What are Clio 182s like to live with

[Chris71]

Hi,

I'm considering a new daily driver and the Clio 182 appears to tick a lot of the boxes. I know they're a great driver's car, but what are they like to live with day-to-day?

Specifically:

• What are they like on long motorway cruises (quiet? comfy? acceptable fuel tank range?)
• What sort of MPG can you expect?
• What are the differences between the various models - 182/Cup/Trophy etc?
• What are servicing costs like? Any idea of a yearly running figure for 8-10,000 miles?
• Any common reliability issues?
• Can anyone confirm that you can fit two mountain bikes in the back (with the seats down)?

...And anything else you can think of?

[Ian_sUK]

Motorway - Reasonably comfortable on standard suspension, obviously not the best as its not what its designed for. Cruise makes things easy, expect 40-42 mpg at 70 on the cruise, more like 35-38 when driving normally on the motorway and 28-30 around town.

182 full fat has all the toys with the option of cup packs which add lower stiffer suspension, different colour wheels, bigger spoiler and splitter.

182 cup has the cup pack options above but without the toys.

Trophy is a mix of the 2 with added sachs dampers and recaro seats.

Servicing costs are fine apart from the cambelt.

Reliability issues - steering wheels melt, engine mounts, exhaust mounts, strut top mounts, sachs dampers on trophy need rebuilding.

I've fit one bike in with the front wheel off, 2 shouldn't be too hard.

[GTP rpm]

Chris71 said:

Hi,

I'm considering a new daily driver and the Clio 182 appears to tick a lot of the boxes. I know they're a great driver's car, but what are they like to live with day-to-day?

Specifically:

• What are they like on long motorway cruises (quiet? comfy? acceptable fuel tank range?)
• What sort of MPG can you expect?
• What are the differences between the various models - 182/Cup/Trophy etc?
• What are servicing costs like? Any idea of a yearly running figure for 8-10,000 miles?
• Any common reliability issues?
• Can anyone confirm that you can fit two mountain bikes in the back (with the seats down)?

...And anything else you can think of?

For starters, nice to see you Ian_sUK! Long time no-hear, from the Gran Turismo world!

Chris, I work for Renault so will add my addition, to Ian's comments, althouth they're pretty bang on !


- On the motorway they're fine. Like any modern car, they're great cruisers but unlike most sporty cars, they're superb over potholes and speed bumps too!

- If you do less than 8000/10000 miles per year, servicing will be peanuts. Brakes are cheap to replace, oil changes are the same as a 1.6 Clio! But as Ian said, cambelts and also aux. belts are costly because the timing side of the engine is so, SO stupidly tight for space! But other than that...it's smooth sailing.

- Common problems are all niggles tbh. You've got various electrical problems, coil packs, bad wiring/connectors but if you buy one with clear history you're laughing. (I can provide warranty checks if need be for free) ... Ian sUK has mentioned the other mechanic faults that can develop. But you need to appreciate the nature of this car!

- 2mtb's in the back? Easy with the seat down. I've done it - with photo evidence to prove if you need it (although it's on a 1.2 not 2litre! - same interior space).

They're great cars and amazingly priced. I personally would avoid the Trophy, unless you were an enthusiast. Try and find a liquid yellow 182, that'd be...oh so very much the case of almighty win.

[Johnnytheboy]

Chris71 said:

Hi,

I'm considering a new daily driver and the Clio 182 appears to tick a lot of the boxes. I know they're a great driver's car, but what are they like to live with day-to-day?

Specifically:

• What are they like on long motorway cruises (quiet? comfy? acceptable fuel tank range?)
• What sort of MPG can you expect?
• What are the differences between the various models - 182/Cup/Trophy etc?
• What are servicing costs like? Any idea of a yearly running figure for 8-10,000 miles?
• Any common reliability issues?
• Can anyone confirm that you can fit two mountain bikes in the back (with the seats down)?

...And anything else you can think of?

My Trophy returned about 30mpg on V-Power, more like 35 on the motorway.
Ride quality in a Trophy is very good for such a hard sprung car. The rest - I'm told - can be a bit crashy.
Model differences as above really:
182 FF has all the bells and whistles (Climate Control/Xenons/nice leather seats), plus you can have the Cup chassis.
182 Cup is a little basic, but still has aircon unlike the 172 Cup.
Trophy is basically an even stiffer/lower Cup with Recaros and amazing but fragile dampers which require a service every 20-30k miles at a specialist at Silverstone.

Service costs - there's an aux belt change every 3 years which makes the service cost £400+ and a cambelt change which costs a lot (£700 service!!!) every five years. N.B the late 182s/Trophies are due for this now, so check it's done if buying.

Which you go for probably depends on what you want to use it for. The Trophy is best handling and likely to be the future classic. The 182 FF will be the best car day to day.

[Chris71]

So the Trophy is going to be a less comfortable proposition for long distances then? Are there any differences to things like sound deadening?

I haven't commited to buying anything yet, but I'm toying with the idea of something a bit more exciting (like a 182 or a Corrado VR6) to replace my Focus. The Clio certainly seems to fit the bill - space for the bikes, civilised on the motorway (compared to Type Rs and the like) and even pretty economical (my poverty spec Focus only returns about 34mpg in ordinary mixed driving).

Edited by Chris71 on Friday 2nd April 19:07

[John D.]

Chris71 said:

So the Trophy is going to be a less comfortable proposition for long distances then? Are there any differences to things like sound deadening?

I don't think that is what the poster above meant with his remark about Trophy ride quality. I've had a brief trip in one on a mix of roads and it felt smoother than my Clio 172 Cup. I would expect the optional Cup suspension (on 182) to have slightly worse ride quality than the Trophy personally.

IIRC Renault did not reduce any sound deadenng on any of the 182 models as they did with the 172 Cup.

[Johnnytheboy]

The Trophy is stiffer but with better dampers, so I'm told rides better but is stiffer, if that makes any sense...

[Defcon5]

I know 2 people that have had them, one is on his 3rd gearbox, and the other has hadhis since new, and says he will never buy a Renault again.

Id still buy one though!

[dzm]

Recaros, rear seats, Turinis and lack of Xenons save weight on the Trophy vs the 182 FF, although Renault didn't go to the same trouble as they did lightening the 172 Cup.

PS. Aux and Cambelt + service is £500 at KTEC, an RS specialist, in Dorset. I think others with similar prices.

[John D.]

Defcon5 said:

I know 2 people that have had them, one is on his 3rd gearbox, and the other has hadhis since new, and says he will never buy a Renault again.

Id still buy one though!

I did one on mine too Only big bill I had. A friend of mine had a 'box go too.

[Chris71]

Defcon5 said:

I know 2 people that have had them, one is on his 3rd gearbox, and the other has hadhis since new, and says he will never buy a Renault again.

Id still buy one though!

An old colleague used to have one and it did indeed spend quite a lot of its time in the garage - I think it was mostly niggling electrical faults and the like, all fixed under warranty though.

As a daily driver I'd quite like a reasonable number of toys - air con, comfy seats, decent stereo and xenons would all be good. Does that mean basically I'd want to concentrate on the full fat 182? I notice a lot of the cars in the classifieds advertise 'both cup packs' - what's included in each pack?

Also, how do people find the driving position? I'm about average height so shouldn't really be an issue, but I have heard a few people mumbling about the Clio's ergonomics.

[Johnnytheboy]

I am 6'6" and found it ok. It's fine if you're used to small cars.

Reliability-wise, I had the following in 17000 miles:

Two Trophy damper related problems.
Two incidences of the temperature sensor coming loose.
The OEM brake discs dying of corrosion.
The recaros tilt-slide malfunctioning.

So mostly related to the Trophy parts.

Edited by Johnnytheboy on Tuesday 6th April 15:37

[John D.]

One Cup pack is the bootlid spoiler and front 'splitter'.

The other is the Cup suspension and darker anthricite alloys.

I think that is the case anyway! Memories feeling a bit hazy today.


I'm 6 foot and never found the driving position an issue. Yes my legs had to be bent more than ideal to keep the wheel close enough (learning heal and toe proved impossible!) but it was'nt something that I really noticed day to day. However I did find that if I drove another car with a more normal driving position for a while getting back in the Clio it did feel horrible for the first few miles.

[...Karl...]

Chris71 said:

Defcon5 said:

I know 2 people that have had them, one is on his 3rd gearbox, and the other has hadhis since new, and says he will never buy a Renault again.

Id still buy one though!

An old colleague used to have one and it did indeed spend quite a lot of its time in the garage - I think it was mostly niggling electrical faults and the like, all fixed under warranty though.

As a daily driver I'd quite like a reasonable number of toys - air con, comfy seats, decent stereo and xenons would all be good. Does that mean basically I'd want to concentrate on the full fat 182? I notice a lot of the cars in the classifieds advertise 'both cup packs' - what's included in each pack?

Also, how do people find the driving position? I'm about average height so shouldn't really be an issue, but I have heard a few people mumbling about the Clio's ergonomics.

I'd have to say that the Clio was probably my favourite car. Lots of fun to drive, very chuckable. I'm trying to persuade the missus to get one so I can borrow it!

I had a couple of issues with my 172. Nothing too exciting and all fixed under warranty - wiring loom under passenger seat (IIRC) which was causing the airbag light to come on and one of the headlight washers leaked.

During the two years I owned the car (~20k miles and 2-3 years old), I had to replace a leaking rear shock and an aux belt that started slipping. The aux belt was expensive so check it's been done if it's due, or take into account if near due.

The driving position was different but I got used to it very quickly.

You might want to take a look at www.cliosport.net for full specs

[Chris71]

For sake of argument has anyone here owned a 182 and a 306 GTi6?

I fully expect the 182 would be quicker and better to drive, but the 306 is a similar sort of thing (as is the current Megane obviously, but I'm not sure I want to spend quite that much...) with perhaps a bit more space and somewhat lower costs.

[John D.]

As you're not getting much response here Chris I'll chip in my 2p

I've never driven a Gti-6 but I think you're about right with you're assumption. It won't be as fast as a 172/182 (less grippy I believe) but it will give a similar driving experience. In some quarters they are absolutely raved about and although it wasn't a car I considered I can see the attraction and think it is definately a viable alternative. Test drive of both is the way forward.

[milfordkong]

Never had a single problem with either my 182FF or my Trophy (aware this isn't the norm though)

Both were absolutely brilliant, and the Trophy is my favourite car i've owned by a country mile - Strongly considering a FF Cupped 200 now.

[rob999]

milfordkong said:

Never had a single problem with either my 182FF or my Trophy (aware this isn't the norm though)

Both were absolutely brilliant, and the Trophy is my favourite car i've owned by a country mile - Strongly considering a FF Cupped 200 now.

I was very disappointed having owned a trophy for 4 years and then driving my Mum's 197 with the cup pack. I missed the old school thrills of the 182, yes the 197 has a ton of grip but I just don't feel excited by it...

[v15ben]

I've had my 182 Full Fat as my only car for the past year over 14k miles or so. Great fun to drive everyday but mine has been massively unreliable! Still they are fairly cheap to run when they're working and great fun. I'll be selling mine soon, but possibly not soon enough for you

[GR33NIE]

rob999 said:

milfordkong said:

Never had a single problem with either my 182FF or my Trophy (aware this isn't the norm though)

Both were absolutely brilliant, and the Trophy is my favourite car i've owned by a country mile - Strongly considering a FF Cupped 200 now.

I was very disappointed having owned a trophy for 4 years and then driving my Mum's 197 with the cup pack. I missed the old school thrills of the 182, yes the 197 has a ton of grip but I just don't feel excited by it...

I've heard lots of folks say that now, always fancied a RS Clio myself. I think if I did bite the bullet and get one I'd be tempted by a 182 over the new 200

Driving a TDI though I'm pretty sure the fuel costs would stress me out

Edited by GR33NIE on Friday 16th April 10:39