clio 172 info

DanF · 30 Jan 2006 at 15:17

Hi guys,

Well I've finally gotten around to selling my 5gtt, should go this weekend. So now I'm looking at buying a clio 172 for just under £5k. Does anyone on the boards own one? is there anything to really look out for on them like common faults or factory recalls etc?

Also with insurance, I can get TPFT for about £700 or fully comp for £1200 (due to no noclaims bonus), do you think it's a silly idea to own a car like this on TPFT only?

Firestar_3x · 30 Jan 2006 at 15:34

I personally think its a silly idea to go 3rd party on a 4k car but others may not, depends if you can afford to chuck away 4k or not.

DanF · 30 Jan 2006 at 15:41

fair point, is there anything to look out for with them apart from the usual wear and tear?

Firestar_3x · 30 Jan 2006 at 15:46

Don't own a 172 so i'm not the best to answer that but i would say the usual things you check with any car.

Think the cambelt is advised at 60k on these so make sure thats been done.

Gilly or Coco are the guys you need to speak to.

.Andy · 30 Jan 2006 at 15:49

buy this months evo - it has a buying guide to the 172 quite an interesting read

Nathan · 30 Jan 2006 at 16:07

engine mounts are like chocolate, quite buggy ECU's from looking at the posts over at CS.net, general french electrics

But a hoot to drive

Get over at cliosport.net and they will answer all your questions.

Matblack · 30 Jan 2006 at 16:18

I like mine, they're aren't too expensive to get services untill the big one at about 60k (you don't touch the plugs till then).

Touch wood I've never had an electrical fault and the only major thing to go wrong was a leaky suspension strut, service intervals are 12,000m btw.

Renault service is quite frankly rubbish the dealers look at you like a peasent and most of the engineers are parp, but that aside the cars are great

Mine goes in this week for an MOT but I'm pretty confident it'll be fine. Goes through front tyres like they are butter but the rears last for ages.

MB

DanF · 30 Jan 2006 at 16:33

Good good, i'll only be doing 5 odd k miles per year for now. There's a few advertised with 30-40k miles on the clock so it'll take a while to get to the big service.

Firestar_3x · 30 Jan 2006 at 17:39

DanF said:
Good good, i'll only be doing 5 odd k miles per year for now. There's a few advertised with 30-40k miles on the clock so it'll take a while to get to the big service.

Ah rookie mistake, its not just on mileage its also on age, if you only did 3k a year it would take you 20 years before you needed to change the cam belt, i think not, is it every 6 or 10 years on the clio, can't remember.

Coco · 30 Jan 2006 at 19:17

Service = 2yr / 12k
Cam-Belt = 5yr / 72k
Normal Service = £170-£230
Big Service = ~£365

Tyres (195/50/15) = ~£50
Front Pads = £40-£50

With the older mk1 172's the cam-belt is certainly something to consider when it comes to buying, however servicing really suits your criteria only needing to visit Renault once every 2 years. Feel free to change the oil between servicing.

Le' Problemo:
- Exhaust (4k problem)
Apart from the standard exhaust system rusting every few years they can also develop a rattle around the 4,000rpm mark. As you will be out of warranty i'd consider a nice shiny replacement.
- Engine (mounts)
As mentioned these can go, normally giving a knocking noise in the early gears.
- Suspension (rear-bearings)
Common with many cars & easy to sort, give away is a grinding noise.
- Interior (rattles)
French car, French made, British fix, belt lots with a hammer.

I'll certainly echo the comments towards checking out this months evo magazine buying guide, very handy insight & has a great road-racer article in it!

Trojan · 30 Jan 2006 at 19:36

DanF said:
So now I'm looking at buying a clio 172 for just under £5k. Does anyone on the boards own one?

Yep, bought a ph1 172 for £4700 in the middle of December. Fantastic car, would definately recommend it to anybody wanting good performance (both acceleration and handling) without having to spend a fortune.

DanF said:
is there anything to really look out for on them like common faults or factory recalls etc?

Coco has mentioned the main things to look out for, other than that main things I'd check that it's got 4 good quality tyres on it (Michelin PE2s, Goodyear Eagle F1s, etc), that the paint at the front isn't too chipped (sign of being ragged a lot), and also that the interior is in good condition (wheel surround and seat leather especially as a lot are in poor condition).

Coco said:
Service = 2yr / 12k
Cam-Belt = 5yr / 72k
Normal Service = £170-£230
Big Service = ~£365

Also worth mentioning the Cam-belt service. These generally cost £500+, and if it hasn't been done on a 2000/2001 car it will be due for doing shortly. Therefore if it hasn't been carried out, use this to knock £500 of the price straight away. Any issues with this and I'd walk away.

Coco said:
I'll certainly echo the comments towards checking out this months evo magazine buying guide, very handy insight & has a great road-racer article in it!

Yep, get Evo mag for their comprehensive buying guide this month, which is aimed at ph1 172s. In fact, get Evo every month if you can, it's a great magazine

Coco · 30 Jan 2006 at 19:44

Trojan said:
In fact, Evo every month if you can, it's a great magazine

Absolutely, in fact worth repeating with the full works:

In fact, Evo every month if you can, it's a great magazine :cool:

Brum Man · 30 Jan 2006 at 20:42

Are you looking at Mk1 172's or Mk2?

I have a mk2 172 and I love it, however I have to sell it as just about to move to london in a few weeks

Just check the usual, rust around the sills, marks in the interior (the leather on the drivers side is likely to be a little cracked due to getting in and out but just make sure it isn't too bad), the wheels are stupidly easy to kerb so check for scuff marks (only cost about £30 per wheel for a full refurb so don't let that put you off but might be a bargaining tool), general rattles (although getting one without any is like finding a needle in a haystack), make sure the air-con works properly.......erm, can't think of anything else.

Mind you for 5k I would have thought it'd be a mk1, a mk2 for that price is going to be very high milage or carp. What are you looking at?

Ev0 · 30 Jan 2006 at 20:45

No point me posting really as these chaps have said it all

Although I will say I love my mk1, it rocks.

Owned for one year and the only thing that's gone wrong bar consumables was a front suspension spring had about an inch snapped off due to a violent pot hole on the dya of it's mot lol god timing. Spring was 90 quid and had to drive halfway across london to get one as there were only 4 dealers in the country that had any

.

Brakes are very good so if they don't feel right they could need replacing, I had all discs and pads done for about £360 and that was with genuine parts, and when the rears from Renault also have the rear wheel bearings pressed into them (so I got nice new bearings on the back too) that's not too extortionate.

The exhaust is a pain as from the factory it's a nice single unit all the way to the cat (it's welded up). When part of it goes, whether it be the back box of mid section, you need to buy both bits seperately and then you won't have a ncie 1 piece anymore

Also depending on where you are find a specialist near you (ask on cliosport) to do your servicing, I trust my guy much more than the dealer and he's cheaper. The major service was £150, cam belt change with the full cam kit (that's £120 from Renault for the parts alone) was £350 and a minor service is just £70

I'd guess for 5k you'd definitely be looking at a nice mk1, the dealer in Exeter has a mint black mk1 and it's up for a stupid 7k!! They only offered me 4k 6 months ago and mines identical with less miles, jokers.

Also on the steering wheel side of things, it wears really badly very quickly, the material used is weird and can go a bit funny and really shows any ring scrapes etc (not that I've got any rings mind). Same goes for the laquer on the silver interior door trims by the switches, this peels and looks "dirty". They used to be just £13 a pair or something from Renault, then they jacked the price up to £63

If you go for a mk1, don't buy a silver one as everyone else has one (IMHO as that's all I see of mk1s round here, not a bad colour just lots of them).

If you go for a mk2, don't buy a black one as everyone has one (IMHO as that's all I see of mk2s round here, not a bad colour just lots of them).

Mail is in trust if you want anymore info/msn details.

Oh and it's well known black mk1s are the fastest ever

Brum Man · 30 Jan 2006 at 21:18

Ev0 said:
The exhaust

That's the thing I forgot to mention, check the exhaust, it's made of tin foil! Utter utter rubbish. I got a stainless steel one made for mine, but if it's never been replaced get under there and have a look to see what condition it's in.

Like Ev0 has said, get over to www.cliosport.net and have a read around, LOTS of information on there, and you might even see a couple for sale.

Ev0 · 30 Jan 2006 at 22:51

The exhaust itself performance wise isn't terrible tho for standard, just the build quality is a bit naff. Apparently mine had a slight crack where it's welded together but no one else has mentioned it so hopefully I won't have to replace it soon, I like my stealth pipe

Brum Man · 30 Jan 2006 at 23:15

Ev0 said:
The exhaust itself performance wise isn't terrible tho for standard, just the build quality is a bit naff. Apparently mine had a slight crack where it's welded together but no one else has mentioned it so hopefully I won't have to replace it soon, I like my stealth pipe

A BIT naff, it's awful! I've seen stories over cliosport where people have had 3 by the time 8k miles have come!

You can still have a stealth pipe, I had mine done at pro-speed in cardiff, including the petrol it cost me to get there is was still a lot cheaper than renault wanted for the parts alone. And it has a life time guarentee. And it gives a little more performance again, but with out any noise increase.

Ev0 · 30 Jan 2006 at 23:48

Maybe so, mines on 47k though and bar a supposed crack it's been fine, but maybe I've just got a less problematic one as I don't seem to have any of the common problems, and that's driving it a minimum of 60 miles a day.

Trojan · 30 Jan 2006 at 23:49

Yep, I can confirm the rubbish quality of the 172 exhaust. My car has had 2 new back boxes and 1 middle section in the 60,000 miles it's done (according to the service history). Both sections went again a couple of weeks ago, after me owning the car for less than a month!

I've therefore had a Longlife life-time guaranteed stainless steel exhaust fitted, for about £150 cheaper than Renault wanted for the OEM parts. Complete with a stealth pipe, it cost me a total of £289 and has the benefit of sounding meatier than the standard item, whilst not being particularly intrusive

DanF · 31 Jan 2006 at 12:11

Cheers guys, my Evo mag came this morning (subscription of course)

I'd probably be looking for a totally std 172 mk1, i just like the looks of it a bit more than the mk2's, the little slashes under the headlights are ace.

I'd really consider getting a decent stealth SS exauhst and keeping the std one before it falls apart etc.

Also I'm thinking of turboing it in maybe 2-3 years time but this depends on what happens of course