Comments on: 2008 Renault Clio RS197 Review

By: LukasUtopia

LukasUtopia — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 01:35:11 +0000

If this car was $5,000 less, it would be the best sports car in Australia for it’s price. But still, if you have the dosh then this would be very unique in Australia and be praised by any car enthusiast.

By: James Cortez

James Cortez — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 10:04:34 +0000

36 K? way way overpriced Renault. More than XR turbo which has heaps more torque and more power not to mention dealer network.

You are damn greedy renault and I hoep this backfires on you!!

By: numb1er

numb1er — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 04:01:30 +0000

Ford Fiesta XR4. Looks a whole lot better, power wise the clio has more but why do you need it for you can only do 110km/h in OZ anyways. Handles just as good, and a lot cheaper!

By: jav

jav — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 03:40:41 +0000

At the moment you can get a Golf GTI (which I believe is a much more classy and better car overall than the Clio which I also love) for under $39000 drive away, which is cheaper than the Renault’s drive away price so you have to be mental to pass the GTI.
Hey Renault, if you want to get good sales for the Clio sport in this country, it has to be around 10K cheaper than the GTI!

By: Paul

Paul — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 00:35:05 +0000

Having driven a Clio 172 for over 5 years and loved every minute of it I found the trade in value against the 197 pretty good ($14000).

As for price it’s cheaper to get into the 197 than a type R and Mini Cooper S.

Anyone who has driven a 197 will know that there are few cars around that make you smile when you push it hard, okay there are other cars some faster some slower but in terms of overal blend the Clio, in my opinion, gets it right.

And if things go wrong I want all the airbags and safety features I can get.

Depreciation is a fact of life so take my advice buy for the longer term and you won’t feel the squeeze so bad. If you trade in within 3 years you are usually in for a bit of a hit. Also talk to your accountant and try and get some of it back in your tax

The Clio helps here because you will not get bored driving it, the only other car that gave me so much fun was the Renault 5 GT Turbo (It’s still running). Don’t get me wrong I have driven Cosworths, GTi’s and WRX,s and found them great cars so I’m trying to be objective.

So take you choice I’ve got a 197 and am over the moon with it.

By: Joober

Joober — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 12:29:55 +0000

“Someone stated this is competing against the Mini Cooper S.” let alone a stronger heritage, people are more aware of which helps entice.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 11:48:13 +0000

Well, I bought one and yes it is a bit expensive, but while I could have bought a WRX hatch, Civic Type R or Falcon XR6 for similar money, I decided I just didn’t want those cars, I wanted the Clio. And I’m very happy with it. Handles well, is comfortable and the brakes are fabulous.
Just a shame it’ll depreciate as quickly as the Alfa Romeo 147 GTA it replaced, but then again depreciation is pretty savage on most cars these days.

By: Macca

Macca — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 11:03:33 +0000

I have ordered a 197 with xenons and just waiting for it to arrive. I currently own a clio 172 and was looking for a replacement for a good few months. I drove the Civic Type R, Golf GTI, Megane 225, XR5 and the 197.
My short list was the GTI, XR5 and 197.

To me, the GTI was too boring in the looks department. Plus they’re everywhere! I didn’t like the tartan seats and adding leather and xenons (the only spec I would buy one in) pushes the price up $5k.

The XR5 was a great drive and the new design is nice. If the 197 hadn’t come out, I probably would have gone with the XR5. But just doesn’t feel as much fun as the 197.

I liked the 197 the best and went with it. The review is spot on in saying how fun it is within the legal limits.
The GTI and XR5 it felt like you had to be flying over the speed limit to enjoy them.

For me, I was looking for cars at the $40k mark and the clio had everything I wanted. Can’t wait to get it!

By: PoisonEagle

PoisonEagle — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 06:33:59 +0000

Have any of you people saying it’s punching above it’s weight price-wise driven one? I have and it embarrases alot of cars around corners, and for sheer fun . Well worth the price- add a turbocharger, full leather, and limited slip diff I would be in one in a flash!

By: 2ndeffort

2ndeffort — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 02:09:02 +0000

I think the Renault depreciation might be a sign of the times. When times are tough I guess that the enthusiast cars will probably be the 1st ones hit. The 197 is a great car and I accept that comparisons with bigger cars like Golf, XR5 etc are probably unfair. Renault themselves though do point out that this Clio is bigger and more refined than the earlier Clios, in fact at the dealership they had a 197 parked next to a Megane and it wasnt much smaller. It was definately bigger than my 182, you could almost fit adults in the back!!!

If the Clio is to be judged against the likes of the Polo and the Mini then I would take into consideration that the Mini, whilst more expensive to begin with, is probably going to hold its value a lot better in the long run. The Polo, at this stage would be a crazy buy brand new as a new model is just around the corner, same with the Golf.

If you are worried about the Polos not dropping in value, ring somebody up and make them a low ball offer, you never know they might be like me and willing to drop their price a fair bit.