USED Renault Clio Hatchback (98 - 05)

My car

I am writing this on behalf of my sister who owned one of these (54 reg) What an awful car! The engine is gutless and simply will not rev, overtaking is a terrifying ordeal. The driving position is cramped as is the rest of the cabin. All of the controls are spongy and not nice to use, particularly the gearbox and clutch. The car was plagued by constant reliability issues involving the engine, exhaust, warning lights and electrics. The only positive things I can say are that for a small car the ride was good (although the cabin was so cramped and had suchawful seating positions that every journey was uncomfortable) The interior plastics were reasonably good quality (although not the fit and finish) and it was reasonably well equipped. Running costs would have been low if it werent for all of the reliability issues. Reviews show that Renault appears to have improved their quality slightly although my brother owned a Megane and experienced plenty of reliablility problems with it. I would advise anyone to stay clear of Renault and anyone considering buying a used Clio, avoid it like the plague.

My car

Renault still do Friday Cars.

Bought my 2002 '52' plate Clio 1.5 DCI 65hp in mid April 2010 it is now October 2010 and my car has now spent longer back with the dealer than with me.

Faults Include.

Electric window failure

Flickering on/off warning lights

Windscreen wipers not swapped over for RH drive. If you are tall (6 foot & over) the wiper clears all the screen on the passenger side but leaves a big patch of drivers side non swept..

Leaking sunroof.. Don't buy replacement £35 seal from Renault. Even they admit it's rubbish.

Turbo Failure.. 74000 miles on the clock. Renault UK told me consider myself lucky. They have had turbo failure on cars with half my mileage... Have now had two turbos sent to my dealer from Renault, both times the wrong one. Be prepared for bill of at least £2000 if out of warrenty at Main dealer

Clio's have great road holding but need the tracking checked a lot. The EGR valve can go. £400 fix from Renault main dealer or £95 from net and 20mins to fit. Driving position is terrible. Pedals are so offset from steering wheel.

Really really dissapointed. Main dealers don't want to know. Don't buy parts from main dealer. Renault UK carry no spare parts so everything has to come from France. When the car has run it has been fine, 60-70mpg but the faults far outweigh the good points. Moment i get the car back it's getting sold. Check the Renault online forum before you think about buying one. You will definatly change your mind.

My car

I've owned the car for 6 years and I've put nearly 90k on the clock. The engine has been great.Its better suited on the motorway cruising in 5th than round town.Anything over 30mph in 3rd results in alot of engine noise,but do 40mph or less in 4th and it becomes sluggish.As most of my driving is on the motorway it suits me fine. It will easily average 55mpg in winter & 60mpg in summer. The handling is average and it does under steer.The turning circle is similar to the QE2. It was cheap to run over the first 5 yrs with the usual wear and tear parts needing replacing.The pump which powers the window washers packed in but it cost less than £30 including fitting from a local garage. The last 6 months have been a different story with its age starting to show. Brake cylinders,suspension arms,bush ends,battery and glow plugs have taken over £700 from my piggy bank. The cabin is ok,it scrubs up well after a clean but it does have too many rattles.Comes in usful when your tired, because of the noise theres no chance of falling asleep at the wheel.The sunroof is the worst feature,it doesn't even need one as it has air con and all it does it rattle and double up as a water feature with its mysterious leak. Overall the car has been a good motor.Considering some of the nightmares other people have had with their Clio's I know I've been lucky. I'm changing it in the next few weeks but wont be buying Renault, circumstances mean I need to change and the bigger Renaults don't appeal.

My car

I am on my second Clio and feel I should have learnt from my first one which lasted me 6 months and made me a loss of £2000. When I part exed it for a newer model it was basically a write off the biggest problem being the gear box had gone. However i went ahead with the upgrade with a Renault dealer who had a good reputation, I have now had this clio for a year and a half and it has been backwards and forwards to the dealer with a number of different problems. On one occasion I had to send it back 5 times before the problem was fixed,and that was from me telling them what was wrong. On one of these 5 times they road tested it for 100miles and told me the problem was fixed, I drove it two minutes down the road and it reoccured! Overall the Clio's look lovley and are very cheap to run but mechanically they are poor and I would say not made to live a long and healthy life!