World's coolest Renault Espace in EVAH - NOW with BETTERER PHOTEEZE

[Guest Breadvan72]

Matra Guru and all round old jalopy fixer upper extraordinaire Roy Gillard uses this uber fab Renault Espace (arguably the last Matra, in disguise) as his daily.  It is a LHD one with four wheel drive, the bestest wheels, levva, and yellow auxiliary lights.    It is possibly the coolest car in the World.  It even has the correct two sunroofs in its much faded roof.

 

Here it is amongst my shite, as Roy is servicing and doing some assorted fixes on the Landy and the Lancia today.

 

Roy, BTW, lives in Harrow and charges 30 quid an hour plus travel costs if he goes over ten miles.   His motto is never to be defeated by any car, and so far I have never known him to lose even the grimmest of contests with some right bastards of the automobile fraternity that I have put him up against in the endless war of man versus car.

 

Apologies for usual shite-o-vision execrable photo quality.

 

MOAR and less shitey pictures on page 2.



 

[Guest Breadvan72]

Once Roy was towing me in a broken down Lotus Elan Plus 2 when a modern BMW actually tried to drive into the space between the Espace and the Lotus (the tow rope was a normal length).  The BMW was white, but you knew that already.  I honked (horn intermittently broken, no sound came) and braked.  The BMW swerved away at the last minute and carved Roy up so badly that what with that and me having braked before the tow vehicle did  he had to brake also, at which point my wet shoe slipped from the pedal and I crunched his bumper and mine.  The Espace won.  The Lotus was a bit hurt.  The BMW fucked off.  

[dugong]

This Espace is as awesome as the pictures that are out of focus. 

MOAR BETTERER PICS PLS

[garethj]

I'm warming to the early Espace, despite loathing them at the time.  I think what I actually hated was the fact they were touted as the first ever people carrier to be more like a car than a van.

 

Rubbish really, as the VW (Pineapple) Type 2 was a 9 seater which drove like a car in the 1950s.  Alright, it drove like a top-heavy Beetle, but in the '50s that wasn't too different to most cars either.  I think Lancia had something similar as well.

 

Back to the Espace; a wedge shape, Renault (was it based on the 18?) mechanicals, plastic body and epic wheels make it a winner in my eyes today.  The fact that you can add yellow headlights is the icing on the cake.  A 4WD version must be for the man who running a normal old Renault just isn't a challenge any more.

[AnthonyG]

I think these had more in common with the 25 mechanically than anything else. Both launched in 84 and similar engine ranges - from 2.0 carb petrol up to V6 luxury.

 

Just as much of a classic as anything else made 30 years ago - started the MPV sector off in Europe, and a lot nicer than a Dodge Caravan or a Nissan Prairie, it's US and Japanese rivals. Think the Prairie actually beat the other two to market, I dimly remember Y reg ones which must mean 82/83?

[Guest Breadvan72]

I hears yer dugong.  Roy is back tomozzer for more swearing  at Lancias, so long as the Espace passes its MoT at 0830, which he thinks it will (he's a tester himself and v good at MoT prep).  

 

We are trying to get the steering wheel off the donor car to swap over the stalky bits, as the ones on the Volumex are partly knackered.  We pulled, hit the wheel with big fuggen hammers, grunted, swore, etc, and are leaving it overnight coated with some primo spray-on badger jizz to see if it frees up.  I will PHOKUS me phone and take some MOAR bester shots.

 

Roy has checked out the Landy and the Lancia and declared both to be basically sound motahs, subject to a few snags which are all fixable.  It's always comforting to know that you haven't bought a total shitheap, unless of course you wanted to do that on the basis of vive le sport.

[dome]

I'd have an early one like this to haul bikes about with-the amount of individuals* who turn up at MTB trail centres with fucking VW dampervans does my tits in. Any diesels that run on veg?

[Guest Breadvan72]

Dunno!  

 

Roy should hate the Espace as it was the car that killed the Murena  (only one galvanised chassis line available, so: die Murena, get on, Espace), but he loves it nonetheless. It has done 847 bazillion miles.

 

I have forgotten which engine this car has in it.  It's got badges saying Quadra for 4WD and Baccara for, I assume, trim level. Power everything, neat binnacle, cool French stylee steering wheel, non crazy (by French 80s/90s standards) switchgear, leather everywhere.   5 speed manual.  I will ask Roy about the engine.

[AnthonyG]

Oooohhhh. Baccara - top spec level. Pure sybaritic hedonism.

[sporty-shite]

Roy, BTW, lives in Harrow and charges 30 quid an hour plus travel costs if he goes over ten miles. 

 

 

Had I known this a couple of months ago, I would now own a red Alfa 147. Oh well......

[Guest Breadvan72]

Had I known this a couple of months ago, I would now own a red Alfa 147. Oh well......

 

 

Make red5 an offer!  There is still at least one Fronterror that he has not yet owned, so you never know, he might take: CASH.    One such Fronterror went for 210 quid at an auction the other day - seemed sound as a pound but no keys or V5 as it was a Repo.

[robinmasters]

This Espace is as awesome as the pictures that are out of focus. 

 

MOAR BETTERER PICS PLS

 

It's the wheels, they're impossible to focus on properly.

 

[dugong]

It's the wheels, they're impossible to focus on properly.

 

 

WTF? Is that Edd Weeks' old Wartburg in a book? I've driven that car, I have!

[wuvvum]

WTF? Is that Edd Weeks' old Wartburg in a book? I've driven that car, I have!

 

That's exactly what I thought.  And so have I.  Before he lowered it, mind.

[wuvvum]

Any diesels that run on veg?

The Mk2 Espace was available with the 2088cc turbo diesel, which is fine on veg.  Don't think the Mk1 was ever sold as a diesel, at least not over here.

[dollywobbler]

I'm massively feeling the early-Espace love. My Renault 21 felt pretty robust mechanically so that but with a quirky, rustproof body sounds like win.

[forddeliveryboy]

 

Loads of Bosch-pumped 2.1td for sale, this one at £406 was cheapish given a set of leather seats for a Grande Espace will sell for over £500. Only needed the dashboard cluster sorting, a set of glow plugs and a couple of tyres. Was tested to January and taxed till end of June.

 

Quite fancy a leather seat one, running on 15ppl fuel.

[dome]

Mm, it'd really need to be a Mk1, about the only people carrier I actually like.

[Guest Breadvan72]

Roy broke down once on a motorway and diagnosed the fault as some broken thing that had broken.  He called for a tow, and said be sure to tell the tow dude that this 1990 Espace is 4WD.  Some while later some dude turned up with a rig suited only for towing 2WD cars.  Yes, said the bloke, the control room told me that you said that it was 4WD, but we did not believe you as there is no such thing as a 4WD 1990 Espace, we thought you were just some typical gobshite punter who thinks it has 4WD cos it has 4 wheels.    Go away, said Roy, and bring me a 4WD towing rig.  Meanwhile he had tracked down a mate of his who had an unbroken one of the broken bits in his shed and lived not far off, so by the time that the 4WD towing machine arrived some time later Roy and his mate had fixed the Espace on the hard shoulder and said go away, again.  

 

Roy once worked in Ghana and had that Gerry Rawlings land his helicopter in the  company compound one day, not long after one or other of the coups of that era.  He said that Rawlings' bodyguard was so huge and terrifying that the automatic firearm that he carried was superfluous, as he could have killed anyone with a hard stare.  I reckon that for every visit that Roy makes I end up paying him 15 to 30 quid for chattering, but I don't mind.  He will do the work without the chatter if you like.  Also, when I broke my Murena due to being a total cock Roy bought the car from me for a fair price, so we are almost quits.

[warren t claim]

When I saw the title of this thread I was hoping someone on here had bought Harold Shipman's old Espace.

[Guest Breadvan72]

Narr, but someone did buy the Renault McCann (extra room for the kids in the back).

[nigel bickle]

I'd love a Mk1  Quadra- and Panhard 65 had one (albeit with a broken viscous) that  fitted the bill. Sadly -I didn't.

 

Next time hopefully -I've got the rims!

[sporty-shite]

Make red5 an offer! There is still at least one Fronterror that he has not yet owned, so you never know, he might take: CASH. One such Fronterror went for 210 quid at an auction the other day - seemed sound as a pound but no keys or V5 as it was a Repo.

It just fitted at the time. Bob outlaw bought Mrs Ss 306 and would have sriven the 147 up here. Got another now, though.

[panhard65]

There were a few Quadra's down here in Somerset. I had this horrid old thing.

I also picked up a customer with another one which is also missing it's rear prop due to viscous coupling failiure. I haven't got a pic of that one even though it was here for weeks having a new clutch them mot work which involved replacing pretty much the whole of the braking system. He intends on taking it to France this summer a brave man considering it has sat in a field for the last couple of years. Correction you can almost spot it in this shot. Both mk1's and 2000-1 quadra's

[dollywobbler]

Was it just that your scrapyard save one was a poor example Panhard rather than that Espaces are horrible?

[panhard65]

Mine wasn't the best example but they are showing their age now. The clutches get very heavy and can snap the pedal and the electrics are a bit dodgy to say the least. They are still better than the mk 3's or 4's though, but still a Renault so worth peanuts and highly likely to leave you standing at the side of the road. The 2.0 petrol is a good old lump and the 2.1 diesel will go on forever just avoid the later 2.2dci. The quadra isn't really worth having as the couplings don't last and are no longer available. I did some reasearch and it seems the oil in them only lasts so long and can't be changed without cutting the coupling in half and welding it back together again. When they lock up if not dealt with quickly they will snap the composite propshaft.

[Guest Breadvan72]

Yeah but no but yeah, but wheels of 100000000% raw, unfiltered WINNAGE

[trigger]

There's a nice low mileage one on copart at the moment.

 

http://www.copart.co.uk/c2/homeSearch.html?_eventId=getLot&execution=e1s2&lotId=18187554&returnPage=SEARCH_RESULTS

 

It's only just ran in.

 

 

Actually that kilometres so it's only around 287000 miles.

[Station]

I've wanted one in blue for ages, but it has to have those wheels!

It's either this or a "Space Cruiser Model F":

 

Phwoar.

 

[mat_the_cat]

Hmmm, I wonder whether an Espace should be on my mental shortlist, of spacious cars with reasonable ground clearance which don't rust? I don't mind fixing electric faults, in fact out of any faults to repair then electrics would be top of the list. For that reason I'm also looking at Mk1 Freelanders...