Advice please - R26 or vx220na??

[RC172]

Hello,
I’m after a bit of advice here so I’ll give you the facts first:

Current Drive: Renault Clio 172 phase 2
Cars in question: Renault Megane R26 F1 – Vauxhall VX220 2.2 na
22 years old (soon to be 23),
3 years no claims (soon to be 4)
11k to spend on my next car
Cannot justify anything more than £1300 a year for insurance
Cover about 11000 miles a year and need my next car to be my daily drive

I’m 22/23 and although I have never had an accident, have 3 years no claims, live in a nice area and have no criminal convictions etc etc the old insurance companies still want to charge me a fortune for anything faster than a pushbike!

So after hours of insurance quote hunting and realistic car decisions I have come down to two cars. The Renault Megane R26 and Vauxhall vx220 na. I have test drove both cars and obviously they are hugely different but i love them both for their respective qualities (which I won’t bore you with)!!

What are people’s views on the cars? I appreciate its down to personnel preference but I think I’m swayed towards the Vauxhall simply because I have never had the opportunity to own anything which provides as much pure driver involvement before, my only worry is its reliability? Any thoughts to any other cars which would be as exciting as the two mentioned which fall in to my limits?

I have looked in to Elise s1’s/ Honda s2000 but reliability and expensive insurance costs crossed these two cars off my list at the last hurdle!

Thanks for your time

[tommobot]

I've got a VX220 which I've been using as a daily for the past 9 months. Its bloody brilliant at the moment, but in the winter it was freezing. The heaters in them are bloody useless, and the locks always used to freeze aswell so you couldn't get the key in.

Manages to do around 35mpg regardless of driving, however my only issue with it is with the wiring around. It appears that all the ABS sensors (1 on each wheel) have snapped atleast once and been repaired, and also seems to be dodgy connections around some relays in the boot that don't always work as they should. To be honest, I think mine was one of the very first made (atleast according to the guy I brought it from)

Apart from that, all good & its been mechanically fine.

[Herman Toothrot]

tommobot said:

I've got a VX220 which I've been using as a daily for the past 9 months. Its bloody brilliant at the moment, but in the winter it was freezing. The heaters in them are bloody useless, and the locks always used to freeze aswell so you couldn't get the key in.

Manages to do around 35mpg regardless of driving, however my only issue with it is with the wiring around. It appears that all the ABS sensors (1 on each wheel) have snapped atleast once and been repaired, and also seems to be dodgy connections around some relays in the boot that don't always work as they should. To be honest, I think mine was one of the very first made (atleast according to the guy I brought it from)

Apart from that, all good & its been mechanically fine.

I have a vx220 na I've had for just over a year and fast approaching 10,000 miles, it's my daily driver. I for about 4 months recorded mileage , consumption etc. It does 30mpg regular use, trackday it does 12mpg.

Check the cam chain has been done if it's a pre 2003 car, rattles mean it needs doing. Nines been totally reliable.

A hint to cure the freezing locks (you'll kick yourself) it's as simple as a squirt of wd40 in the lock once a week through winter and you'll have no issues.

Basically if you want to carry mates about, bikes etc then get the megan, if you don't and it's only ever you in the car get the vx220.

[RC172]

Thanks Herman/Tommobot that’s good to hear that your cars have been reliable on a daily use..they just seem that little bit extra special! I was worried i would get the response of “get the Turbo” but you guys seem happy with yours!

Thanks for the tips

[Herman Toothrot]

RC172 said:

Thanks Herman/Tommobot that’s good to hear that your cars have been reliable on a daily use..they just seem that little bit extra special! I was worried i would get the response of “get the Turbo” but you guys seem happy with yours!

Thanks for the tips

People on the owners clubs have been selling their VXR's and Turbos to buy 2.2 n/a's to then Supercharge as it creates a more balanced, lighter weight and just as powerful car.

[300bhp/ton]

RC172 said:

Hello,
I’m after a bit of advice here so I’ll give you the facts first:

Current Drive: Renault Clio 172 phase 2
Cars in question: Renault Megane R26 F1 – Vauxhall VX220 2.2 na
22 years old (soon to be 23),
3 years no claims (soon to be 4)
11k to spend on my next car
Cannot justify anything more than £1300 a year for insurance
Cover about 11000 miles a year and need my next car to be my daily drive

I’m 22/23 and although I have never had an accident, have 3 years no claims, live in a nice area and have no criminal convictions etc etc the old insurance companies still want to charge me a fortune for anything faster than a pushbike!

So after hours of insurance quote hunting and realistic car decisions I have come down to two cars. The Renault Megane R26 and Vauxhall vx220 na. I have test drove both cars and obviously they are hugely different but i love them both for their respective qualities (which I won’t bore you with)!!

What are people’s views on the cars? I appreciate its down to personnel preference but I think I’m swayed towards the Vauxhall simply because I have never had the opportunity to own anything which provides as much pure driver involvement before, my only worry is its reliability? Any thoughts to any other cars which would be as exciting as the two mentioned which fall in to my limits?

I have looked in to Elise s1’s/ Honda s2000 but reliability and expensive insurance costs crossed these two cars off my list at the last hurdle!

Thanks for your time

Out of these 2, for me it'd be a no brainer. VX every time, looks better and will offer up longer lasting and IMO ultimately more fun car ownership.

It's also likely to hold its money much better too. If you want more speed, then I'm sure the 2.2 unit will respond to usual n/a mods or I believe there is a supercharger kit available.

[RobM77]

I'd go for the VX without a doubt. The R26 is great for a hot hatch, but I'd far rather drive a mid engined rear wheel drive sports car. I used my Elise S2 as my only car for three years (motorways started to wind me up, so I now have two cars). The heater issue is interesting, my Elise S2 is always warm and toasty once the engine's warmed up.

[alfa pint]

Got to be the VX220 - real drivers' car rather than a hot hatch. Being a Renault and therefore French, I bet the VX220 is more reliable too. I've never been convinced by french electrics - they're even worse than Italian ones!

[SarlechS]

Personally I’d go for the VX220, I think you would have much more fun driving about in the VX220 over the R26. when you compare servicing costs the VX is only slightly more expensive I read the 35k service is as little as £150 they return the same sort of MPG and tax will be pretty similar too.

The negatives to the VX220 in my opinion is it will be a more challenging drive when charging down a b-road, I’d also imagine the car would be difficult to control when driving around in bad conditions.

I think it really comes down to what you want in a car, if you want a special driver’s car, you have to get the VX220, if you want a car that is rewarding to drive but still has an element of practicality to it, you have to go for an R26 F1.

i think natural progression for you is to climb into a RWD, i won't be contemplating a FWD when i get my next car.

Edited by SarlechS on Thursday 8th July 16:01

[Alfa numeric]

I love my R26- it's a great every day car and can turn into a proper monster when the mood takes you. However if I was in your position I'd have the VX- hatchbacks are for later in life...

[RC172]

very interesting thanks for the advice.. i thought the same in terms of practicality

Alfa numeric said:

I love my R26- it's a great every day car and can turn into a proper monster when the mood takes you. However if I was in your position I'd have the VX- hatchbacks are for later in life...

[tommobot]

Also, the supercharging option, its not some crappo aftermarket kit. All the gear is sold as a factory fit on the Saturn in the U.S (with the same engine) so its a pretty reliable / proven upgrade. Costs seem to be around 4-5k to supercharge which added to the cost of a nice n/a (say 8-9k) puts you right in the territory of a nice Turbo model.

[Herman Toothrot]

tommobot said:

Also, the supercharging option, its not some crappo aftermarket kit. All the gear is sold as a factory fit on the Saturn in the U.S (with the same engine) so its a pretty reliable / proven upgrade. Costs seem to be around 4-5k to supercharge which added to the cost of a nice n/a (say 8-9k) puts you right in the territory of a nice Turbo model.

That it does, but I think everyone on the owners club is in agreement that supercharged na make for a better car than the turbo. Only last week a VXR 220 owner sold up and bought an na to supercharge, he's sure it'll be faster round a track than his old VXR and put about £5k back in his pocket at the same time.

[homerjay]

"VX220 2.2 16v Supercharger Conversion Stage 1 - 210bhp and 190-195 lb ft - £3750.00 including VAT fully fitted and set up."
"VX220 2.2 16v Supercharger Conversion Stage 2 - 240+bhp and 215-220 lb ft - from £5350.00 including VAT fully fitted and set up."

http://www.courtenaysport.co.uk/index.php?act=view...

[Crusoe]

Depends a lot on your driving too, loved my vx though they need a lot of minor work doing yourself to keep them running perfectly. They don't like being kept in the street - no bumpers or door strips so a 5mph knock by someone parking can be a very costly fix, they do leak a bit or a lot if they don't have the turbo seals fitted and windows adjusted, things like header tanks don't like sunlight and explode after a while etc.

If you have parking and are willing to fix minor things yourself then go for the VX (and spend some time sorting the details before winter like sealing the heater box and tubes which leak away all the warm air, a sock over the pipe so you don't get insects and dust coming into the cabin etc.) Plenty on the vx website to check including the recalls for wheels that were not heat treated and snap at the spokes, the replacement brake hoses down the sills, paint flaking off etc.

If you don’t want the hassle or the bending down to get in then go for the Renault.

[TankRizzo]

Herman Toothrot said:

tommobot said:

Also, the supercharging option, its not some crappo aftermarket kit. All the gear is sold as a factory fit on the Saturn in the U.S (with the same engine) so its a pretty reliable / proven upgrade. Costs seem to be around 4-5k to supercharge which added to the cost of a nice n/a (say 8-9k) puts you right in the territory of a nice Turbo model.

That it does, but I think everyone on the owners club is in agreement that supercharged na make for a better car than the turbo. Only last week a VXR 220 owner sold up and bought an na to supercharge, he's sure it'll be faster round a track than his old VXR and put about £5k back in his pocket at the same time.

To be fair, he did that because he didn't want to completely butcher a mint VXR for the track. But I see where you're coming from!

[RobM77]

SarlechS said:

The negatives to the VX220 in my opinion is it will be a more challenging drive when charging down a b-road, I’d also imagine the car would be difficult to control when driving around in bad conditions.

The Elise is fine in bad conditions. The cable throttle and abundance of feedback mean that you get plenty of warning if you're doing something stupid. I even did a trackday in a torrential downpour once and was practically the only car on the circuit at times, the weather was that bad.

[tangerine_sedge]

Another VX220NA owner here. I've been using it as my daily driver for the last 3 1/2 years. I can confirm it's cold in winter, but nothing that a thick coat and some driving gloves can't solve. I've found it a very cheap car to run, servicing is usually < £200 at a main dealer, and I've had no major mechanical problems.

Mine is starting to show it's age a little (seat bolsters worn, bits of plastic trim cracked), and costs for replacement trim can be expensive, but probably no more than mass produced Renault bits either. The mechanicals are all readily available mostly from the GM parts bin.

I think that you could buy a really good VX for £10k, and I don't think that NA VX's will ever drop below £6k, even for ropey ones.

[goffahsez]

I drive the r26 f1, and I absolutely love it, for smiles per miles its my next car yet! I did look at the vx before hand too but prefered the look and practicality of the megane, IMO

I think either way both cars will put a smile on your face, maybe its a comfort and ease issue that splits them!

I would like a RWD, think my next car will be an e46 m3

[SarlechS]

RobM77 said:

SarlechS said:

The negatives to the VX220 in my opinion is it will be a more challenging drive when charging down a b-road, I’d also imagine the car would be difficult to control when driving around in bad conditions.

The Elise is fine in bad conditions. The cable throttle and abundance of feedback mean that you get plenty of warning if you're doing something stupid. I even did a trackday in a torrential downpour once and was practically the only car on the circuit at times, the weather was that bad.

that's brilliant, i really have to test drive one. i've tried the s2000 and that had a sudden break-away when driving around in the wet.