project 2002 Renault Clio II 172

[SiC]

Go to this link to avoid the 4 page chat on the buying process: https://autoshite.com/topic/41278-2002-renault-clio-ii-172/?do=findComment&comment=2092395

 

Decided now is definitely the time I need to scratch this itch. I don't suppose anyone has one going or thinking of going at the moment?

Really need to sell the Laguna before I pull the trigger but if someone is getting rid for a decent price...

[320touring]

Join the Clio sport.net Facebook page, and the Clio sport for sale page.

For a clean 172 with no major issues, and timing/accessory drive belts done within the last couple of years you are looking at 1700- 2k ish.

A bit more for a 182 in similar fettle.

Ask @dome for help with belts if needed

 

 

[SiC]

4 minutes ago, 320touring said:

Join the Clio sport.net Facebook page, and the Clio sport for sale page.

For a clean 172 with no major issues, and timing/accessory drive belts done within the last couple of years you are looking at 1700- 2k ish.

A bit more for a 182 in similar fettle.

Ask @dome for help with belts if needed

 

 

Yeah I'm prepared to spend that much if it's a decent one. Been looking on the clio sport page but nothing too interesting has come up just yet. Loads of ruined trackday specials about though. All are asking way too much for a car that has a lot of bits missing. More than complete and nearly stock cars!

Shame @Split_Pin scrapped his. I'd have had that and welded up the rusty bits, while replacing the belts. Or use the bits to replace all the lost parts on a stupid messed up trackday car.

Its their slight recent price rise in the last year that has made me realise I need to get one now, otherwise there is a chance they'll go more than what I'd want to pay for a Clio II. 

In regards to belts, I'd like to try myself but I'd probably just chuck it at the local garage. They did the F4P engine in my Laguna II just fine. Same tools and procedures, just tighter access. 

[Split_Pin]

Mine was way beyond redemption. I did start to treat the rust but as is always the case, I discovered much, much more. It was rotten everywhere. Avoid any car that's lived in Northern Scotland or next to the sea, or both as was the case with mine as they can rust, check for evidence of bubbling around the plastic sideskirts, the fuel filler area, front subframe and floors.

It was a shame as it had had a ton of mechanical work done in previous and my ownership, including belts and a full head rebuild,  and it was a reliable car.

As Neil said, try and get one with the belts done. Check the condition of the aux belt as they tend not to last even if the timing belt is OK and if it snaps it takes out the timing belt and wrecks the engine.

Rear calipers can be troublesome but easily replaced. Injectors can go bad, OEM spec Magnetti Marelli items can be had from eBay for £35 each which is cheap. I replaced all 4 at that price.

They do go incredibly well and although they aren't the quickest car on the road, they're definitely one of the most fun. The massive inlet makes a great noise.

You're making me want another now!

[dome]

Belts are definitely easier second time round....

Although to be fair I'm doing a cup alternator conversion at the same time do all ancillaries are off giving better access.

Ace little cars. It's tricky to find a standard one but don't let a few mods put you off. 

 

[Robson3022]

9 hours ago, SiC said:

Decided now is definitely the time I need to scratch this itch. I don't suppose anyone has one going or thinking of going at the moment?

Really need to sell the Laguna before I pull the trigger but if someone is getting rid for a decent price...

I know a man who specialises  in buying and selling these I shall message him!

[SiC]

1 hour ago, dome said:

Ace little cars. It's tricky to find a standard one but don't let a few mods put you off. 

This is the problem I'm facing. I find one and think that looks alright. Like this one:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/283926231162

Not bad from the outside. Lowered a bit too much but easily fixed. 

Let's look on the inside:

Uh-oh, another track day bastardised special...

But how much is missing of the interior?

FFS virtually none left. He wants £2k for that too, which is about right for one with all the bits.

What would have been needed is a cheap rotten one that could be used as a parts car to resort these ?

Mate has a modified Petrol Blue 182 that he offered cheap. No airbag steering wheel so fails the test unless swapped back in, so currently out of MOT. Also has been modified heavily elsewhere. Like Trophy seats and other trinkets. But he offered it to me for £1650. Cheap for a PB, but I'd need a spares car to bring it back to something more stock. 

[Robson3022]

If you do Faceache search for Sv-performance imports. One of the owners is called Anth send them a message and if they haven’t got one they will probably source one. They don’t turn out rubbish. He somehow found someone who was hoarding them about 6 months ago and bought about 6 all at once! 

[dome]

22 minutes ago, SiC said:

This is the problem I'm facing. I find one and think that looks alright. Like this one:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/283926231162

Not bad from the outside. Lowered a bit too much but easily fixed. 

Let's look on the inside:

Uh-oh, another track day bastardised special...

But how much is missing of the interior?

FFS virtually none left. He wants £2k for that too, which is about right for one with all the bits.

What would have been needed is a cheap rotten one that could be used as a parts car to resort these ?

Mate has a modified Petrol Blue 182 that he offered cheap. No airbag steering wheel so fails the test unless swapped back in, so currently out of MOT. Also has been modified heavily elsewhere. Like Trophy seats and other trinkets. But he offered it to me for £1650. Cheap for a PB, but I'd need a spares car to bring it back to something more stock. 

If you get on the arsebook pages then you might find someone stripping theirs to make a track car. They're so good to drive and easily modded  it's understandable people do this with them.  I was the same as you though, my 182 was standard bar an exhaust.

There's a Clio Sport buy and sell group with a couple of decent standard ones for sale just now.

Take your time, there's loads out there. If your mates is a good car bar some easily reversible mods then it could be worth a shout. The mods will sell for more than it'd cost for standard bits?

 

[Split_Pin]

Good standard interiors are really cheap as everyone else is stripping them out.

The engines are built to be ragged as well so don't let these sorts of things put you off.

[seacow]

Ive half looked at at 172 and 182 on Gumtree between 2 and 3k - like you I fancy scratching this itch and would be looking for near as possible to standard

[seacow]

https://www.gumtree.com/p/renault/renault-sport-clio-172-/1374987366

 

This is one that caught my eye

[SiC]

53 minutes ago, seacow said:

https://www.gumtree.com/p/renault/renault-sport-clio-172-/1374987366
 
This is one that caught my eye

That looks very nice. Low owners, decent mileage and not buggered about with.

If I was spending that much, I want to spend a bit more and get the 182. Just because dual exhaust

This is local to me. Happened to walk past it earlier today. Looks decent. Shame silver.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/153984655388

I bidded up to £650 on this. Not sure I'd want to spend much more than that for one failed it's emissions
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/333635439387

Which it did quite spectacularly! (Seller sent this)


I'm guessing not the cat as it's running slobbering rich and burning very inefficiently given its way over on all measurements. Well the cat is probably fucked now too. I reckon leaking injector or something like that.

[SiC]

52 minutes ago, SiC said:

I bidded up to £650 on this. Not sure I'd want to spend much more than that for one failed it's emissions
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/333635439387

So despite the advice that the DVSA have given out that a failed new MOT doesn't give 6 months extension, this happened the other day on this car:

✓ MOT

Expires:
2 January 2021

Probably still not valid though. 

[DavidB]

I swapped for one last year. Everything was f*cked with it. There was also a freshly used condom discarded by the PO under the passenger seat (my girlfriend found it when she was clearing the countless fast food containers from the rancid interior because the seat was jammed with them). Nice!
And then 100 miles into ownership, the gearbox disintegrated and I spent a month trying to find a replacement and then another month swapping it (and broken wiring, faulty steering rack, leaking radiator and leaking boot) in my parking bay.

They're handle well and are fast, but are utterly shit at everything else. Never again.

 

 

[SiC]

50 minutes ago, DavidB said:

I swapped for one last year.

?

50 minutes ago, DavidB said:

Everything was f*cked with it.

??

51 minutes ago, DavidB said:

There was also a freshly used condom discarded by the PO under the passenger seat (my girlfriend found it when she was clearing the countless fast food containers from the rancid interior because the seat was jammed with them). Nice!

???

52 minutes ago, DavidB said:

And then 100 miles into ownership, the gearbox disintegrated and I spent a month trying to find a replacement and then another month swapping it (and broken wiring, faulty steering rack, leaking radiator and leaking boot) in my parking bay.

????

52 minutes ago, DavidB said:

They're handle well and are fast

?????

53 minutes ago, DavidB said:

but are utterly shit at everything else

??????

53 minutes ago, DavidB said:

Never again.

???????

 

Sounds like the ownership experience of the average French hot hatch! Also is the making of a Classic.

Funnily enough the 205 GTi is of course highly revered, however when I was learning to drive (~2002-2003) they were cheap tincan bangers that were often unreliable as the above. Probably still the same but people don't do as many miles in them because they're toys and less likely to break.

I've thought two ways on this. One get a cheap-ish one to use as a daily local runaround and toy up on back roads in the evenings - like 6k+ miles a year. Or get an immaculate one (ideally Trophy) and use it just as a evening toy - like 2k miles a year max. Immaculate one possibly mean a few other vehicle sized toys need to go longer term though.

[DavidB]

The steering had a weird fault where it did this.

Hilarious! The rack has broken up inside and blocked the pipes.

Renault hot hatch adoration belongs in the fictional minds of classic/retro car magazine writers.
Just buy a Saxo.

[Steve79]

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202006240475742?atmobcid=soc3

 

[Split_Pin]

Oh aye, the gearboxes can get a bit crunchy.

My advice is to join the FB pages and find out the problems everyone else has so you know what to look for.

TBH mine was great apart from the rot. Once I had the subframe and lower arms replaced everything mechanical was spot on and it was reliable. It did have a slight PAS weep but didn't get any worse in the 2 years I owned it. If it wasn't rusty I'd probably still have it, although that means I wouldn't have got my 75 which is the car I really wanted.

If I was to have another I'd be looking to spend 2k upwards and make sure it's from England!

[Kiltox]

1 hour ago, DavidB said:

I swapped for one last year. 

Why do you think the previous owner was so keen to swap it for whatever it was you had?  

[SiC]

50 minutes ago, Steve79 said:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/202006240475742?atmobcid=soc3

 

Only one picture and looks pretty old. Deceased in it?!

[SiC]

48 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

Oh aye, the gearboxes can get a bit crunchy.

 

Not as bad as the generation after though!

[cort16]

They seem to be getting a bit of a following thats pushing prices up. I think you might need to spend a bit to find a decent one or you'll have to accept some pain.

You could buy a Panda 100HP and get the same agonising  ownership experience and burst knuckles but save some money you can use for future therapy to try to forget about the dark period in your life when you owned one.

[SiC]

1 minute ago, cort16 said:

They seem to be getting a bit of a following thats pushing prices up. I think you might need to spend a bit to find a decent one or you'll have to accept some pain.

You could buy a Panda 100HP and get the same agonising  ownership experience and burst knuckles but save some money you can use for future therapy to try to forget about the dark period in your life when you owned one.

My first car when I passed my driving test back in 2003.

It'll have to be a Clio. Doesn't have to be black (would be nice to!) but would really like a bright colour like Inferno Orange/Liquid Yellow/Racing Blue if I can.

[dome]

1 hour ago, DavidB said:

 

Renault hot hatch adoration belongs in the fictional minds people who haven't owned complete wrecks
Just buy one that's not totally fucked ?

FTFY?

[SiC]

I'd rather tempt my chances being better on a 17 year old French hot hatch than a 17 year old German hot hatch/saloon!

[cort16]

I have to agree with that a lot of the french stuff I’ve had has been better than expected, most of the German stuff has been worse .

The German stuff has nice interiors and stuff but always seem to have a time bomb Built in somewhere .

[dome]

I had my 182 at the same time as my E46. Both had lived by the sea for many years but the Clio came apart easier than the BMW!

[cort16]

Especially when you think a lot of the German stuff is better looked after in its earlier years by the nature of how much it costs . A lot of renaults and Citroen’s are used hard and not always very well looked after . 

[DavidB]

2 hours ago, Kiltox said:

Why do you think the previous owner was so keen to swap it for whatever it was you had?  

Ahem.