What to look out for when buying a V6

[CoolAsLife]

Not sure if this is the right place for it but with the recent flood of people introducing themselves as potential buyers for a Vee, I thought I'd share my experience of buying my Ph1 two years ago and all the things I know now that I wish I had an eye for way back then.

1. Steering wheel - If its an original Ph1 wheel check for signs of blistering or perishing, if it has an aftermarket wheel (like mine), then it costs £250+ for a new replacement inc airbag

2. Air filter - Mine had a ghastly aftermarket induction kit where the pod fan is supposed to be. Not a nice set up like this LINK, but a real piece of crap:

New replacement OEM Ph1 airfilter including all ducting, mounting brackets etc: £900
New side pod fan £250

3. Undertrays - I was missing the rear undertray that shields the engine compartment. New £900 for the plastic section and £500 for the metal heat shield section. I sourced both (combined item) from a breaker for £200

4. Paintwork - Check all the panels match in colour and you don't need any bodywork done. Check for tell-tale signs of overspay. I found flecks of silver paint on the boot rubbers seals. It took a professional master detailer (Magpie), to point out that my Vee looked like a checkers board. I couldn't see it before and I went for a full respray (albeit a colour change) at £2600 labour and £500 materials

5. Bumpers - For the respray I needed new bumpers as the originals were cracked and badly repaired by the previous owner. OEM bumpers are £1700 (rear) and £880 (front). I got some repros from ebay for £250 each. Needed a bit of fiddling to get them to fit but an excellent alternative.

6. Boot carpet - does it have one? Mine didn't but having never inspected a Vee before how was I supposed to know? Got one from SG Motorsport

7. Toolkit and Jack - does it have one? Again mine didn't. New toolkit from Renault Parts Direct (RPD): £90 for the toolkit, £76 for the toolkit cover and straps

8. Brake calipers - not long after I had mine, the rear brake caliper seized up. A refrub for the rear pair (and respray) £150. Not sure how you inspect this whilst viewing a Vee

9. Brake discs - The rears on my were badly worn so a £398 on an RDP OEM special

10. Engine fault - I was plagued with a engine fault which sounded like coils but ended up being a faulty throttle body. Scott at SG did a great job and fixed it where the Renault main dealer just fumbled in the dark. Cost £500+ but it was covered under the trade seller warranty

11. Wheels - What are the condition of the wheels? If they are curbed or worse for wear, then a refurb will set you back about £350. I'm looking to get mine done by the WheelSpecialist

Listing it all out like that - I must have been wearing a blindfold when I bought the little Vee.

Anyway - I made some (stupid) mistakes and paid for them later. But I now have the motor I really wanted. Hope this helps any potential buyers out there when looking at Vees.

And maybe own owners can share their own "lessons learnt" experiences.

 

[Jamesv6]

Good write up Sir. :bow:

Would make a great addition to our Knowledge Base buying Guide.

 

[hny]

thanks for that danny . always a worry when buying a new car i will look out these things when i eventually find one :approve:

 

[Ben123]

Thanks for that Danny...I'm sure our searchers out there will really appreciate this...adding it to the KB as we speak.

Ben

 

[Dan-v6]

[smilie=icon_eek.gif]

 

[cleedubber]

Thanks for that Danny

I'm looking and hopefully have found the "one" for me

Great info, and a reminder of the costs if things do go wrong

 

[Ben123]

Info now added to our buyer's guide in the knowledge base :salut:

 

[Dan-v6]

Thanks for that Danny

I'm looking and hopefully have found the "one" for me

Come on...

 

[cleedubber]

Thanks for that Danny

I'm looking and hopefully have found the "one" for me

Come on...

Hopefully all in good time my dear man

 

[MrBlueSky]

Good honest list that is useful for current owners as much as potential buyers.
My front bumper had seen better days and I was quoted £1600 by dealer to replace & paint, so like you went with a £295 replacement from e-bay. Think it looks perfect.
Other unplanned expenses:
Front headlight unit that had broken adjuster and failed MOT alignment - nearly £500 - should have looked around for a s/hand one.
Sump pan - £175
Brakes - infrequent use and damp (Scottish) weather play havoc - seem to need new discs far too frequently. Thank goodness the Forum has advice on sourcing for reasonable prices.

 

[CoolAsLife]

Info now added to our buyer's guide in the knowledge base :salut:

Cheers Ben! Thanks for your input on detecting possible caliper problems. Wish I knew that a couple of years ago.

 

[hovlev]

Great advice

11. Wheels - What are the condition of the wheels? If they are curbed or worse for wear, then a refurb will set you back about £350. I'm looking to get mine done by the WheelSpecialist

If they're only curbed than it should be about 40-50 quid a wheel (all it's ever cost me)

 

[Duncan]

Nice one Danny, certainly puts into perspective the reality of what you get for your money.

I once wrote a buyers guide for PFC mag. May aswell post in here as additional help. I have updated things to 2013 prices:



Buying a Clio v6 can be a potential mine field, as many of the examples that come to market have been written off or have some history that is not obvious at first glance. Research is key and the best move you can make is to join v6clio.net as a full member and view the register to gain information on any cars you may be considering.

Condition and mileage determine the price of the car, immaculate standard cars demanding the highest premium. Cars which undergone serious modifications (such as respray, interior modification or engine work) typically proving harder to sell. Rarer i.d. colours available on the phase 2 v6 (such as acid yellow, liquid yellow, lunar grey etc) can fetch a premium over the standard colours. Factory fitted I.d. interior trims levels were again only available on the phase 2 are rare and have a level of interest, however history has proved that they generally doesn’t significantly affect value as the standard interior tends to be to more peoples tastes.

Rough price guide 2013:
Phase 1
Poor Condition 7-8k
Good Condition 8-10k
Excellent condition/Concourse/rare colour 10k+

Phase 2
Poor Condition 10-12k
Good Condition 13-15k
Excellent condition/Concourse, low mileage or rare colour 16k+
One off rare coloured 30k+

A HPI check is a must as so many of these are CAT-D or CAT-C right offs and this information isn’t always disclosed. The cars are easily written off after a crash due to the disproportionate cost of a repair (the price of panels is eye watering). However, expect to pay up to a few thousand less for a repaired CAT-D or CAT-C car.

Obvious signs of crash damage to look out for are, missing front D panel, miss matching shades of paint, a cracked front luggage storage tray and missing or mis-aligned front wheel arch liners. Panel gaps should be minimal and equal. Major misalignment or panels not on straight again hints at a repair or crash damage. Overspray around the bumper mesh may indicate repair or simply re-spray to remove stone chips.

Specifically on Phase ones, look for missing mesh behind the grilles in the front bumper & also in the side pods. There also should be a black rubber front splitter at the bottom of the bumper, however many are missing as it’s easy to catch this on the ground. It’s worth bearing in mind most pick up stone chips on the front bumper as they are very low & flat, and therefore re-sprayed front bumpers are common & not always a sign of damage.

Specifically on phase twos, the rear hatch is generally ever so slightly wonky. The gap between the hatch & bumper or hatch & rear light is generally larger one side than the other. However if the gaps are more than half a centimetre than this may suggest rear end damage. At the front, check the gap between the bonnet and the top of the Renault badge. This panel gap should be very small, a significant gap of more than a centimetre could point to damage of some sort.

A major weak spot on the cars is the gearbox, which should change into and out of each gear without crunching or whirring whilst in gear. Bear in mind that the gearboxes are quite noisy as they are located right behind the driver, but excess noise when in gear is a sign of a hard life and is a costly repair. Specially look for this in 4th gear as this is a known weakness. Reluctance to engage gear is usually a sign that gearbox oil needs replacing or the incorrect oil has been used. If the gearbox whirs when in gear, this can indicate a costly replacement or rebuild is needed.
At certain low RPM in first or second gear (generally at less than 10mph) the exhaust heat shield can rattle. This is a design issue and not a sign of any problem with the car.

Modifications
Generally, a standard OEM example will command more money than a modified example, however, some modifications are very desirable and can prove decent value. It is worth ensuring cars which have been modified come with the original standard parts as they are not easy or cheap to come across. Most cars that come up for sale advertised as standard do actually have modifications, especially the phase ones so don’t take written as gospel.
The standard exhausts rust quickly in English weather and therefore a higher quality stainless steel back box is a common upgrade to improve looks and sound. However, the standard boxes can be easily polished back to former glory.
Aftermarket seats are a common upgrade as the standard seats offer little support and are extremley heavy. Recaro treadlines in a mk2 are generally considered an OEM+ modification and add value to the car.
KW V3 suspension is considered a desirable modification to both phase one and phase one cars and can improve the handlings characteristics of the car.
On a phase one car, a phase two rear sub frame and gearbox are beneficial upgrades as these will improve the handling and acceleration respectively. Some of the very last phase ones had both these fitted new from the factory.
Minor modifications to the engine such as an aftermarket air filter (typically pipercross viper or BMC) can improve airflow and be simpler/cheaper to service.

Service History
The cambelt should be changed every 5 years regardless of mileage so all V6s should have this done at least once by now. This is a circa 1k job to do so asking when it was last done is a must ask question. Good & consistent service history is key. Due to its bespoke nature, many owners prefer to take the car to a specialist such as Carlton Garage or SG Motorsport over a Renault main dealer so a full main dealer history does not command the same premium as it may with other marques.

The Clio V6 is one of the cars that people buy just to experience for a few months and sell on, so a high number of owners can be typical. It’s not uncommon for a car to have at least one owner per year, so don’t get put off, buy on condition & service history. However, of course low number of owners will make it more saleable.

Other items to look out for:

- Alpine 6 Disc Changer, On a phase 1 this is located under the driver’s seat & under the passenger’s seat on a phase 2.
- Tyre Foam, there should be 2 cans of Tyre foam located under the driver’s seat wrapped up in a foam surround.
- Tool Kit, in both models, in the rear hatch on the left hand side there should be a black tool kit held in by Velcro straps. This includes a jack, locking wheel nut & hex tool to remove wheels.
- Luggage net, there should be a luggage net located on the shelf behind the seats. This has gone missing on some cars and is not easy to source nor cheap.
- Front luggage tray, its relatively common for these to crack in the top right corner around the Dzus fastener if overloaded (or vehicle is involved in a front end crash). These are circa £3-400 new from Renault, so a worthy bartering tool if this is cracked.
- Cars which have been stored in a barn can be susceptible to damage from mice. It has been known for mice to eat the foam surrounding the aircon pipes in the front bay, the rear engine carpets, sound proofing around the engine bay or the under bonnet insulation.
- Uneven tyre wear, front end feeling light at speed or feeling like the car is driving on ice – The cars are extremely sensitive to geometry, wheel alignment and tyre pressures, first check the correct pressures are in the tyres, then 4 wheel laser alignment is the next recommended option.
- Aircon not working – May simply require a regas if has not be used in a while. However its worth knowing that the pipes run along the underside of the car and are vulnerable to corrosion/damage. This can be very costly to fix.
- A judder or vibration back through the brake pedal can be an indicator that there is a fault with the ABS.
- Misaligned exhaust pipes, the exhausts can be tricky to get straight and is often found even when someone puts an aftermarket exhaust on, this can be corrected. Extreme misalignment may indicate previous rear end damage.
- Corroded alloy wheels – typically found when acid based wheel cleaners have been used & any kerbing/scuff marks on wheels. The original wheel finish is extremely hard to match and a wheel refurb for all four wheels would typically be needed.
- Smoke out of the exhaust pipes, minor white smoke on cold start is completely normal, anything more than minor could point to something serious.

Plaque numbers.

This is a vast subject which ultimately doesn’t affect the value of the car, but is of interest to many.

Phase 1
A plaque with an individual number was fitted at production in Sweeden by TWR. No record of plaque number against VIN was kept.
The cars officially imported by Renault UK had these plaques removed and replaced by a new UK plaque number between 1-500 based upon order number in que. No record of the original factory fitted plaque number was kept. The cars were also fitted with a tracker (RAC Trackstar) and glass was etched.
Some RHD Cars were also imported via other channels (such as dealer direct). These cars still have the factory fitted plaques (typically numbered between 700-1616 – however generally 1000+) and were not fitted with a tracker from new.
There are therefore cars in other countries, which may appear to have duplicate numbered plaques to the UK cars, but the explanation is that the non UK cars still have their original factory fitted plaque.

A number of the plaques removed from the cars imported by Renault UK started to appear for sale on eBay in 2011. These were typically numbered between 500-900 and could be used to disguise a cars history, however it is not known of any of these plaques actually being used on any cars.

Renault UK plaques are held in with 2 bolts either side of the number in the horizontal plane.
Original factory plaques are held in place with 4 bolts, one in each corner

Some early cars are missing plaques completely. They may have been supplied this way (press cars) or of been removed by previous owners.

There were also approx. 10 cars auctioned off by TWR when they folded. These cars had no plaque and also were a mixture of cars made after production from the large amount of spare parts left over and development cars which were not completed to final spec.

Phase 2

Same situation with RUK removing the original plaques when imported and placing a new one. However, plaque numbers were allocated based upon delivery order to client, not place in order que.
The last car delivered was the one and only UK moonlight blue #354.
Renault UK plaques are stuck in place with no bolts through the plaque. Plaque states the car is a 255 model.
Original factory plaques are held in place with 4 bolts, one in each corner. Plaque confirms the car is a phase 2.


Armed with this information, you should be able to pick yourself a prime example of a rare, exotic and exciting car to own.

 

[mullz]

loads of good info there. many thanks

 

[ColinG]

Great write up and information danny! :approve:

 

[CoolAsLife]

Thanks Duncan for your write up! :bow: Very interesting read and lots of useful tips.

On reflection my Vee has been a bit of a money pit and I learnt the hard way. Smile per miles though has more than made up for it.

If this thread can enable a buyer to haggle a better deal because they know what to look out for...then our work is done here...

 

[cleedubber]

What a great thread

Many thanks for that write up Duncan , invaluable advice

[cmilie=iconcheers.gif]

 

[Conlon]

Good write up, I joined last year looking for one but still to no avail. I did spend a bit of my budget though towards the back end of the year iolin:

Searching again now

 

[johnler]

Reading through this old thread is a very interesting read and should be made aware to all new members thinking of buying, there is some great advice on here and thing to look out for, the only thing I will say is the panel gaps where massive from factor spec , and I mean big a lot larger than any other car I have come across and I've been through a fair few, this it the first I've come across where they have got away with these sizes , bonnet to wing tops are fine door to front wings are large but this is dou to the gap needed for the door to clear the wing when opening the doors, I've adjusted all mine to the max and found I had to move some bigger than I would like as panels can they be made to catch, I'm very fussy and I can say the gaps are the only problem I've come across and there is very little adjustment for lining the panel gaps up, many on the ph1 as these where not nodded and some of the panels drop over time , ph2 should be spot on but remember these cars where hand built and only as good as the guy who put them together, I had a friend that bought a brad new ph2 when they cam out and didn't buy the ph1 because he saw this as the trail car and thought any problem with he car would have been smoothed out , but when he got the call that the car had arrived he took me to see it with him and so I could drive his car back, but we where both shocked to see the panel lines on the car and as much as he loved it he couldn't accept it, the dealer had new panel deliver but it turned out the rear 1/4 was the panel in trouble and in the end renomsaid they where sending it back and he would need to wait another 12 weeks if he didn't accept the car as it was, so in the end the dealers body shop cut away the rear 1/4 and refitted a new one, so the is someone out there with a LY that has had a new rear 1/4 on there car before it was register on the road, he sold t with around 3,000 miles on it,


Please read others advice at the beginning of this thread it is valuable to any new owner to be :race: