Not been around for ages... Hello again all

[Eric]

Hi all,
Not logged in for a long time, I've still got the 406 and I can honestly say it's been fantastic.
In four years of ownership it's gone through four MOTs without needing any work and all I have spent in 4 years is a new indicator stalk and glowplugs/ glowplug relay.
Can't fault that really.

But I have decided to move on and got myself something a little more sprightly.
I picked up a Phase 1 Cliosport 172 with aluminium bonnet and shift light (quite rare)
It's modded and compared to the 406 an absolute animal hehe

I will be selling the 406 soon, might have to go for spares and repairs as it's got a very rough idle until it warms up.
I don't really have the cash or incentive to fix it as I have moved on now.

Still I will miss the 406, it's been brilliant!

My new toy

[lozz]

Hi mate.
Nice little car that,
ilove clios, its about the only car Renault made tho that ido like,
What year is the 406 ? is it d8 or d9.

[Eric]

It's a d9 1999 T-reg.
I think it was a crossover though because it's a GLX with no trip computer

[Welly]

Hello Eric mate!

That's good going to run a car for 4 years for less than a round of beers

Some 406's are like that though and just want for nothing, my 406 though........

I like the Clio, in fact the Clio in my eyes is one of the true sexless cars - it can be driven by males or females without any judgement whatsoever.

Cheers fella,

Welly

[Eric]

Hi Welly.
Yep the 406 has amazed my wife and myself that it's just been indestructible!
I had my last drive of it to take it to my sister who is buying it (at least it's staying in the family)
I'm sure it'll carry on for years and serve them very well like it has me.
My last drive in it was relaxed and pleasant as the car always has been - a very far cry from driving the Clio ;)
The Clio is an animal to drive hehe

I've nicknamed the Clio "Ball Breaker" because of the ride with lowered suspension and 17" wheels lol
It's going in today for some things to be sorted (some brakes would be nice) but the engine is smooth and pulls like a rabid fox in a forest fire
It's everything the 406 isn't, noisy, bumpy, aggressive and will probably break more often... but it's a lot of fun!
This week, original mirrors are arriving, next week the 17s are going and being replaced by standard size 15s and the tints are going.
Then it's just general tarting up needed.
It'll do 36-38 to the gallon without trying to hard (mid 20s round town with a bit of hard driving.)
The insurance with all mods declared is about the same as the 406
Tax is cheaper.

All in all though it's very tame at low revs in traffic but get the revs up and it transforms, above 4k all hell breaks loose.
Scared the crap out of me after driving the 406 for years hehe

[Eric]

Just an update.
The Clio is hopefully going today lol
I found I can't drive it into my work carpark because of speedbumps and pot holes so have to park in the local supermarket car park then lug my stuff on foot into the office.
The car is also full on, when I'm tired after a day at the office and just want to get home I have to deal with tramlining, rock hard suspension, torque steer and a vicious biting point and throttle.
Yes it's fast as hell and corners like it's on rails but it's just too full on, all the time.
Once I took the rose coloured specs off everything started to fall into place.

Hopefully going car shopping later today for something more relaxing and executive

[omega]

eric
dont feel bad
sometimes is good to have something that dosnt tick all the boxes where you have to but input in to get the best out its called driving and being alive because everytime you get out you have a big
my 406 is great its comfy,practical,good mpg and a great everyday car but its not a drivers car but 95% of the time it ticks all the boxes and for most people that will be fine,but i miss that 5 % which is why i have a 205 gti.

[sirwiggum]

That Clio looks like it would be a fun go-kart.
But like you said, day to day you need something comfy.
Nice weekend car, like the GTV was.

[STALLED]

I almost replaced the 406 with one of those (twas Monaco Blue) last year, before I went back to university. Kicking myself for not buying it. Such an awesome car.

Me thinks a nice 182 with low KM on the clock, could make a decent replacement for the old shed : )

[Eric]

Well I got my new car just over a week ago.
A beautiful 02 reg Mondeo Ghia X 2.5 V6
It's a joy to drive, fully loaded with every toy you could want (apart from parking sensors) and has a lovely growl!

Fuel consumption... erm... not as good as the 406 HDi lol
(It's also a lot worse than the Clio)
Shocked me a bit actually how fast that gauge goes down but when I hear that noise... the thought of costs tend to go to the back of my mind.

It handles very well for a big car (with the v6 it feels like a big car!) there is much better body control and steering feel than the 406 (not a patch on a lowered Clio with 17" wheels though!)
The only problem is the seats are leather and don't have as tight a fit as the 406 so your cornering speed is limited by how long you can stay in the drivers seat!
The brakes take a lot of getting used to... I thought 406 brakes were pretty bad but they at least have some servo assistance unlike the Mondy!
It's like standing on a plank of wood.
The seats are also weirdly shaped compared to the 406 (I always liked the 406 seats) with a strange shape that forces your shoulders back and your lower back forwards so you can't slouch.
Combine that with leather and I'm having to pull myself up in the seat a lot when driving because I keep sliding down towards the footwell lol

Even with those things it's still one of the nicest cars I have driven though and I look forward to being wafted to my destination with the growling V6 for musical accompaniment
Insurance is reasonable, lots of airbags, masses of room in the back and a boot as big as the 406 make it very practical.

It's not very fast, well after driving the Clio it's not (although it's hugely faster than the 110HDi!)
But it'll happily trundle along at 30mph in 5th all day and when it gets above 4k the engine just howls up to the redline... it's a beautiful noise!
I just don't look at the fuel computer when I do it, first time I did it 20 miles magically vaporised off the range on the computer!

The fuel bill... well at 24MPG with gentle driving... not great.
Still not sure how to inform the Mrs the first tank of fuel has gone in just over a week hehe

But still... what a car!

[Busman]

Had my eye on the diesel estate version. My thoughts being that there are so many as taxis they must be basicaly ok, otherwise taxi companies wouldnt touch them?

[Eric]

Had my eye on the diesel estate version. My thoughts being that there are so many as taxis they must be basicaly ok, otherwise taxi companies wouldnt touch them?

Same as 406's - I doubt Taxi companies would touch unreliable cars with a barge pole.
The Diesels do have some known weaknesses apparently (especially the TDCis) but they are supposed to be reliable as long as they are serviced religiously.
More complex engines than my old HDi I think so more to go wrong.

I went for the petrol V6 really because of it's famed reliability, it's a 15 year old design and in the Mk3 all known weaknesses were fixed so they are generally considered to be indestructible.
Obviously the downside is fuel costs hehe

I wouldn't say there are more problems with the Diesels because there are a lot more diesels on the roads than petrol V6s (Probably 1000-1) so obviously there will be more faults and more cars neglected.

[Busman]

If I could find one of the last mondeo 1.8 td engines with air con, that would be quite tempting. We have a v reg one at work. It seems bullet proof.

[kevtherev]

bloke who i work with has got one of them eric, with the auto box. he uses it for towing a wacking great caravan so i would hate to be watching his fuel guage if you only get 24mpg driving steady

[Eric]

bloke who i work with has got one of them eric, with the auto box. he uses it for towing a wacking great caravan so i would hate to be watching his fuel guage if you only get 24mpg driving steady

Especially with an auto!

Mind you the previous owner of mine did 1000 miles a week