Renault - Good / Bad

[flash555]

Hi all

As you may know - I am getting closer to buying a 172 (or Cup), and have been browsing the boards for as much info as I can find.

The general opinion seems to be that there is a big question mark over build quality, reliability and most of all Service from Dealers / Renault Garages.

Is this the actual picture, or is it a case of if you have no bad opinions there is no point posting (If you get what I am saying!)?

I had a renault before - but it was a cheap and nasty basic 19 (And no dis-respect to any 19 owners - the one I got was literally cheap and nast and to fill a short ownership gap)

So I guess the question is - what is the real life - balanced opinion of Renault owners?

Cheers for your time

Flash

 

[Guilbert]

Well i dont own a 172 or anything fancy like that, but my little 1.2 clio hasnt really ever let me down. It has only had a few things go wrong with it most of which were tiny and only needed a quick new part. Most recently the clutch went, but thats not to say yours would. This was covered on my warranty too which was good.

I think it all depends on the individual dealer. Mine are excellent generally (and rather tasty girls too!), always very helpful.

As for build quality then they are not the quietest cars in the world, you get squeaks, rattles, whistling etc but the fun you will have in the car far out ways all of this. Plus you could do what i did and fit a very loud stereo which drowns all those noises out! (that works good for noisy GFs too!).

But since being a clio owner, i have no real major complaints with them at all.

 

[paddymph]

its a fact that people tend to only post when theyre unhappy.

but facts are reno are useless. think they were 4th from bottom in this years JD power survey.

most 172/182/Cups will have to go in for warranty work at some point. There are recognised faults that reno cant/wont fix.

Dealers are unknowledgable, arrogant and totally unprofessional.

 

[royalsgoingup]

to be fair it depends which dealer you go to although i have had tremendous problems and countless issues with one another 10mins down th eroad seem to be very good. So with regards to the dealer i gues you need to find opinions from your area.



build quality isnt going to be audi/bmw standards but with most carsits very liveable you may have theodd squeek and rattle but its ok. It depends on the car as in the other thread i have had countless problems with my car but equally i know people who have had years of trouble free motoring so this can tbe judged. even after my experience i would definately suggest you buying on of the above mentioned cars there is nothing out there that really competes at the price so you cant reall go wrong.

Did i mention mine may be up for slae

 

[George16v]

Well I have had 5 Clios now, and all of them have had nigling problems, But nothing major. Once you get these little problems soughted they are fine..

I have done 22k in my current 172 and it has been brilliant, My Mate bought a 1.8 gti golf at the same time as I got my clio and he has had more trouble than me, Just think it is diferent for every car. My 172 is silent on the road apart from Engine / Exhaust noise - No rattles what so ever, However my Cup was mega rattly / Squeeky. Depends completely on the car in my opinion - You either get a good one or a bad one..

 

[flash555]

I would have been very surprised if you had of told me yours was a pile of shiiiite George

 

[George16v]

Lol - Well I do think the older models are better build quality mate - they were a £16500 when they first came out. The newer models are much less. I mean I bought the Cup for 12500 and it was only 4 Months old. I think I am right in saying that Renault Sport Clios are built in a different factory to normal clios too - Someone correct me if Im wrong.

 

[Toypop]

I had two 1.2 16vs and they were flawless with the exception of rattles.

My friend got a 1.2 and it has been in and out of the dealers a good half dozen times in its first two years.

My 182 broke down before delivery and had to go back a few days after delivery to get stuff sorted. This was for damage caused by the dealer. Oh and it rattles.

I dont buy into this theory that people only post about problems. This is a club for Clio owners so the members are not just people with faults. I guess most joined as I did when they were thinking about buying a car. So you have a wide range of people using these forums yet very few can say that they havent had a problem.

 

[Grandad]

Had my 182 a couple of weeks now, no problems, no rattles, just fun. Its a 13 grand car with lots of equipment and performance, you can expect niggles to sort, but most of us are OK. Ran a 1.4 early Clio for 7 years with very few problems. Theres always the odd rogue with any make, just hope you dont get one. VWs are not specially reliable or well built, just well advertised.

 

[Matt16v]

I blew the engine up in my mk 1 1.4rt and the 16v has had a clutch, the fuel pumps knackered and almost impossible to replace. Electrics are always going on the blink on both cars and overall build quaility isnt exactly Toyota.

BUT - you have to remember, these cars arent expensive so it would almost be rude to expect high build quaility.

My question to you is why you going from a Supra TT to a Clio?

Got any pics of the beast?

 

[paddymph]

not expensive?!

when i got mine reno wanted £15,400 for it!

 

[Matt16v]

Thought list price was about £13k - you get alot of car for that money when you consider its rivals.

 

[flash555]

Quote: Originally posted by Matt16v on 28 October 2004


My question to you is why you going from a Supra TT to a Clio?

Got any pics of the beast?

Running costs! Bought a year ago - if I average out the petrol, maint (Inc 4 New tyres!!), Insurance, Loan etc - works out at between £600-£700 every month....... and thats without the expected £2-3K loss on the purchase price

Is easy to say - but I am glad I have had it - just a bit of a shocker when I add it all up - mind, if I wanted economy I would have got a Diesel !

Pics .....

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v339/flash555/DSC00085.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v339/flash555/DSC00085.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v339/flash555/a9aa6480.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v339/flash555/a9aa6480.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v339/flash555/DSC00089.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v339/flash555/DSC00089.jpg

 

[George16v]

Can you get a picture of the rear mate, ie behind the front seats, Can you get anyone in the back or not,

What is the 0-60 time and what is the top end like.

 

[flash555]

I will try and get a picture of the rear - but to answer your question - you can get 1 adult in the back..... with their legs going accross the car. Its actually very comfortable as all of the rear cabin is leather - seats, surrounds etc, so it creates a soft little cocoon.

Performance etc (None of this has been proved on mine - but is from talking to other "Standard" Supra owners)

325 Bhp

0-60 Sub 6.0 Secs

Top end - not sure - I have had 145 (On an Autobahn I might add) and I ran out of bottle before the car ran out out power.

In gear (Overtaking) is literally breathtaking. The 1st Turbo comes on at about 2500 rpm and is quite subtle - the second at about 4000 ish - and is a real "back down into the seat" job. Kickdown from the Auto creates the slightes lag - but then you are gone - literally. With the sound effects from the dump valve as well - it is an experience you want to keep replaying over and over.

 

[George16v]

Where are you based, Think we should met up at some point and have a give each other a ride in the others car, if you get my drift..

 

[flash555]

Might be too late - have got someone looking at mine on Sat who is looking to buy pretty much straight away (He may take it on Sat if he can sort out the transfer)

I would fully expect your motor to stay ahead through the twisties - but strighten the road out a little - or keep the roads dry, and mine would (hopefully) leave you ..........



....... waiting for the backlash while ducking under the desk

 

[Tim010]

I bought my 172 Cup in June 2004 pre-registered from a main dealer with 11 miles on the clock.

I have now done a little under 4k miles and have had no problems with the car whatsover. There is one small rattle from the interior light area but that is a tiny niggle and not worth fussing over.

There are a lot of cars that do have issues but at the end of the day these Sport models are cheap for a reason! Most of the problems people post on here are comparitively "minor" and do not affect the general running of the car as a whole.

Just my side of the coin. Im sure there are lots more people who have a reliable Clio (at the moment!)

Tim

 

[enayeseekay]

I own a near 10 year old clio so no horrible stories about a new motor breaking down from me.

However i found the guy at the dealer near me to be a complete arsehole - I wanted to order some 16v front wings, so i popped down. The guy in there REFUSED to even look in the computer for the part numbers (i didnt have them), he told me that id have to provide him with the registration number of a 16v car before he coud "authorise" it. He then basically DISSED me for wanting to alter my car from standard, stating that i was a boy racer and a danger to other road users!

Needless to say it was complete waste of petrol going down there, and i couldnt believe i had to actually provide them with a 16v registration number before theyd let me have the parts. I made a complaint about this when i was back down, they told me that it wasnt company policy to do this, and offered me a complimentary renault keyring when my parts came in.

/Rant over.

 

[MarkCup]

Ive had my Cup since 28 November 2003.

Ive since covered almost 23,000 miles and problems to date have been;


Squeaky ventilation fan (replaced)
Creaking drivers seat (stripped and greased)
Creaking OSF suspension (ATKIS modification)
Failed engine mounts (replaced)
All the above were sorted, 110%, by Renault within days of my highlighting them. Of course, it does help that my local dealer employs Mike172Sport (a member of Cliosport.net) who does all the work and makes sure they take good care of me and the car.

Apart from that, mines been trouble free... Ive even managed to remain rattle free... I must have been lucky and got a goodun!

Mark


[Edited by MarkCup on 28 October 2004 at 5:53pm]