Six Cylinders Motoring Notes

[Noel Tidybeard]

way moar cool than a carpi

[montytom]

I always thought that the Fuego was a cool car. My work colleague had a turbo with Turbo written on he bottom of the doors in big letters.

His was quite rusty though and he ended up trading it in under the scrappage scheme as he could get more money for it that way. Shame

[dozeydustman]

The only thing I recall about the Fuego is some automatic car washes having signs saying “No Renault Fuegos”.

I imagine the rear window was quite vulnerable to breaking when the top brush moved along the car.

[Dobloseven]

Didn't they share a lot of parts with the 18?

[ETCHY]

I thought & still do think they looked great, really cool.

The dashboard always looked a bit crappie though in comparison to the outside to me.

[Dick Cheeseburger]

I always thought they looked like the French effort at designing a 924. 

Edit: Looks like I'm not the only one.

[EyesWeldedShut]

There was one of these and a Matra Simca Bagheera that would park in the resident's parking outside my digs in London (1982).
The Renault was lovely looking thing and I thought it rather nice tbh. I thing the motoring press here slaughtered them though? One of the mags did a Fuego vs 924 piece that I thought was a bit naughty - maybe the Sirocco would have been a better comparison?

[edit] - not the first to mention that eh? I guess they just looked too alike which, back in the day, was kind of unusual. These days?

[edit, edit]- we've never owned a Fuego but if our 924 was anything to go by then neither would be a show stopper performance-wise these days. I'd still have either though - Renault only if it's not too crispy underneath.

 

[brownnova]

Fuego is a great design in my eyes. There was a red one which lived on my route to school when I was a kid, and we walked past it for years until one day it just disappeared… 

Ive consigned the Fuego to “cars I would love to own, but never will” pile. 

[wuvvum]

As @warren t claim's profile pic shows, they are popular with the young ladies.

[Zelandeth]

Is that the same rear window glass as they used on the 25?

[EyesWeldedShut]

7 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

Is that the same rear window glass as they used on the 25?

Used to be a lot of claims that it was the same glass as a 924 - no idea if that's bollocks though

[NorfolkNWeigh]

1 hour ago, dozeydustman said:

The only thing I recall about the Fuego is some automatic car washes having signs saying “No Renault Fuegos”.

I imagine the rear window was quite vulnerable to breaking when the top brush moved along the car.

Yes, my stupid Father-in-law broke two on his. One in a car wash . The second time was when a Calor Gas bottle in the boot rolled back. To be honest, it must have been a tough car to last the almost 10 years he had his, a fairly basic silver 1600, from memory. 

[grogee]

I thought they were cool but have since learned they were a bit 'soft' and body could go out of alignment if badly jacked or pranged etc. As well as usual rust issues but that applies to just about everything from back then. 

I think what annoyed me a bit is discovering the majority of them were cooking 1.6s and were challenged by towing congealed dessert layers. 

Hats off though, a cool and unique design that still looks fresh today. 

Side note: "Fuego Turbo" was our slang for asking each other for a match/light back in our smoking days. 

[Talbot]

1 hour ago, Dobloseven said:

Didn't they share a lot of parts with the 18?

They were to a R18 what a Calibra is to a Cavalier.

Side-note.. Fuego was the first car ever to have remote central locking.  I think they look superb, but unfortunately don't have the interior/performance/handling/power/anything else to back it up.

[ETCHY]

1 hour ago, Dick Longbridge said:

I always thought they looked like the French effort at designing a 924. 

Edit: Looks like I'm not the only one.

Oh wow I'd never even thought of that, but yeah they are !

[catsinthewelder]

I've always liked them but would rather have a 15 or 17.

[wuvvum]

2 hours ago, Talbot said:

I think they look superb, but unfortunately don't have the interior/performance/handling/power/anything else to back it up.

Turbos don't hang about for an early '80s car.  Turbo diesels are nippy too, although we never got those here.

[Asimo]

Fuego should have had the V6 / auto from the Renault 30.

[EyesWeldedShut]

16 minutes ago, Asimo said:

Fuego should have had the V6 / auto from the Renault 30.

Bit of a squeeze but ooooh

[wuvvum]

5 hours ago, Asimo said:

Fuego should have had the V6 / auto from the Renault 30.

No 1980s Renault should ever have been fitted with an automatic gearbox.

[Snake Charmer]

Always liked the styling but never felt the need to own one but did have two written off ones in my life.

First one (not sure of the model) was a girlfriends fathers car, he was on the way home from a gig early hours of 31st January 1983 when he met a drunk driver on his side of the road. He swerved right and the other car (l think a Victor) hit him pushing the engine and gearbox into the bulkhead and drivers footwell breaking the dashboard in half. He was not wearing a seatbelt and ended up in the passenger footwell and seat, the police told him he would probably be dead if he had been wearing one. Ironically, the seat belt law was due to come in to force at midnight that day, the officer joked he would have been fined for surviving! I saw the car and it was a frightening mess drivers side. 

The other was a GTS around1989, another girlfriends fathers car (!!) passed to his son that was hit whilst parked well and truly off the road by a vehicle from another accident. I may have owned it briefly or just beaten the damage out as my lodger had it, a car he thoroughly enjoyed.

[hairnet]

Got reminders of stony stratford today

Was it on today @Six-cylinder

 

[Six-cylinder]

16 minutes ago, hairnet said:

Got reminders of stony stratford today

Was it on today @Six-cylinder

 

Yes, I went and got there at 9:40am but there was no parking left in the town and walking in was not going to work so I gave up.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

20 minutes ago, hairnet said:

Got reminders of stony stratford today

Was it on today @Six-cylinder

 

Bollocks !  Forgot all about that !
On my way now, will look out for 6Cs, almost certain I’ll see The Silver’s Maxi in Budgens carpark . It has been for the last few years.

Edit:  Should have read @Six-cylinder’sreply first😊

[Mrs6C]

1 minute ago, NorfolkNWeigh said:

On my way now, will look out for 6Cs

Too late! He gave up and came home and is now cooking bacon rolls for breakfast...

[Slowsilver]

18 minutes ago, NorfolkNWeigh said:

Bollocks !  Forgot all about that !
On my way now, will look out for 6Cs, almost certain I’ll see The Silver’s Maxi in Budgens carpark . It has been for the last few years.

Edit:  Should have read @Six-cylinder’sreply first😊

Sorry, no Maxi this year. I feel that this event has now got too big for its own good. Despite the advertised start time being 9:30 we arrived at 9:00 last year and just managed to squeeze into the last parking space. By lunchtime every space on the roads (and pavements) around the centre were filled and there were so many people walking around that it was a fight to navigate the pavements and very difficult to get to see the cars. It's a shame because it is a very good show and free to enter unlike lots of shows nowadays, but I now find it is not worth the effort.
On the subject of charging classic cars entry to shows, why had this suddenly become the done thing. Up until a few years ago entry was free. I have no problem with visitors in modern cars being charged, but surely the classic cars ARE the show. If none turned up there would be no show, and the owners do not charge the organisers to attend. Surely this is the equivalent of each footballer being charged to play in a match, or members of a band being expected to pay to perform. I appreciate that these events cost money to stage but this should be recoverable from the paying spectators. I understand that entry to this year's FotU will be £40 per car for both classics and public, which I think is excessive and gives the classic car owners no incentive to attend.
 

[hairnet]

52 minutes ago, Mrs6C said:

 now cooking bacon rolls for breakfast...

of course that was gonna happen

 

[adw1977]

Anyone who thought the 1.6 Fuego was too much to handle could order the 1.4 with a whopping 64bhp.

[wuvvum]

Be interesting to see a drag race between a 1.4 Fuego and a 1.3 Capri.

[hairnet]

18 hours ago, catsinthewelder said:

I've always liked them but would rather have a 15 or 17.

surprise the odd looking man (kidding) would prefer the odd option

17 ftw tho