the first 800 miles in my 197

[seb]

Thought i'd give the 197 a few miles before i gave my thoughts on it.

Done about 800 miles now so it has had a few redlines under its bonnet so far!

problems so far:

Had the rear brakes making a loud noise under very light braking at stop start speed. having checked the RS forum this was quite common and went after a few hundred miles. This problem has now gone.

had a flat tyre 3 days after buying her... that was annoying but i got a new tyre for £105 fitted so wasn't too bad. sadly i couldn't getit repaired... nevermind.

apart from that no other problems... so far... (i am wating for the long list i had with my 182!)

good things:

engine noise - it makes such a lovely noise at low revs and sounds really throaty at around 3.5k when you tickle her. Let alone the noise up to the rev limiter! great stuff.

grip - it has immense levels of grip. There is a corner i used to go round with my 182 and it felt twitchy at 60mph. the 197 feels so much more stable and it happily went round at 60mph. i reckon it would go round at 70.. but i haven't had the balls yet to try it!

gearbox - lovely smooth quick gearchange. and it is nice to have a normal gearknob unlike astra vxr etc i tried as they felt odd to hold.

performance - feels quick to me and pulls very well in 2nd, 3rd and 4th. 5th and 6th it begins to slow down but by then i see how quickly i am going! the 197 needs to be driven hard and revved to get the most out of it but that is how i like it! :evil: Having read peoples views on the RS forum who have covered 6k the engine does begin to pull better lower down so i will look forward to that.

keyless entry - really nice touch. makes getting in the car whislt holding all my shopping a lot easier. took me a while to get used to it though! keep reaching for the key in the ignition!!

seats - so snug and have a nice fit.

gearlight - in a more prominent postion and is bigger and i find it a great dela easier to see.

bad things:

fuel economy - it is absolute shite at present. doing about 26mpg. That is with crusing to work for a 15 mile motorway drive at around 90mph. I did get it to manage 31mpg on a crusie for 30 miles at 70mph... hopefully this will improve a bit. If you drive it hard you get easily below 20mpg! eek! (too much fun!!)

wheels - look too small inside the wheel arches but maybe if it was lower it would improve things.

too big! - for cleaning that is!! takes longer than the 182!

revvy - although the 6 speed boxc makes ragging the tits off her great, it makes for high revs on a motorway crusie in 6th... can be annoying!

at present thats all i can think of at the moment for the bad things.

overall i am exceptionally happy with the 197. It is quicker than i remembered and i enjoy the nice smooth power that is consistent and goes right up to the redline. lovely. it is slightly bigger than my previous car and feels slightly more refined. Thisis exactly what i wanted in my new car.

I have tried to not compare the 197 with the 182 but i will do as it has and will be continued to be compared....

For me the 197 improves on all the things that annoyed me on the 182. It is definetely built better, it has a more consistent power delivery and the seating postion is soooo much better. Having said thatthe 182 is such a delight for a xcountry blast. the 182 is so nimble and light it is such good fun. having driven the 197 over the same roads it obviously feels bigger but to me, it still handles fantastically and altohugh you don't feel as if your going as fast you look down and see the 3 figure speeds your at! it really is startling.

Am i pleased i changed? hell yeah, the 197 is a f**king sweet motor. i love it to bits.
sad i got rid of the 182? yeah, the last of the ture small pocket rockets, but the 197 moves the game on nicley for me.

I could probably write a lot more, but i tried to keep it brief! sorry!

 

[Daniel]

nice, wait till it hits 3000 miles, i couldn't beleive the difference!!
Its right what you say about grip aswell, it just feels like it'll never let go!

 

[Richy123]

You making me want to make the change now.

 

[speedynz]

Nice write up.

 

[Gaz_]

nice, i really need to have a go in a nice run-in example

 

[seb]

yeah i would recommend having a long drive in one. it is a different beast to the 182 and is a fantastic motor. i definetely don't regret.

not for everyone though.

 

[ja.jack]

Pity it's so darned underpowered.

 

[alexbleubolt]

i hated the look of it at first, then saw a black one in the showroom, and its very nice looking now, i havne't seen one on the road yet.

 

[quickshift]

surly it can be tuned ??

 

[R20 CWH]

if it was me getting a new car again id get as many miles on it asap to get it bedded in as they get better.

I agree with the 6 speed box, seemed guid in my test drive, nice and short throw.

glad its going well seb

 

[tameracingdriver]

Nice to see a review from someone who owns the car rather than a test drive review.

Things that would put me off, from what your saying, is the fuel economy. I generally always drive hard, and would probably do even more so in the 197 since its such a peaky motor. From what you are saying, it would be hello to low 20's and high teens on a regular basis for me. Not affordable nor acceptable to me. Think if i was gonna suffer that, i'd just buy a 147 GTA and be done with it.

The other thing is, while i appreciate it may be able to corner faster, i like the way the likes of the 182 feels faster than it is. Its ultimately safer for your license, and more fun at mundane speeds. Outright speed has never been important to me, but the feeling of speed and fun is. This is why I still fondly remember an old Mk2 8v Golf GTI which had just 110 bhp. Because it felt fast and fun.

That said, it appears though the 197 is a much more refined, safer, and better built car. I can see why that appeals, and for sure, i can imagine the 197 will have its fans. However, i dont expect it to repeat the success of its predecessor, nor do i expect too many people to choose it over some of the bigger hatches, unless it sees a big drop in price.

 

[ja.jack]

A test drive review would be less biased.

 

[seb]

yeah the fuel economy is very bad and should be better.. seems to be the nrom though form reading the RS forum.

yep the 182 had that way of making you feel like it was going really fast. the 182 is noisy and the way i sum it up is you have to give it all or nothing in it. the 182 loves to be ragged.

the 197 does the refined cruising part (albeit at high revs...) but can also be nicely thrashed, it is so tempting to redline it all the time!!!

as yet i haven't done any silly speeds in it but form the xcountry stuff it is definetely a delight.

Like many people i had my reservations about it being underpowered. To me it feels just as quick as the 182 as the 197 is more refined you don't realsie how quick your going and vice versa in the 182, you think your going quicker than youn are!

it doesn't have as much mid range grunt as the 182 did in say 3rd for example. the 197 does haveto be revved to get the performance.

it is like the mk1 boys like their willys and valvers over the 172's, the 172's like theirs over the 182's etc...

it is all about what you want from a car. for me the 197 is ideal. for many it won't be.

 

[seb]

A test drive review would be less biased.

i've tried to be as least biased as possible. i have owned a 182 for severla yearsd and it was a difficult decison to get rid in the end.

like i have said the 197 is perfect for me, but for othwers it won't be.

i have tried to sum up the good and bad things i have found out about the car for everyone.

 

[Mells]

good write up fella.

piccys?

 

[seb]

[IMGO]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y13/seb290482/100_0309car3.jpg[/IMGO]
[IMGO]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y13/seb290482/100_0308car2.jpg[/IMGO]
[IMGO]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y13/seb290482/100_0305car1.jpg[/IMGO]

There you go

 

[tommyboy]

great review Seb. Nicely put. Your tempting me when I get a newer car next year.....

 

[TomTom]

As long as you enjoy it, it doesn't matter. Its hard to compare it to the 182 as its very different in most ways. They seem to have improved stuff people moaned about on the 172/182 but messed up the power/weight, raw acceleration etc. They've added 6th (like everyone wanted) but 'they' wanted to drop into 6th at 130Mph so the engine doesn't sound like its dying - but they've made it worse with 4k Rpm @ 70mph. Like you said Seb its not a cruiser as such. I've got a mate in a 172, he swears by it his engine really starting to loosen up at 60k

Couldn't fault anything with it really, seemed glued to the road and brakes where spot on, just never seemed to 'get up and go'

Still think black with privacy glass and Xenons :approve:

 

[R20 CWH]

whats the revs at 70 in 6th now? 2,500?

 

[seb]

whats the revs at 70 in 6th now? 2,500?

lol more like 3,500

 

[R20 CWH]

f**k sake, same as 5th in the 172, not very cruiser orientated, so still screaming like f**k at 100 etc

 

[TomTom]

Yeah they've gone for take-up rather than cruising at 100mph

 

[tameracingdriver]

I dont understand why people keep whinging about the high cruising RPM. Its a hot hatch, not a Merc, FFS

BTW, looks well in silver.

 

[John D]

Good write up (did'nt seem biased in anyway to me). I look forward to reading your opinion further down the line

 

[Neil G]

Nice...I love the look of the new 197.

Will the fuel economy improve as the engine beds in/loosens up?

 

[_Kenny_]

Good writeup, 197 has definitely grown on me since its launch. Fuel economy issue is a slight worry tho

 

[sh33n]

Glad you're enjoying it Seb, that review has definetely made me think about the future change

At the end of it, it's logical progress, I have no doubt the 197 is a better car than the 1*2.

I'd have one over a 182 if I was offered!

 

[Neil G]

So would I

 

[John D]

Glad you're enjoying it Seb, that review has definetely made me think about the future change

At the end of it, it's logical progress, I have no doubt the 197 is a better car than the 1*2.

I'd have one over a 182 if I was offered!

I would'nt change my car for a 197 personally :nono:

 

[sh33n]

Glad you're enjoying it Seb, that review has definetely made me think about the future change

At the end of it, it's logical progress, I have no doubt the 197 is a better car than the 1*2.

I'd have one over a 182 if I was offered!

I would'nt change my car for a 197 personally :nono:

That's why there's so much choice mate, each to their own and all that!

I'd wait to see what the Cup version has to offer first anyway.

But somehow I think I'd be drawn to a DC5.

 

[singerm]

Seb

I thought I was the only one with a nimbus silver 197! I just love the colour as it shows off all the bumps and bulges.

Have experienced almost exactly the same issues in mine as you have.
The brakes making that annoying noise at parking speeds and f-ing terrible economy. Took mine into the local renault dealer to find out if the brake noise was a common problem but as expected, they didn't know anything about it! They suggested I book it in, but decided to give it some more mileage and that seems to have fixed the problem.

Got mine down to about 22mpg when I've given it some stick. Mine's done just over 2000 miles now and I can confirm that the engine seems to be getting stronger & stronger, plus economy is improving.

This is my first hot clio and it took me quite a while to decide on it, after looking at all the obvious pretenders, but out of all the new hot hatchery on the market this is the car that the proper drivers buy. For me it looks just right, subtle, muscular and really purposeful. I just love it.

The power issue seems to be the thing thats holding everyone back on this car. It could probably to with a little more low down grunt, but to say its not got enough torque is sh*te. Even in 6th it pulls hard and fizzy from 3-3500 rpm and I can report thats its not shy when you get into 3 figures. And when using 2,3 & 4 its just keeps pulling.

Past 5000 revs it just flies, thats when it really feels like 200bhp. I just reckon this is a proper Hot Hatch with a proper Hot hatch engine. Everyone else just cheats except for the CTR!

Suppose I've said enough but keep me updated on yours Seb. Great to hear your enjoying yours as much as me and don't even get me started on the handling and brakes.............

 

[Goodman]

Good accurate write up mate
I had the squeeking brakes at very low speeds, seemed to be coming from front brakes. 1200 miles and its gone now.
mpg = 21 - 23 doh !

 

[seb]

I dont understand why people keep whinging about the high cruising RPM. Its a hot hatch, not a Merc, FFS

BTW, looks well in silver.

We're a fickle bunch us RS owners!!! we all want perofrmance and economy!

Nice...I love the look of the new 197.

Will the fuel economy improve as the engine beds in/loosens up?

I f**king hope so! but if it doesn,t not really that fussed... I just get bored at 70 mph...

-------------

As i have said before, some will hate the 197 for all the reasons i love it etc. Like Sh33n said, there is so much choice for fast renaults now you are sure to find something you like. Or in my case the best RS ever (only a bit of banter! don't want a riot from you cup owners )

 

[cat171]

Have the front brakes stated to squeal yet when slowing down from about 5mph ?
I was told that all brembo's do it My car does it a bit

 

[TheJesus]

good write up mate, glad your enjoying it as much as the 182. Be interesting to see what the views are after 20k miles, I have a feeling it may end up being just as quick as the now OLD 182's lol

 

[seb]

Have the front brakes stated to squeal yet when slowing down from about 5mph ?
I was told that all brembo's do it My car does it a bit

yeah they did for a while, but has gone away now.

 

[seb]

good write up mate, glad your enjoying it as much as the 182. Be interesting to see what the views are after 20k miles, I have a feeling it may end up being just as quick as the now OLD 182's lol

yeah loving it mate! can't wait for my ring trip next year, will be a delight!

 

[jayxx83]

Still only seen 2 197's on road, but they are uber sexy. The main thing that Im glad about with my 182 is the cheapness of day to day running costs. i regularly average 33-35mpg so it doesnt cain your pocket when you dont feel like spanking it.

When I do, I have seen it dip as low as 18mpg, lol. One thing I hated about my old golf gti, was that it pissed petrol even when pottering about. Hate paying when you are not even getting the enjoyment.

Good write up though, glad your enjoying your car!

 

[Gaz_]

thought it was near 4k?!

 

[AlexS]

whats the revs at 70 in 6th now? 2,500?

lol more like 3,500

Same as my 1.2 then!