View Full Version : The most unreliable car I have ever owned...
... is my Clio Williams... much as I love it.
Who else like me has absolutely no faith in their car despite how much money they throw at it (waste more like...)?
Yup, i've spent far more then i initially spent on the car on repairs to the ****er
Aye im up to er.... 3.5k so far! :(
But its all part of the fun eh?
ditto, spent £6'800 to be exact on repairs... well, some of it was mods, little over a grand, rest is the car being a pile of poo and breaking on me... constantly!!! GRRRRR!!!! :evil:
It used to upset me, but it's beyond that, not it's making me rage
KingStromba
12-05-2005, 12:27
No i dont agree. I spend alot because i want it as new. Alot of the stuff ive done to the williams, would be left as a minor inconvenience on a lesser car. I had loads of probs on my Volvo, but i just left them to fester. On a Williams you have to fix things that would normalyy be left.
Ie
Engine rebuild - Not necessary
New claipers - Not necessary
New tyres - Not necessary
New track rods - Not necessary
New Supension - Not necessary
New springs - Not necessary
None are MOT failures. Just spend to keep it in tip top condition.
Just as i will get a new gearbox when i have the spare cash.
Swervin_Mervin
12-05-2005, 12:28
Mine's been dead reliable.
Just a few things that needed to be replaced that I knew when I bought it, and the crash damage.
The rest is TLC.
I've replaced the whole car with 1.5 years of owning it... think I'm gonna go Jap
FlamingMonkey
12-05-2005, 12:53
Is it playing up again Jon?
yeah, something's catching now on the drivers side wheel. it's prolly just minor, but after all the money I have wasted on it i'm getting sick of it now. After FCS i'm gonna start looking at some other cars... nothing deffinite, but I seriously think getting rid will be the best thing I can do... :cry:
I'll get this fixed and it will be something else... it's really annoying me now, 4 months it's spent off the road since owning. Unacceptable really to most peolpe. Think I have done well to stick with it for this long tbh.
Swervin_Mervin
12-05-2005, 13:00
Sometimes it can just be a jinxed example I reckon. I had a BX DTR estate off my mum as my first car.
Something always went wrong when I drove it but never did when anyone else drove it.
The final straw was the n/s front tyre coming off the rim at 90 on the m-way.
Pulled over and a blizzard started, I was on my way to my mates to go out and we were late.
I got rid after that.
It depends on how the previous owners have treated the car IMO. I made sure that the Williams I bought was owned by an enthusiast who would've kept oil levels topped up and changed every 3k. Also the engine had been rebuilt by Nick Hill and with his reputation that was enough for me. I never let the oil level drop below half and always use fully synthetic, never take her over 2.5k until the oil is at the optimum temp (around 100 on mine) and change it every 3k, but even so things could still go wrong, fingers crossed it doesn't
Sorry to hear about your car jesus, I've had cars in the past where it's one thing after another, really disheartens you in the end (not to mention skint you!!) Ever thought about getting a new engine instead of throwing endless amounts of money at the current one, could work out better in the long run??
KingStromba
12-05-2005, 13:01
Surely thats part of the fun with these cars?
People dont look and stare at new cars cos any wanker can buy one. Old cars command respect to the enthusiast because people know the time and money that go into them.
Ive just bought track rods, track rod ends. In the garage i noticed a few other things i need. Always the way.
Lol he already has had a new engine :)
Yea i think im jinxed cos 3.5k in 4 months of owning it is pretty bad!
Its costing a fortune, yea fair enough some bits are to get it perfect, but then again if the car wasnt as bad as it can be at times it wouldnt cost so much to get it right would it? Mines been looked after maticolusly! but i still have had my fair share of problems, as with everyone else.
KingStromba
12-05-2005, 13:07
Your now paying for all the abuse the previous owner gave the car when he first got it, much like you see ass holes with 182's who thrash them and sell them on.
Go through this dark period of replacing worn parts and youll eventually have a new car :D
FlamingMonkey
12-05-2005, 13:09
I've had no headaches with my car so far touch wood, just mainly comsumables like pads disks, tyres etc, all the other cash I've spent is on improving it, paint, refurb etc.
It's the most reliable car i have had, my valver was like your Willy jon, always in the garage for something, strange thing is I still came back for more when I bought the Willy, but luckily I've had zero serious problems.
LOL Jesus has pretty much a new car and is still having problems though! Dont get me wrong im not complaining it just gets you down at times. But then when shes running right and the attention you get when its perfect, mmmmm you cant beat it! So theres no way im getting shut of it any time soon, unless it catches fire since the only item i didnt replace on the car was the rusty fuel lines! hehe
Rudders16v
12-05-2005, 13:16
Renaults aren't exactly renowned for being the most reliable of cars, but i must admit, i've had no problems with my Williams like i was expecting. After my 19 constantly being in the garage, i was expecting even more problems with the Clio, but so far, only one rubber bush had needed replacing, and even then it was only making a slight creaking noise, everything else i've replaced has simply been because i felt it would be better to be replaced rather than needing to be.
Believe me, your time of trouble free motoring is probably just around the corner...........
I have a horrible feeling that buying one of these cars secondhand remains a bit of a lottery, apart from all the usual checks, it is practically impossible to tell how well a previous owner has maintained the car.
Unlike KS, Jon like me has shelled out on essentials, whilst to some this is a labour of " LOVE " it's no joke and I can fully sympathise. I have always looked upon JAP cars as sanitised high tech and frankly a little bland...where as the French cars in general have that little bit of " Je ne sais quoi "
I am not sure that the Williams makes a great everyday car in the true sense of the word, high running costs, both parts and consumables ie..petrol, etc unless you are lucky to own two KS. Jap cars are reliable as a rule. Jon I would consider your options...will you recoup what you have spent ? if not is worth keeping....f*****g dilemma..I like you am feeling :?
I use my car every day to get to work and home again so it has to be reliable, it would be great if I could use her as a second car, just can't afford to do that! I'd hate to be in Jesus shoes, I'd have to get rid and get something more reliable, as much as I love the williams...
Rudders16v
12-05-2005, 13:24
Yeah i'd have to get rid of the Williams to if it became unreliable, sadly i have mine as my 2nd car to use for work etc, so to replace it with a 3rd car to save on usage would defeat the object of having it. Although Jap cars are generally more reliable, the servicing costs and replacement parts can be many more times the prices for the Clio though, something to bear in mind!
like Wez says, I have replaced pretty much everything on the car, engine, suspension, brakes have all been replaced. Even went as far as getting things like brand new starter motors and alty's, calipers etc... you know, to be on the safe side, but fix one problem another one appears... always major too, cant understand it. If it has to break it's usually something major that will keep it off the road for a while. The only problem I'm faced with really is due to the type of person I am, there's no chance I can get something shite and live with it, so I'll have to get another performance vehicle... which for the budget I'd spend only leaves 3 cars... Evo, Scooby (non UK shitness tho) or a Celica GT4... possibly an M3 non evo... thing is they all lack character when directly compared with the Williams and will not be as fun... plus with mine being tuned the performance jump will only be slight if at all in the case of the Scooby or GT4...
that's the thing Nick, it owes me money, but I'm realistic and now I'll never see it back again... that doesn't really bother me, it's what's going to break next, which part and how much is it going to cost... :( It's proper doing my head in tho! lol
snakeylady
12-05-2005, 13:41
Have to say I've found it to be one of the most reliable cars I've owned given the age and milage [145K] - only things gone wrong are to be expected [brake pads-clutch cable-steering rack possibly-making strange noise] she gets used every day for work. I suspect it is down to how they are looked after initially and luck - really sorry to hear of your problems but have to say I agree Jap is the way to go if all else fails - a nice skyline would ease the pain.
hehe, yeah, Skyline is my dream car... not a great aspiration I know, most people would prefer a Ferrari, but a nice R34 would deffo ease the pain.
Car's I want to test are:
Celica GT4 (ST205)
Mitsi Evo 2, 3 and 3RS
Subaru Impreza STI/Spec C
M3 non evo
Integrale would be on the list, but overpriced and from all accounts unreliable and desperately need to be tuned.
im sure its just a cover which is catching mate...get it back to that garage and they will fix it for free. when a engine comes out there will always be teething issues after.
god knows what it is, i'll phone him this afternoon and get it booked it to be looked at... hopefully just something minor.
teething troubles??? hmm, remember when I spent about £3k on it in one go and we said "yeah, nothing else could possibly go wrong now"... it's one of those cars that listens and knows... then f***s you in the ass when yer not looking...
eeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwww! Dont want to be picturing you being f**ked in the arse with a big blue willy!
my mate spent over 1k on 0062 in the last month he owned it... luckily we already had a gentlemen's agreement on the price 8)
KingStromba
12-05-2005, 14:22
I wouldnt think twice about spending 300-400 a month on my Williams.
Renew and replace thats what i say.
I wouldnt think twice about spending 300-400 a month on my Williams.
Renew and replace thats what i say.
Your lucky then, I can't afford or justify that kind of outgoing, if your single with low overheads then maybe...I'm not, incidentally thats more than my mortgage each month :shock:
KingStromba
12-05-2005, 15:09
I dont get out much and i dont drink, so i have nothing better to spend my money on.
Also i cycle to work so the £50 most people spend on fuel a week i can spend on my car.
I really couldn't justify spending that much a Month on the willy, as much as I'd love to I just couldn't afford to unless I won the lottery and then I'd spend 20k and have the whole car rebuilt!!! Or buy 0001 from the Williams museum...
£300-400 a month is excessive, I could understand if it was a top quality motor like an R34... end of the day it's a Renault... a Clio at that.
KingStromba
12-05-2005, 16:07
I dont like big cars. If i had the money for a Ferrari i would still drive my Clio.
I didnt buy it because i couldnt afford anything else, i bought it because it was a boyhood dream, and i will own it until it dies.
that was also my plan... thing is it seems intent on dying regarless of the life saving surgery I keep paying for :cry: LOL
KingStromba
12-05-2005, 16:36
If you get a jap car youll have to go and hang out with loads of turbo tuning knob heads :wink:
nah, i'll hang out with you knob heads instead! m8's are m8's, dont matter what car they own to me... I'm getting very tempted by an Evo 2 or 3 RS tho Rob... :?
My loyalty on the Williams is becoming divided!
Well, I've spent £625 on my Williams since I bought it 3 months ago. And I've still got to put four tyres on it, get the tracking done, and change the oil and filter.
But then I did buy one which had been a bit neglected :roll:
I don't want to advocate the sale of your Williams Jesus, but I had a 205 GTi that was a money pit as well - selling it was the best thing I ever did with it!
lagerlout1
12-05-2005, 17:28
I understand the heartache, but you can't expect to buy a ten + year old car (especially a Renault!!) and have it as a daily driver without spending a steady flow of cash on it. Although it sounds as though you've been a bit unlucky with yours Jesus. You could have bought two for the money you've spent!! :shock:
nah, i'll hang out with you knob heads instead! m8's are m8's, dont matter what car they own to me... I'm getting very tempted by an Evo 2 or 3 RS tho Rob... :?
My loyalty on the Williams is becoming divided!
I know what you mean Jon! Now the banana is playing up I'm seriously considering going jap...I had enough hassle with the williams for a lifetime of cars!
I understand the heartache, but you can't expect to buy a ten + year old car (especially a Renault!!) and have it as a daily driver without spending a steady flow of cash on it. Although it sounds as though you've been a bit unlucky with yours Jesus. You could have bought two for the money you've spent!! :shock:
exactly, STEADY being the key word... unfortunately nothing steady about it. I did know it would have problems, but not like it has...
yeah we aint the luckiest when it comes to Clio ownership Martin! lol
i've decided i'm deffo getting rid after summer :oops:
I think it's also down to how much the car is thrashed, if it's consistently cained then problems are bound to appear, I anticpate big costs with mine cos I drive it like I'm in a rally every day to work, but I suppose that's what it was designed for!!!
people that know me know I'm pretty careful, I let the oil get upto at least 60 degrees before the foot goes down. usually I just drive quickly, main abuse the car will get from me is tyres from the 6-7 RA's I have to negotiate to get to work. lol
KingStromba
12-05-2005, 17:56
One of the things i do do, is drive very slowly putting the car under as little strain as possible, if i know i have a problem.
Right now i have play in both front wheels due to worn track rods. I could cane it, but i feel if i do i will just put other parts under stress. As you have a noise from the front wheels use the car as little as possible and drive SLOWLY, until you know whats up.
Alot of the probs you see on these cars have knock on effects.
My car stands me at over 10k ....which still makes it a cheap 182 eater :wink:....but dawn expensive valver
Still not got 100% faith in it :roll:
snakeylady
13-05-2005, 07:47
Jesus I was looking Jap before getting the willy - test drove an import GT4 had her up to 140 along the A14 in a heartbeat - the gearbox is to die for altho she didn't feel that fast until you got the revs up - if you want to know about Jap speak to James [daughters b/f] whos coming to FCS he's a commited JAphead and can tell you the ins and outs of everything Jap - my dream car if i had the money would defo be skyline top of the list
After speaking to martin last night and after hearing what jon's got to say, these clio's are great cars, there is no disputing the fact but, if you've spent nearly as much on it as say you would on an EVO and it's still going wrong...then for me, i'd go for a change of car, but would love to still keep the clio for track days!
hmmmm....it a bit hit n miss this
iv had 2 clios over 5 years, a valver for 2 years and the willy for 3.
the valver had a head gasket go after about 3 months of ownership...2 years later the only other thing that needed replacing was the clutch.
rest spent on it were brakes.1 set of tyres and a mods
willy iv had 3 years..has received abuse more or less evry day since hehe
so far..zorst n cat , shocks and clutch have been the cars main failures, could have just replaced these items for std jobbies, but my motto is if its broke......uprate it
the engine rebuild and engine didnt need doing at all, but i did it for me not the car lol
all up .with buying the car, all mods n spares accumalated iv got bout £8 grand in mine, in 3 years
very reliable IMO......but i have been in the same situation as u jon with the minis lol...which is why i have spent over 20k on the little fukkers lol and also 1 of the reasons why 1 of ems bin stood idol in the garage for over 7 years ....... and i moved onto summat a bit more reliable...not as much fun..but it enabled me to save a bit of cash n get my other teenage dream...the willy
couple years boring/reliable car ownership n ul be able to afford ur skyline hehe..........i hear gaz had a corrolla for sale lmfao
Mooseman
16-05-2005, 13:56
my mate spent over 1k on 0062 in the last month he owned it... luckily we already had a gentlemen's agreement on the price 8)
Yeah 500 planned spend, 500 unplanned - when you are driving along happy that there should be no problems for about 6 months, literally days after a major service, and the gearbox suddenly starts chattering and vibrating at an alarming rate, you know its going to be a bad day :shock:
0062 caused me some serious financial problems, including two clutchs in two years due to a ruptured oil liner in the gearbox. But when things were running the way they should, (prob 80% of the time), my definition of fun would be rolling into a suitable r/a at about 60 and performing a scandavian flick and smiling from ear to ear ... :lol:
Don't worry Jan, your visit to the garage that results in complete financial ruin will happen soon enough, haha! :wink:
with mine being tuned the performance jump will only be slight if at all in the case of the Scooby or GT4...
Thought about getting a GTI-R ?, they look pig ugly but go like rockets for a simple boost tweak, these are on my hot list for a next car.... just look at the 1/4 mile times for 1 bar of boost :D
not really into em mate, I respect the fact they are rapid, but prices on parts and labour aint cheap on them, also reliability aint too good I heard as well.
to put things in perspective 2 lives car does a 14.0 standing 1/4 mile, but on the road is as fast as most 280bhp Evo's and Scooby's upto a point, so an Evo seems the obvious choice for all round ability and can be tuned cheaply and easily to over 300bhp :D
KingStromba
17-05-2005, 17:28
GTI-Rs are slow pieces of wank. 0-60 in 6.5 secs isnt that great.
not really into em mate, I respect the fact they are rapid, but prices on parts and labour aint cheap on them, also reliability aint too good I heard as well.
to put things in perspective 2 lives car does a 14.0 standing 1/4 mile, but on the road is as fast as most 280bhp Evo's and Scooby's upto a point, so an Evo seems the obvious choice for all round ability and can be tuned cheaply and easily to over 300bhp :D
yeah youre right about the GTIR on prices, quite reliable mainly - but the gearbox has trouble coping with power. dont know where Stromba got 0-60 in 6.5sec? (even on std boost its better than that!) a gtir with a bar of boost would kane that time......
in that case if you can get an evo, go 4 it, im only 21- so ive got 4 yrs to wait untill someone will insure me ! :? but i will have one, oh yes :twisted:
KingStromba
17-05-2005, 18:57
Find me a standard GTI-R (no filter or exhaust as these arnt standard items).
When youve found it we can talk standard times. :wink:
Rob, most GTI-R times I have seen are in the 5's... 6.5 is prolly for a tired and abused example...
KingStromba
17-05-2005, 19:44
Has anyone ever seen a completely standard Pulsar? Ive been looking to buy one for nearly 10 years now and ive never seen a decent standard one. If i had, i would have bought it.
Noooooo way was it 5.5 to 60. Just as a standard scooby wont get to 60 in 5.5, neither will a Pulsar / GTI-R.
Standard, both a UK classic shape scoob and a Pulsar are low 6's.
I remember the pulsar thread on cs ..LOL Having seen a few at york I'd be inclined to say I reckon they could do sub 6 sec 0-60...standard
KingStromba
17-05-2005, 19:54
But have you ever seen a standard one?
I have not.
well no....but I've never seen a (almost :wink: ) stnd clio williams outrun a Honda Nsx down a welsh b-road either....does'nt mean it did'nt/does'nt happen! :P
KingStromba
17-05-2005, 19:57
Not many standard turbo cars turn up for a 1/4 miles race do they?
But they way they leave fwd cars for standing in the first 30-40 ft show that they have got to be very quick to 60 even with 225 bhp as opposed to the 250+ of the tuned cars....
KingStromba
17-05-2005, 20:14
So how does everyone know a standard pulsar will do 5.5 to 60 when no one has seen one?
scotte666
17-05-2005, 20:15
nissan book times for standard ones were 5.6 /5.7 i think
cant believe yous have spent thousands on your williams's, ive had mine for over 2 years and the only things ive replaced are, alternator, clutch cable, front discs/pads, tyres and a few other daft wee things, ive only put 13k m ioes on it right enough, touch wood!
Tony
Yes, there are also some that run like clockwork too. Like Stromba's (though his parts replacement bill alone can probably buy another Williams) and mine. Think I average something like 200+pounds/year on repairs and about the same amount on normal maintanence. Am sure there are others with good reliability stories as well.
Good car sympathy and regular maintenance goes a long way in the Williams. Though, it would seem from this thread, luck also plays a big part.
like i said before.the first 2 years of williams ownership would have cost me an exhaust and a pair of front springs....its the uprated items that i bought that cost the little extra, and the new engine and rebuild wasnt needed...just fancied a change lol
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