Some honest advice needed

[Danman]

I know that this is a Cliosport website but I would like some unbiased advice from people "in-the-know". I own a Citroen C4 VTS 180 which when has been an enjoyable, fairly brisk but comfortable hatchback. What I need to know is whether a Clio 197 is a significant upgrade in terms of dynamics and driver enjoyment.

I used to have a raft of Peugeot GTi's probably like many of the more mature owners on this site and they had such great steering feel and throttle response. The C4 VTS surprisingly gave me a tiny flicker of this albeit with too much power assistance from the steering and fairly immediate throttle response. How would a Cliosport 197 compare? I will take one or two for a test drive asap to decide for myself but its always good to get some input from the afficianados.

Finally, I drive quite a few motorway miles a year. How would a Clio cope in terms of comfort and reliability? In real terms what mpg would I get travelling at between 50 and 75mph? Is it a drinker or is it possible to eek out the petrol on a light throttle?

Finally, finally if there is anyone on the Woking area that wants to take me for a spin please let me know! Now where is the "For sale" section.

 

[R3k1355]

If you want a feeling more akin to an old Gti Peugeot then get a 172 Cup

 

[JamesBryan]

172/182's are generally better with MPG compared to the 197/200's.

I can get 45+mpg sat at 60 if i wanted. Do well to get that in a mk3 IMO.

 

[McGherkin]

If you want a feeling more akin to an old Gti Peugeot then get a 172 Cup

Basically this.

A 197 is more grown up, although still very playful compared to the average Golf etc. 197/200 definitely feels heavier but more composed for it.

 

[Chrisgti6]

Just find a good 306 GTi-6 and be done with it!

 

[JB21]

Nothing to add on either, but interested to know what the 180 VTS is like as a daily? MPG, comfort, reliability etc...

 

[Peperami]

I wouldn't get a 172 cup if you aspire to do lots of motorway miles. They'll sit at silly revs and only have 5 gears. No cruise/ abs/ traction for winter, and the seating position isn't great for relaxed cruising.

 

[Danman]

Just find a good 306 GTi-6 and be done with it!

I had 3 GTi-6s and they were were my equal all time favourite with the 205GTi1.9. Still remember the feelsome steering, playful lift off oversteer and snarl towards the red-line. I enjoyed it more than the Subaru Impreza STI that I replaced it with.... However, I am an old fart these days and would like something a little more refined and relaxed. Also its hard to find a low mileage 306GTi-6 for a decent price.

 

[Chrisgti6]

You sound like me! The only thing better than my GTi-6 was my S16!

 

[Danman]

Nothing to add on either, but interested to know what the 180 VTS is like as a daily? MPG, comfort, reliability etc...

If you are after an entertaining hottish 3 door hatchback for a cheap price then I think they give you good bang for your buck. You can pick one up a fair one for just over £1,000 these days. They are really nicely composed on the handling front giving good neutral handling with the ability to coax the back end round on lift off but the overly assisted steering robs it of some feel otherwise it would get 4 stars out of 5 in my books rather than 3.5. The ride quality on 205/50 17"s is pretty good crashing over only the more exaggerated ruts on the roads. It needs a little more power low down and only really comes alive performance wise above 4,500rpm where it snarls sweetly right round to 7,000rpm. It can bog down coming out of corners if you are below 3,000rpm and its 3 lowest gears are too long so if you are unaccustomed to the nature of the engine it is too easy to fall out of the powerband. The best part of the car is the standard sound system which is really really good with lots of detail all the way from low down thumping bass to fine treble and makes the system on my Grand Espace sound flat. MPG is not bad for an fairly old design engine (same as Peugeot 208Gti180). I get between 20mpg on a very spirited run and 45mph on a steady 70mph cruise. Prbably 20% better mpg than the 306GTi6 on average despite having a 20mph/1000rpm top gear (5th). Reliability has been good between 60,000 and 80,000miles but I have now had to change all the rubber suspension parts on a 57 plate with 86,000 and will need a couple of sensors to eradicate a couple of false warning lights.

 

[Danman]

I wouldn't get a 172 cup if you aspire to do lots of motorway miles. They'll sit at silly revs and only have 5 gears. No cruise/ abs/ traction for winter, and the seating position isn't great for relaxed cruising.

Is the 182 any better? I am quite interested in one of those as well as the 197 if the 182 is refined enough when stuck on the motorway.

 

[Danman]

172/182's are generally better with MPG compared to the 197/200's.

I can get 45+mpg sat at 60 if i wanted. Do well to get that in a mk3 IMO.

Selling your 182?

 

[JamesBryan]

Selling your 182? :smile:

No haha

 

[Danman]

If you want a feeling more akin to an old Gti Peugeot then get a 172 Cup

My wife would rip off my jewels!

 

[Danman]

No haha

How reliable are 182's. Please be really honest. When I was trying to replace my first 306GTi-6 I tested a few 172's and quite a few of them had worn suspension/steering bushes and I ended up replacing it with a newer 306 instead. It may have been a misrepresentative sample of Clio's but it did put me off at the time. How do you find ownership of the 182 and does it put a smile on your face?

 

[JamesBryan]

How reliable are 182's. Please be really honest. When I was trying to replace my first 306GTi-6 I tested a few 172's and quite a few of them had worn suspension/steering bushes and I ended up replacing it with a newer 306 instead. It may have been a misrepresentative sample of Clio's but it did put me off at the time. How do you find ownership of the 182 and does it put a smile on your face?

I don't do many miles in mine ~5000 a year. If you get one that has been very well looked after, you will have no problems tbh.

And i mean one that has had loads of things replaced to freshen it up, suspension, bushes, brakes, belts.

They definitely put a smile on your face on a spirited drive.

 

[Christopher]

I'd stretch to a 200 rather than a 197. I've had a 182 and 200 from new for 5+ years each and overall I'd go 200.
They're not great on fuel though. ~28mpg at best, over mixed driving. 32-35 on a motorway run.
Awesome cars though. Both are miles ahead of the C4.

 

[imprezaworks]

How much are you looking at spending for a 182?

 

[fakeConcern]

Keep the VTS 180, I'm on my 3rd one (last one did 197000 miles). Nothing looks like it and you can pretend to be Seastien Loeb or Liam Doran!

 

[Danman]

How much are you looking at spending for a 182?

It depends on the mileage and condition and would prefer unmodified. What has yours got?

 

[imprezaworks]

Condition good
67k belts done march 2015
Not standard though

 

[bill]

Condition good
67k belts done march 2015
Not standard though

buy this, proper genuine car by a proper genuine seller, and im guessing good condition probably means excellent to most who aren't detailing mad.

second thoughts, dont sell it! [emoji106]

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

 

[imprezaworks]

Not for sale, yet.



:smile:

 

[culpz]

My wife would rip off my jewels!

They're already gone if you need your wife's permission

Tbh, it's not really a huge jump. A 197 is smaller and more chuck-able. It may look a bit more sporty but that's subjective. Everything else is is pretty much business as usual. Maintenance, parts, mpg, performance, equipment and general running costs will all be very similar.

It may offer a slightly different driving experience but it will most likely be minimal and not exactly worlds apart. As nice as the 197's look, i'd echo the comments above and go for a 172/182. A bit more equipment as standard on non-Cup models, cheap and are much less thirsty. They also have less annoying traits as a daily too.

 

[Knuckles]

http://www.cliosport.net/threads/is-the-clio-197-200-a-poor-daily.783692/

Mk3s are epic toys but properly s**t dailies.

If you want something fun and comfortable, look at Megane r26s.

I do own a 197, if I had the chance when I bought it I'd have got an r26 lol.

But the 197 is now under my skin and a brilliant little track toy. They've got brilliant brakes, balance and are very adjustable mid corner. The slides are smooth and controllable, even when you over cook it and go backwards into a corner lol