Clio 182 as a daily

[joshleb]

My place of work is moving from Elephant and Castle to near Sevenoaks, and I don't currently have a car.

Looking at getting one for the commute, and I could just get something cheap and boring, but, I want some fun in my life, and always wanted a Clio 182 after having a 1.2 as my first car.

I've been reading about what to look for and about the cambelt and other works required every 37/72000 miles.

Would it be silly to get a 182 for a 25mile each way commute?

Much more sensible getting something cheaper, with lower insurance and better mpg, but I feel like I'd get bored...

Any previous owners got any tips, or other suggestions?

I have thought about just getting a 125 scooter too for it, so many ideas in my head currently!

[awlp16]

I ran 172/182's for years as my daily. They're awesome little things, love mine and am on the verge of getting another as a runaround instead of using my 370z all the time.

For the money you get a lot of car really, 180bhp, leather/alcantara seats, air con, awesome handling and decent mpg.

If you can, get a cup packed 182, gives you a few little extras. Make sure cambelt has been changed, either recently or at least in the past few years or 50k miles. Shocks can go on the back, so look for leaking or knocking when driving, bearings is another one as the rears are set within the disc and often get over tightened, so make sure no drones as well.

I used to get 35ish mpg with a mix of pootling about and spirited driving, tyres were never expensive and I always had conti sport contacts, and parts are generally cheap, with plenty of specialists to get work done.

If you've got any questions do ask

[p1stonhead]

Ill counter that by saying ive had about 4 years of 182's as dailies and I didnt like them. Im a sucker for punishment though

I didnt enjoy it to be honest. They are ear bleedingly loud inside especially on the motorway, feel like they are made of cardboard, with a ludicrously high seating position, bus steering wheel and ridiculously heavy clutch.

Cracking fun on a country lane, but terrible IMO for a daily.

[TiminYorkshire]

Consider a 306 GTi-6 as a fun daily, comfortable, fun, accomplished on track as standard.

I had one for a while, a great only car, towed motorbikes, l did plenty of laps of the 'Ring (and would go sub 9 minutes with a good driver, i.e. not me), good in the snow and quite subtle.

[LordHaveMurci]

Depends on what you want from a car really, as previous posts have alluded to!

Had my 172 Cup for over 7yrs, love it to bits but would I want it as my only car? Not a chance!

My commute is a 10th of yours, it's perfect for me, a 182 FF will be a nicer car to do miles in but you need to drive one to be able to decide.

[tomble22]

p1stonhead said:

Ill counter that by saying ive had about 4 years of 182's as dailies and I didnt like them. Im a sucker for punishment though

I didnt enjoy it to be honest. They are ear bleedingly loud inside especially on the motorway, feel like they are made of cardboard, with a ludicrously high seating position, bus steering wheel and ridiculously heavy clutch.

Cracking fun on a country lane, but terrible IMO for a daily.

I'd agree with that. I had a 197 for about 6 months and it did my head in (and they were more refined than the 182's). Having said that, I'd love one again (or a 172/182) to stick away in the garage (if i had one) and just use for a quick blast here and there. Probably my favourite driving car out of the ones i've had, just fairly compromised.

All down to personal taste (and possibly youth....you are a lot less tolerant of these kinds of things as you get older!!) though.

[culpz]

Standard 172/182 is great as a daily. All subjective and not everyone will agree but they come fully-equipped with all the toys as standard. The clutches on these can be quite stiff, so not the best in traffic but, other than that, they're just a fun, usable and capable hot-hatch.

I'd steer-clear of the Cup models, as they are very basic in comparison, with alot of the useful toys stripped off in the name of weight-saving. Great for when on the track and for spirited driving, but i'm not sure i could live with one day-to-day.

Get one with both the Cup Packs, for the best of both worlds, if you can.

[irish boy]

Great little things. Fun and largely reliable.


Pick yourself up a cheapie and enjoy.....


https://www.usedcarsni.com/2005-Renault-Clio-One-o...

[BlueHave]

irish boy said:

Great little things. Fun and largely reliable.


Pick yourself up a cheapie and enjoy.....


https://www.usedcarsni.com/2005-Renault-Clio-One-o...

That needs to be in the seriously overpriced car thread. No chance of getting that amount for a Trophy, especially in Northern Ireland.

You can buy a house in Lurgan for about £20k

[Yipper]

Cup suspension can be a bit crashy in potholes. But other than that, a great little car. Surprisingly very reliable, despite all the horror stories and market obsession about cambelts.

[stuart_83]

Fantastic cars, owned 2 x 172s and a 182, all used as daily drivers across various routes / jobs averaging 12k p/a.

Just check the usual, service history etc, who changed the cambelt, whether the dephaser pulley has been changed.

Other than that found mine really quite cheap to run.

[ZX10R NIN]

OP forget the scooter & get yourself a proper commuter bike something like an ER6 or CB500

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2003-HONDA-CB500S-2-BLUE...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2006-56-SUZUKI-SV-650-S-...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/KAWASAKI-ER6F-EX-650-/18...

Or maybe go for the Megane R26 a bit more comfortable on the commute.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

[DickP]

I think they can do the miles with little problem. It's whether you feel comfortable enough. If all that commuting is on the motorway, you may find it a bit tedious with the noise and (relatively) short final drive gearing. Likewise if it's in stop start city traffic, you'll get fed up of the clutch!

I put up with the two points above because I enjoy it enough otherwise, and on good roads it's really fun.

[Brett748]

If you're young and want a fun car go for it. I've had two 172s, a 182 and my brother currently has a 182. I do about 20k a year and couldn't handle going back to a Clio for that, but 10 years ago I'd of done it in a heartbeat.

Spec is good on them - nice seats, climate, cruise, auto lights and wipers etc. I'd spend a bit more on a well maintained one though. My brother got a cheap one and we've had to fix loads on it, we're ok on the spanners though coupled with a lot of track day mates and 10+ years on an owners club we haven't had too many garage visits.

[daemon]

BlueHave said:

irish boy said:

Great little things. Fun and largely reliable.


Pick yourself up a cheapie and enjoy.....


https://www.usedcarsni.com/2005-Renault-Clio-One-o...

That needs to be in the seriously overpriced car thread. No chance of getting that amount for a Trophy, especially in Northern Ireland.

You can buy a house in Lurgan for about £20k

True dat.