RS's Adventures in Small Renaults
Posted: Mon Sep 23, 2019 3:14 pm
The time for me to start a thread or two for my various old heaps is well overdue, so let's start off with the latest entry to the fleet.
It all started with Mrs_Renault Sierra's need of a small, economical, hopefully reliable car. Unfortunately finding such a thing these days means scrolling through pages of bland dredge and poorly written adverts in a desperate attempt to avoid owning something soul destroying. Then, when searching for something else on Autotrader, this Clio 1.4 RT appeared like an oasis in the automotive desert, a viewing was arranged and a deal was done. Two days later Mrs RS, Conrad D. Conelrad and I set off in the R4 (to be introduced in a later post) on a largely uneventful collection trip around the M60. The only highlight was when the R4's starter solenoid heat seized on the dealer's forecourt and it had to be pushed elsewhere to cool down.
Bought new by its previous gifferette owner, the Clio has done only 67,000 miles in the intervening 24 years. It came with a full service history which reveals it has wanted for almost nothing (it received a new clutch and a pair of new dampers last year, for instance). Indeed, aside for some giffer scrapes and a bit of crustiness around the rear wheelarches the thing's in almost new condition.
Being an RT it's remarkably well equipped for a small car of this era, with PAS, electric windows and mirrors, height adjustment and lumbar support on the driver's seat, remote central locking, a manual sunroof and front foglights (sadly not yellow, yet). Apparently Renault faceifted the Clio in 1994 but apart from the rear light clusters I've so far failed to notice any meaningful differences to the early cars.
First impressions so far have been good. The interior's spacious, as is the boot. Few could better Renault when it came to seating, and true to form the seats in the Clio are superb. The real standout feature, though, is the sheer quietness of everything, the engine's barely audible below around 3,000rpm and wind and road noise is almost unnoticeable, it being entirely possible to hold a conversation at motorway speeds whilst barely more than whispering.
Sadly the ergonomics are a bit of a mess, with switches scattergunned all over the dashboard out of easy reach. The R4 does this much better, and my BX better still. At least you get column mounted stereo controls and a coinholder for all those French toll booths, plus in true French fashion the ashtray is a fine bit of engineering.
The engine is the 1,390cc Energy unit (effectively just an old Cleon block with a belt driven overhead cam and crossflow hemi head) churning out 80bhp and 79lb/ft of torque and it does the business well enough, torquey and low revving in everyday driving but with a decent lump of power above 3,500rpm. At no point could it be considered a particularly inspiring or characterful engine, but that's fine. In fairess I reckon this one could do with a bit of loosening up after years of giffer usage as it feels a touch flat given the power outputs.
Overall the Clio drives well, with minimal body roll, little understeer and limpet like grip. The driving controls are all fine, the steering is light but provides plenty of feedback, the gearchange is slick and precise although the brakes are a bit sloppy. For the most part it goes about its business in a completely unfussed, unexciting way but get it on the right road and it can actually be quite fun. More surprising is that the ride isn't all that spectacular, the suspension's soft but it does tend to pitch about a bit and can occasionally thump over ridges and potholes. It's definitely not a patch on earlier Renaults in that regard.
So, plans? There's not much that really needs to be thought about, the crusty bits need sorting and a good rustproofing session will be had before winter. Otherwise the only mechanical malady so far identified is a dodgy thermostat, a replacement for which has been acquired. The overall plan is simply to keep the car in the condition we found it and hopefully get years of reliable service out of it.
It all started with Mrs_Renault Sierra's need of a small, economical, hopefully reliable car. Unfortunately finding such a thing these days means scrolling through pages of bland dredge and poorly written adverts in a desperate attempt to avoid owning something soul destroying. Then, when searching for something else on Autotrader, this Clio 1.4 RT appeared like an oasis in the automotive desert, a viewing was arranged and a deal was done. Two days later Mrs RS, Conrad D. Conelrad and I set off in the R4 (to be introduced in a later post) on a largely uneventful collection trip around the M60. The only highlight was when the R4's starter solenoid heat seized on the dealer's forecourt and it had to be pushed elsewhere to cool down.
Bought new by its previous gifferette owner, the Clio has done only 67,000 miles in the intervening 24 years. It came with a full service history which reveals it has wanted for almost nothing (it received a new clutch and a pair of new dampers last year, for instance). Indeed, aside for some giffer scrapes and a bit of crustiness around the rear wheelarches the thing's in almost new condition.
Being an RT it's remarkably well equipped for a small car of this era, with PAS, electric windows and mirrors, height adjustment and lumbar support on the driver's seat, remote central locking, a manual sunroof and front foglights (sadly not yellow, yet). Apparently Renault faceifted the Clio in 1994 but apart from the rear light clusters I've so far failed to notice any meaningful differences to the early cars.
First impressions so far have been good. The interior's spacious, as is the boot. Few could better Renault when it came to seating, and true to form the seats in the Clio are superb. The real standout feature, though, is the sheer quietness of everything, the engine's barely audible below around 3,000rpm and wind and road noise is almost unnoticeable, it being entirely possible to hold a conversation at motorway speeds whilst barely more than whispering.
Sadly the ergonomics are a bit of a mess, with switches scattergunned all over the dashboard out of easy reach. The R4 does this much better, and my BX better still. At least you get column mounted stereo controls and a coinholder for all those French toll booths, plus in true French fashion the ashtray is a fine bit of engineering.
The engine is the 1,390cc Energy unit (effectively just an old Cleon block with a belt driven overhead cam and crossflow hemi head) churning out 80bhp and 79lb/ft of torque and it does the business well enough, torquey and low revving in everyday driving but with a decent lump of power above 3,500rpm. At no point could it be considered a particularly inspiring or characterful engine, but that's fine. In fairess I reckon this one could do with a bit of loosening up after years of giffer usage as it feels a touch flat given the power outputs.
Overall the Clio drives well, with minimal body roll, little understeer and limpet like grip. The driving controls are all fine, the steering is light but provides plenty of feedback, the gearchange is slick and precise although the brakes are a bit sloppy. For the most part it goes about its business in a completely unfussed, unexciting way but get it on the right road and it can actually be quite fun. More surprising is that the ride isn't all that spectacular, the suspension's soft but it does tend to pitch about a bit and can occasionally thump over ridges and potholes. It's definitely not a patch on earlier Renaults in that regard.
So, plans? There's not much that really needs to be thought about, the crusty bits need sorting and a good rustproofing session will be had before winter. Otherwise the only mechanical malady so far identified is a dodgy thermostat, a replacement for which has been acquired. The overall plan is simply to keep the car in the condition we found it and hopefully get years of reliable service out of it.