog and rear light
Replace parcel shelf (6x9 holes in it, standard for a 90's car)
And finally lose the Williams parts.
The stickers will come off between Christmas and New Year and I'll try to source some of the bolt on bits at the same time. Although I could live with the wheels in silver or white, I'd prefer a swap to something smaller and not gold.
Longer term plans are for a bit of a resto, assuming funds allow and I don't get bored, as there's not loads of them left and my lad's getting more interested in helping with jobs on the cars. Will be a good teaching tool for him. Most of that'll be paint though.
Happily, despite being poor by modern standards, it's the opposite of the Megane. It's nowhere near as quick as the 225, but a right laugh to drive daily. The Megane has been out on track at last since buying the Clio and that's come to life there so it feels a good balance.
I'll update as I go with jobs on it. Don't know what Mk1 interest there is on here these days though, was loads when I started out but haven't seen so many recently. Anyone with useful tips or cheap spares please feel free to post.
Tom
Well, I've been without a Clio for a whole 9 months now after swapping the RB 182 Cup for a 225 F1. I've had a couple of 172's as well as the 182 and 225, but always had a Mk1 itch that I needed to scratch. Would love a Williams, but I don't have £5k to spare on one sadly. I've toyed with the idea of selling the 225 as it's epic on a good road, but has had loads of niggles (all the common ones at once, just a bit of bad luck really) and doesn't delight me as a daily. Which is a bit of a pain when it only managed it's first track day two days ago and pretty much just gets used for work. After agreeing a deal to part ways with the 225, that then fell through because of funds with the buyer, I decided to keep it and get a Mk1 project. This way I'd have something to use while I sort a handful of jobs on the 225 and also to have some fun with as a project.
Before buying the 225 I'd looked at Valvers but didn't think I'd get one for the money I had. I was trawling through eBay a few weeks ago, with nothing particular in mind, when I found one. It didn't show up strangely when I searched "Clio 1.8 16v" but did when I searched "valver" despite both words/phrases being in the title. It only had a few hours left and hadn't been bid on. Long story short I bid on it without viewing and won it for just under £600.
It was blue and had been made to look like a Williams, it had 2.0 badging, Williams stickers and gold 17" Wolfrace alloys. I expected a ropey example needing quite a bit of work as it had been stood 3-4 months, despite the assurances of little rust. I was pleased to find that in the main it's a nice car. It has a few small bubbles above the rear bumper on the n/s arch and that's about it. Additionally it's only got 93k miles on it and no major mods, just a pipercross filter and a full stainless which are both almost new. Also had the cambelt done at the start of the year.
Pleasingly it only cost £119 to insure fully comp for a year with the wife and my brothers on the policy, as it qualifies as a classic.
Initial job list is/was:
Replace rear wiper
Fix the runners on the front seats (mismatching runners for some reason, one is loose and the other the handle doesn't work)
Fit a head unit
Re-attach rear view mirror
Source a standard or nicer steering wheel
Replace cracked fog and rear light
Replace parcel shelf (6x9 holes in it, standard for a 90's car)
And finally lose the Williams parts.
The stickers will come off between Christmas and New Year and I'll try to source some of the bolt on bits at the same time. Although I could live with the wheels in silver or white, I'd prefer a swap to something smaller and not gold.
Longer term plans are for a bit of a resto, assuming funds allow and I don't get bored, as there's not loads of them left and my lad's getting more interested in helping with jobs on the cars. Will be a good teaching tool for him. Most of that'll be paint though.
Happily, despite being poor by modern standards, it's the opposite of the Megane. It's nowhere near as quick as the 225, but a right laugh to drive daily. The Megane has been out on track at last since buying the Clio and that's come to life there so it feels a good balance.
I'll update as I go with jobs on it. Don't know what Mk1 interest there is on here these days though, was loads when I started out but haven't seen so many recently. Anyone with useful tips or cheap spares please feel free to post.
Tom
