Grande Clio.. Very Grande (Renault Clio 1.2 3-door)

Member Name: ChemicalRomance

Product:	Renault Clio 1.2 3-door
Date:	12/09/08 (235 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fuel consumption = Very little

Disadvantages: Looks a bit dodgy on the outside until the 2001 + models

So here I am sat in my little car waiting for my little brother to finish school so I can take him home in the rain and I thought it was about time I wrote a review about my little vehicle, as I've had it nearly two months now and we haven't fallen out yet.. YET!!

So the little car I'm sat in now you can guess from the product description is a Renault Clio, 1.2i Grande RN..

Yeah yeah I know it sounds like I'm trying to show off but to be honest this little car despite being small has a lot of good things about it and if I'm honest I wouldn't be without it now, despite the dodgy looks.. Anyway I'll get onto those bits later..!

When I was looking for a car I really didn't know what to chose, and if I'm honest anything was going to be a big come down from what I learnt in.. Having learnt to drive in a 2.0 litre, turbo diesel, 4 wheel drive sporty golf I was always going to be disappointed..!

When looking through all the car magazines I settled on wanting a Citroën Saxo similar to my boyfriends which I really liked.. Funnily enough with my budget I was hard pushed to get a good quality car which was a tad annoying..! Trailing one day through eBay just looking for the odd car in my area, I came across this car, my Clio..! Not advertised at any price but on a bid auction I asked for a phone number so maybe I could get a look at the car.. (or maybe my dad could..!)

Not saying that all of these models of Clio's would be this good but my car is nearly flawless a few scratches as an 8 year old car has but other than that it is fantastic.. When I bought it the drive shaft needed replacing but that was a simple job.. However because of this the price dropped to £1100 for a W-reg car I was stunned considering the Parker guide suggests around £1,500 for these cars..

So it was brought home, I got my insurance sorted, and took it out for a spin..

~ The looks ~

Ok so this car may not be so stylish from the outside, in a tacky solid bluey/purple colour, but hey when your driving you can't see that bit..! Thank fully..
The styling of the car was altered from the model 1 to the model 2 of the Clio, to give plastic wings on the car, which is fairly good means they don't cost so much to replace and they don't rust either.. Great for the lovely British weather.
The interior.. Not too bad I must say, it varies in colour from car to car, but mine is a nice grey and blue and I have to say is very comfortable.. I wouldn't mind sitting here all afternoon.. Wait I have been for the past half hour.. That's just how comfy they are..!
The seats actually hold you snuggly into them so they seem to do a world of good for posture too..

~ The engine ~

So I have no idea what to really say about it other than it does have less than 100bhp, but to be honest for a car of this size is not to unexpected, but for general pootling do we need anymore..?
The top speed can be pushed to around 100mph.. Not that I have done that in a country where 60mph in the legal limit.. Of course not..
So obviously engines have as many problems as the next but mine seems to have been well treated so is not making any nasty rattling noises that are anything to worry about..
I'm not entirely sure what bits are prone to going on Clio's but there does seem to be an awful lot around so they must be fairly reliable..!

~ Handling and economy~

The handing is fairly good.. Nothing exemplary but for car designed for the city it takes corners pretty well.. I haven't taken it off a corner yet and the road to my boyfriends house is very windy and it was raining earlier so I have to say it handles well in the wet especially..!

Well the thing with this car is it uses nearly no fuel I make a 15 mile journey twice weekly and the odd trip to pick to pick up my brother in the week, and I've used about £10 worth of petrol in the past two weeks..!

~ In general ~

So no car is without its fault and this one is just the same, the exterior with its bid bum and naff looking back lights are one of its faults..

It might just be my car but I find it so annoying to drive at times, the clutch doesn't respond and having had a mechanics opinion of no faults it just bugs me now..

However the car does have electric windows and sunroof, with a protective sheet in the sun roof for privancy, which is nice for those hot summer days.. when we get them..!

Major faults I have only had one last weekend when my leaky cylinders disintegrated my brake shoes and locked my back passenger side wheel.. Which was as noisy as it was embarrassing!

It is a great car and I would recommend one as a first car, but never compare it to your learning car its never going to match up..!

Summary: Great little first car..

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