Educate me on Renault 5's please!

[trigger]

I'm toying with going to look at this R5 tomorrow.

 

 

 

 

I've just spoke to the garage, they used to look after it for a elderly lady who retired from driving, 27000 miles, it has a years ticket but needs tax, everything works, and no rust except a scab near the screen. It's high spec with electric windows and central locking too, It's up for £895 but I don't think there's much movement on the price.

 

I was wondering what they are like, I haven't driven one for years and all i remember of them was being very plasticky and tinny, what do i need to look out for and is it worth replace the Acclaim with?.

 

To be fair I can't really afford it with shitefest coming up anyway and i don't want 5 cars at the moment but it seems a nicer car for the wife then the Acclaim and she likes the look of the R5 too. 

[Wilko220]

Panache! Brilliant just for that...

 

I've never driven one but, having been a passenger in one, I would have thought the experience would be a bit of a come-down from an Acclaim.

[DSdriver]

Perfect for popping out to buy the early morning baguette and stopping for a coffee and cognac in the bar-tabac whilst getting a pack of disque bleu.

Live the dream.

[HillmanImp]

I had one many many years ago. I found that after heavy drinking the brakes and steering were not as good as they were when I was sober and I crashed it into a wall.

 

Not my finest hour. 

[panhard65]

I use a 5 campus as my everyday car and it is great. You want the 1.4 as it is still the cheaper tax bracket and goes well. They are basic and economical so very cheap to run. Watch out for overheating and coolant leaks but other than that it is just rust to worry about. The price is top money really my L reg was £400 taxed and tested with 44000 miles. It does have rust around the screen though and is the most basic model. They are great fun but understeer quite a bit with the skinny little tyres but still feel safe. Make a low offer and see if it happens there are a few about still and it's a Renault so the prices will never go too high. Certainly a much more modern feel than the acclaim

[MrDuke]

NotfromLeboncoin/10  (fail)

[scruff]

I once did Ruffec to Calais in one of these at break neck speed and have had a healthy respect for them ever since! 

I think I'd personally have a 205 over one but they are good little motors. 

[wuvvum]

The only one of these I've had was a bog-basic 956cc TC.  Tinny little thing (but then that's going to be a factor with any '80s Frogmobile), and the gear change was dreadful, but other than that quite a pleasant little machine, if in no way fast.  I reckon with a 1397cc engine and a 5-speed box it should be quite a decent drive - although you may find the seats a little soft on a long run.  Far fewer electrical gremlins than later Renaults, and no cambelt to worry about.  It is fairly strong money, but then that 22-mile garage find car at ACA a few weeks back made well into four figures.

[wuvvum]

This one on the Bay is very similar, albeit a facelift model with slightly more miles, and the seller wants 1400 quid for it.

 

[Mr Lobster]

That actually sounds like a very reasonable price tbh. 

 

The main issue is rust - base of windscreen, back of sills and rear quarters at the base of the side windows. If it isn't rotten then you're probably onto a winner.

1.4's are reasonably lively and prices look like they are starting to go up.

 

Get on it.

 

(Then sell it to me next year )

[xtriple]

Made a living for a few years buying MOT fail R5s, repairing and then flogging them. I was a mature student with a 5 year old son... it had to be done!  Bloody good little cars. They were usually failed because of rust at the rear of the cills/suspension mounts. Easy repair. Had a few that jumped out of reverse when you backed up fast and let off the gas, but that's really a non-issue. Driveshafts/CV joints go occasionally but they are easy and cheap to do.

 

Bloody good little cars all in, bouncy and lean over on corners but that's all part of the fun. Nice comfy seats and go okay - not really quick but certainly 'nippy'. Never thought they were that good on fuel, but that may have been the way I drove them!

 

Used to sell one/two a week as easy as pooing, normally gone by 11:30 on the Friday Autotrader came out. Then one week, it all just stopped! No phone calls at all and I was stuck with a couple for weeks.

[Parky]

Clutch cables snap for fun so always worth having one in the car. Changing them is a bit fiddly at the pedal box end but at least if it does go the AA man can do it for you!

 

Cleon engines can be a little tappety but not to Talbot standards. Tappet adjustment pretty easy.

 

The thing I would say is Renault tended to use multiple brake part providers, often incompatible so if you need new pads for example, don't be surprised if the man at the shop says "is it Lockheed, Bendix, or Girling your one?" Usually best to take the old ones with you to be certain.

 

Other than that, great fun, great visibility, good on juice, nippy, and interesting. They are just starting to be acknowledged as classics so hopefully you won't lose out come sell time.

[RedSparrow]

Has it got a sunroof? They piss water in.

[Shep Shepherd]

That looks really, really nice

 

One of my many aunts had a silver F-reg 1.7 GTX five-door between 1990 and 1992. It was at the point the newest, most luxurious car I'd ever travelled in.

[londonm]

Last car on Earth I'd buy. Never heard anything good about them at the time.

[forddeliveryboy]

With an East-West engine and box (instead of the inline R5 orig which meant a timing chain was a bit of a pain unless you cut through the bulkhead from the inside) the SuperCinq was a sorted, modern hatch in its time. I'd choose one over a 205 anyday. More charming, roomier, tougher. If there's no rot, take 650 notes, put them on the table and walk away if they don't accept. A really-low mileage car which is so old can have as many if not more probs than one with 100k more on the clock.

[mouseflakes]

I'm toying with going to look at this R5 tomorrow.

 

 

It's only when Wuvvum pointed out there was a facelift for these that I went back and looked at this photo of early one you're asking about.

 

The styling is really neat on this - you could imagine it looked pretty much like this in the styling sketches. The later one Wuvs posted  - the bumper looks clumsy in comparison doesn't it?

[trigger]

Cheers guys for the advice, I'm going to have to think about it, The trouble is I really like the car but it's not quite the right time, I'm looking at changing the Acclaim once I'm back from Shitefest, I don't want to end up with 5 cars while I try and sell the Acclaim.

 

I see how i feel tomorrow and if i can be arsed to drive the 70 miles to go and view it.

[e287yba]

The thing I would say is Renault tended to use multiple brake part providers, often incompatible so if you need new pads for example, don't be surprised if the man at the shop says "is it Lockheed, Bendix, or Girling your one?" Usually best to take the old ones with you to be certain.

 

 

Peugeot used Girling or Bendix for their brakes on their FWD '80s models - and front and rear can be different as well! Calls to get new brake bits for my 309 give me a choice of two sets of parts per axle... Imagine my disappointment on reading that a Renault 5 can give a choice of 3 makes on at least one axle!

 

Mind you, ordering rear brakes for the 309 recently led to the chap asking if I needed Lucas or Bendix parts. "Lucas?" I asked... Formerly known as Girling, more recently as Lucas-Girling - D'oh!!! (Brainfade    .)

 

As per the quoted post, parts are incompatible between manufacturers on said cars .

 

My father drove 205s, and I feel duty bound to fly that flag (daily driver is a 309SR) - but Le Car was pretty highly regarded at the time as well...

[Parky]

My gen 1 renault 5 had a Lockheed calliper one side and a Bendix the other. I don't think it was like that from the factory, I would imagine it had a new hub at some point and the fitter boshed on whatever he had to hand. Worked OK ish though. Pain in the arse buying pads!

 

I ran a gen 2 for four years in the mid nineties and it cost me the grand total of a battery, a rear exhaust box, and a few oil changes in the interim. I killed it by doing a coolant change wrongly and blowing the head gasket.

[AlabamaShrimp]

I had an F reg one with a knackered passenger damper with could lead to come exciting cornering! Gear change was horrible, the clutch was mega hard, so much so a lot of people couldn't drive it, and it was all a bit plasticy inside. Still liked it loads and would have another. Was a shame the last time I saw it with another car on its roof at the scrappers

[Volksy]

I had an '85 TC 'poverty spec' one which I crashed rather dramatically late one night. Quite a strong little car.

 

Some evil twoccer had left an unlit grey Cavalier sideways on a blind bend. A chap in a car coming the other way tried to warn me by flashing his lights (which only managed to dazzle me). I swerved round the Cavalier but lost control, resulting in me hitting a rock embankment at 60 mph with the drivers side front corner, spinning me sideways until I hit a telegraph pole with the passenger side 'B' pillar, with catapulted me off backwards and flipping the car in a full somersault landing back on it's wheels 50 ft down the road. Amazingly I walked away without so much as a scratch. So much so that it took quite a bit of persuading to make the arriving plod believe that I wasn't the culprit who'd abandoned the Cavalier.

 

The poor 5 was bent in the middle (the passenger side sill was next to the gearstick), every window was shattered etc. The thing still started and limped on to the recovery truck under it's own steam though!

 

I'd like to try a 1.7 GTX, I believe they are a bit of a 'Q' car.
 

[DSdriver]

Perfect for popping out to buy the early morning baguette and stopping for a coffee and cognac in the bar-tabac whilst getting a pack of disque bleu.

Live the dream.

Of course the English version of this does not inspire so well:

Popping down to Morrisons to buy a sliced white loaf of cotton wool pap, stopping at Costa Koffee for a large Late in a waxed paper or plastic beaker which you sup whilst standing outside in the early morning drizzle smoking your last B&H.

[Peter Patina]

One of the best cars I've ever had. My old D reg 1.4 GTL had no engine/gearbox problems at all over the course of nearly 250k miles. Two clutches [@36k and 95k], otherwise just service-items, cables, CV gaiters etc.

 

Could be driven suprisingly quickly and it's more refined than a 205. A sweet rustle from the engine when cruising at 60MPH. Ace dashboard, cold air from the centre-vents regardless of heater-settings - lovely. Only thing I didn't like was a slight lack of legroom for the driver.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

Got a 1.4 Campus for my oldest as a first car 8 years ago,she wasn't keen at first but ended up loving it. She put it on a roundabout a week after passing her test and I had to reverse the thing 3 miles home with my missus following close up to the front bumper, not much traffic about as it was Boxing Day,still didn't get pulled!

Repaired it with big hammer then broke an MOT fail Monaco for the leather and wheels, 6 months later when the MOT ran out it was never going to go through again with my expert* chassis repair so sold it on ebay spares or repair! the winning bidder came 150 miles then had a massive accident coming off the M1. The lad walked to our house bought the scrap 5 then went to the hospital to pick up his dad,whereupon they both went home in the crabbing unmot'd 5 !

[nacho man]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Renault-5-TR-1989-ALL-ORIGIONAL-/231233014236?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item35d68fc9dc

 

[trigger]

That makes the burgundy one look even more of a bargain. I didn't go and look at it in the end as I wouldn't get chance to go back and collect it until after next week, annoyingly.

[Caffiend]

My '94 R5 was another OMGHGF casualty in 2002 - spectacularly blew up on the Bath Road. Shame. 

 

A few years earlier I'd got back-ended by a brand new Toyota Corolla. I'd seen the traffic lights go red, he hadn't and was easily doing 30+). Not a bruise on me, got out of the car, first thing I saw was the front of his 'Oh shit ...'. Walked round - not so much as a bumper crack or broken light. They are turf little beasties those 5s.

[ProgRocker]

Trigger, still looking for a Cinq? This one's in Attleborough, Norfolk.

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ultra-rare-renault-5-possibly-the-best-condition-barn-find-in-the-country-/201099496560?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item2ed276cc70

 

 

Extra shite points (quite literally) for being brown!

[trigger]

That R5 is da sex