That Lovejoy Safrane

[Petrolize]

Some of you may recognise the car, and its up for sale again.      https://www.gumtree.com/p/renault/1994-renault-safrane/1373082712

Throwback to simpler times in 2014, no Trump, no Borris, no corona.  I had the car as a daily, was a great car, efficient and reliable, but it just wasn't me, and I decided to sell the car. It took the longest time ever to sell, maybe I paid more then I should've, maybe it was at an awkward stage, when it was just an old car, but not yet a classic. That said, first person to come and view, brought it.

He then kept it around 4 years, and it resurfaced for sale on retro rides, sadly it had been in a bump, he had managed to loose the thick pile of service history, and it had been used daily, parked on the street etc, short MOT and was a little worse for wear. It then paased few a few owners since, at one point it was off the road while the owner sourced an exhaust for it I believe. 

https://forum.retro-rides.org/thread/206298/1994-renault-safrane-manual-sold

 

Interestingly despite having been passed through hands for under a monkey  each time, each owner seems to have treated it fairly well , even the current one looks to be in a posher part of town, nice flagstone driveway etc, but recon it could easily  fall into the hands of someone wanting to run it to the ground, and at this age, it could easily be written off as scrap to an over zealous MOT tester. 

Can I buy it now? No, no space. Would I like it in the future? Maybe.  Would I like it to go to a shitter and find a bit more of a forever home? Yes

The car was registered to Renault UK who owned it a year, during this time was when it featured on TV.     The Safrane features as the police drive it up to The Swan hotel in Lavenham to arrest Lovejoy

After that it was picked up, presumably with a generous discount, from a Renault dealer in London, it went on to lead an easy life with the same owner for just under 20 years. It lived on Prothero road and for a while showed up on streetview being washed by the chap who owned it, since then the cameras been through leaving no trace of the Safrane, just swanky 4x4s and beemers.

If no one wants it at least I can say I (sort of) tried, Iliked it but having an old car back might never be the same, and even if nothing comes of it, was satisfying to write its history down, since if I dont no one else will. 

Pictures are from the road it lived on in London, and my time, the seats were as comfy as they look! 

[loserone]

Lush.  Group buy? 

[bramz7]

I'd chuck a tenner into that but unfortunately can't offer any room. Curiously it was registered in the same batch as the Safrane I owned. 

[loserone]

I would happily polish it in my street for a few days / weeks, and could stump a few months' tax

[Petrolize]

That sounds good, I feel it would make someone very happy. Also, whenever I've seen it for sale the owners have commented on its reliability, it certainly ran like clockwork all the time, and the two things that were in the back of my mind, the cambelt and exhaust, have been sorted now. 

[philibusmo]

I have no room, it's fucking miles and miles away from me and I don't really want it.

However, I found a tenner in a pair of shorts this morning so I'd happily chuck that into the mix if I meant it went to someone off here.

[GeordieInExile]

I wanna know more about the prime piece of chod behind it!

[bramz7]

Search Alan Gold on Flickr for the details of the Applause. He's a proper nice chap too. 

[andyberg]

Many many moons ago I had a safrane, I had it 2 weeks before the auto box shat itself. Back then it was over £1000 to get it repaired so it went to the bridge. I do remember it being a wonderful car and I have looked for others but they are so rare. I'll bung a few quid in to help save it. If I didn't have my Alfa and it was a lot nearer I would be very tempted. 

[xtriple]

When my wife and I first bought our house, I was skint, moved to the new area amd didn't have a job so went back to the faithfull standby of flogging motors! We bought a load but at one point we had in 'stock' a Safrane top spec job (though a 2 litre I think) auto and a Citroen Xantia which was a similar sort of level. My wife ad a brand new car and I had the 928 and we both preferred the Safrane (or the Xantia, moods drifted between the two!) and we nearly sold the others and kept the Frogspods.

Didn't as there was too much profit in them both but by God, they were both lovely.

[Turbowomble]

Evening chaps,

Short-time lurker, first-time poster - although I’ve been on the hunt for a ‘92-‘96 Safrane for the longest time. My grandfather had a navy blue 2.0 RT, bought brand new in ‘95 (when I was out of nappies but not short trousers) and the desire to pick one up has been only growing stronger with time (only I’m after an auto, for maximum wafty bargeness). It’s been a regular search on Autotrader, Car & Classic, eBay, Gumtree and all the other usual suspects and I’ve actually stumbled across OP’s For Sale thread a couple of times in my travels; so you can imagine the eyebrow raise when I saw the car listed on Gumtree along with the gradual penny-drop when I recognised the reg.

 

I’ve actually been in contact with the buyer; he’s sent me some pictures. Sad to say, but subsequent owners from OP have not been as sympathetic with their treatment or as diligent with their spannering - it’s in a sorry ol’ state. That said, he told me that £400 and no less would take it off his hands. Only for the fact that I work in an industry that I have my doubts will survive this crisis and that I may well become a modern day Yosser Hughes, and as such can’t really stomach forking out for insurance and tax on another car, let alone any inevitable mechanics bills. That, and the car’s in Scotland while I am across the Irish sea from  it, albeit on the same latitude line.

 

Hopefully this gets passed on to a generous benefactor, who can spare the time and love for a misunderstood French curio.

 

(As an aside, there’s another Safrane on eBay, a ‘93 auto based in Leeds with over double the miles of this one, which while in great condition and an MOT history which suggests it’s done less than a mile per week for the last decade or so, is priced in a manner that makes me suspect the current owner is on industrial-grade hallucinogens. I won’t link it, in case it breaks forum rules, but it won’t be too hard to find as it’s currently the only Safrane on eBay UK)

[somewhatfoolish]

On 5/19/2020 at 1:01 PM, Petrolize said:

The car was registered to Renault UK who owned it a year, during this time was when it featured on TV.     The Safrane features as the police drive it up to The Swan hotel in Lavenham to arrest Lovejoy

Did McShane's arse actually enjoy the squidgy french armchairs or was it just scenery?

[ThisWayUp]

Checklist:

Cheap - check

Its French - check moi

I’m over run with projects - check

It’s in Glasgow - checkity check

Plentiful storage - not so checky 

If it was a 25 I’d be after that like a shot! Dad had a new 25 Monaco in ‘88 and it was a firm favourite. 

Always a pity to see nice old things slip away. 
Hope someone gets it and gives it some tlc.
 

 

[Datsuncog]

16 hours ago, Turbowomble said:

Short-time lurker, first-time poster - although I’ve been on the hunt for a ‘92-‘96 Safrane for the longest time.

[...]

the car’s in Scotland while I am across the Irish sea from  it, albeit on the same latitude line.

If you're over on this side of the water, surely you've had a run-in with Ulster's premier stockpiler of French luxobarges, @R9UKE?

He may well be able to fix you up with something suitable - at least once things are a smidge more settled, anyway?

Always good to add more local shiters to the fold!

[outlaw118]

19 hours ago, Turbowomble said:

As an aside, there’s another Safrane on eBay, a ‘93 auto based in Leeds

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1993-Renault-safrane-rt-2-0-vi-automatic/254596992442?hash=item3b4729cdba:g:KqkAAOSwq5Zevbd9

[Turbowomble]

22 hours ago, Datsuncog said:

If you're over on this side of the water, surely you've had a run-in with Ulster's premier stockpiler of French luxobarges, @R9UKE?

I’ve not had the privilege yet - I’ll have to add his details to my Rolodex and get in touch, once the situation smooths out like a C6 on ‘le autoroute’, of course.

[holbeck]

I did try to restage the scene from Lovejoy with my Safrane. 

[greengartside]

On 5/21/2020 at 6:18 PM, outlaw118 said:

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1993-Renault-safrane-rt-2-0-vi-automatic/254596992442?hash=item3b4729cdba:g:KqkAAOSwq5Zevbd9

Still wearing its original Reliance Garage Norwich number plates. WANT.

[Stinkwheel]

Ok, so it’s been said above already, but ‘group buy’ c’mon who’s in for it?

400
Quid will buy it were told.... so money where mouth is, I’ve got a 100 quid I. For a group save.... who else is gonna step up?

[Stinkwheel]

I did try to restage the scene from Lovejoy with my Safrane. 

Extra points for C15 content.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Turbowomble]

.

[Turbowomble]

3 hours ago, Stinkwheel said:

Ok, so it’s been said above already, but ‘group buy’ c’mon who’s in for it?

400
Quid will buy it were told.... so money where mouth is, I’ve got a 100 quid I. For a group save.... who else is gonna step up?

If this is something that's attainable....I can go in for a ton. I only wish I had the pennies to do this outright, but if we're thinking  group effort then I'll surely chip in. Any other takers?

[somewhatfoolish]

4 hours ago, Stinkwheel said:

Extra points for C15 content.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ought to be a floppytop Morris 1000 answering to Miriam?

[holbeck]

3 hours ago, somewhatfoolish said:

Ought to be a floppytop Morris 1000 answering to Miriam?

Almost. the C15 is deputising for a police Leyland DAF 200

[Floatylight]

We've had a few Safranes on here, there was one[mention=28077]Rob[/mention] was trying sell last year and the 3.0 V6 Exec which is still with[mention=4555]catsinthewelder[/mention] I think having previously been with[mention=4070]flat4alfa[/mention] and[mention=20932]Schaefft[/mention]

 

Sent from my SM-A505FN using Tapatalk

 

 

 

[loserone]

Jesus Tapatalk gets on my wick

[Iamgroot]

8 minutes ago, loserone said:

Jesus Tapatalk gets on my wick

Jesus Tapatalk sound like a good idea to me, least he is somewhat getting with the times, the existing communication methods seemed ineffective at best

[EyesWeldedShut]

Had a C15 and a Safrane - that worth any brownie points?

'K' Reg Safrane out of Exeter auctions - 2 litre petrol that had no power but on the motorway sipped the juice - lovely, big boat of a car. Loved it. Then we moved to a county with hills

[flat4alfa]

@catsinthewelder

@Schaefft

@Rob

Hope that helps bring them over here.  I hate Tapatalk too.  It just seems to do everything I want it to do - wrong.

[flat4alfa]

16 hours ago, holbeck said:

I did try to restage the scene from Lovejoy with my Safrane. 

Superb