Espace Advice Needed

[RENOMAD]

Hi GUYS,

This week a friend of mine who is a Motor Claims Accessor rang me. He knows of my little Renault Hobby. He said to me that he had recently given the go ahead to write off an immaculate 1996 Espace 2.1DT. He said he wasnt sure of the spec but he thinks it was an Alize. He said that the cost of repair was more than the worth of the car, but that it actually want that bad and that I should consider it. I had contemplated buying some sort of an old Workhorse vehicle just to have it, as I never have the type of vehicle that I need from work, let it be going to the dump or moving stuff around never mind pulling a trailer.Now a dented wing would put me off buying anything never mind buying an Insurance write off but seeing that the salvage yard wasnt too far away I said I would have a look. I went to the yard to have a look and the guy who owns the yard said he wondered how long it would be before I turned up to see it--Its a small country!

Anyway, I was greeted by a truly immaculate dark green Espace with an equally immaculate interior. The minor damage was on the nearside front corner --Bonnet is cracked, bumper is cracked and needs a headlamp and repeater. Other than that, all seems ok. It still has 5 months test, and a full service history AND a towbar. Obviously the cost of a bumper was enough to put this one over...Now I am well aware of thecost of the Panels for these Plastic Espaces but a scout round ebay has already found bonnet in the correct shade of green. Now I do regard myself as being pretty well up on Renaults and the reputation of the Espace in general has been far from good,,,but this age of Espace is a pretty rare sight over here in Ireland as they were a veryrare car here when new due to the purchase price. These cars came along over here when nobody had money hence the rarety and lack of knowledge......My main question being,,Should I bother????

[wuvvum]

These are actually not bad at all. The old 2088cc diesel lump is pretty much unburstable, and this shape of Espace has far less electronic silliness to go wrong than the '97-on shape, so should be pretty reliable. Alizé should have aircon as well. Check for hidden grot on the metal bits, although they're not usually too bad unless they've been damaged in the past. Other than that, it won't be particularly quick and the driving position is a bit odd but as a workhorse I'd say if it's cheap enough then go for it.

[Espacetic]

I've just sold a 1993 2.1td Alize to a friend who hated her 2002 Multipla. She's totally over the moon with it, even though it has 318,000 miles on it. Engine has never been apart, just regular servicing.

My 1994 2.1td Helios is on 184k now and still behaving apart from a heavy clutch.

Only rust on these that's an issue is the door frames. Common faults are laquer peel, internal door handles not working, slow/sticky windows, heater fan only working on number 4, rear central locking not working, clutch cables breaking and rusty fuel tank straps.

All these are easy to rectify though and cost either very little or nothing.

Fuel wise both average 39mpg and should do about 600 miles on a tankfull.

Parts prices are good and it's always worth checking dealer prices, new genuine tank strap £19 compared to rusty second hand one off ebay £20.

They're also a lot quicker than you think as there's no weight in them, mine shock quite a few people!

Even with only 88 bhp, they're certainly quicker off the mark than my 806 HDI 110.

 

As you can tell, I really rate them....

[trigger]

Depending what the price is and the availability of parts over in Ireland I'd say go for it, They drive pretty well from what i can remember, I wasn't keen on the fact the base of the window sits a long way back from the driver with a huge, deep dash making you feel as if your driving from the middle of the car but many people like the driving position.

 

Keep the seats in and take the family on holiday or rip the seats out and you have a decent sized workhorse, You can't go wrong.

[RENOMAD]

Well the fact that this has only 110k on the clock should mean that its only run in!

I'm going to have a closer look tomorrow and get some more pics. He wants 500 euro for it/ about 400 pounds but has another Espace there if I need bits, though more basic and not the same colour .Will try and get some pics and access the situation some more--fingers crossed.

oh by the way---it has locked the keys into itself---anybody know how to get in bar breaking glass?. Battery is flat

[Guest]

Get your Insurance guy to contact the owner - there maybe a spare key.

[Richard]

Make a hook from a coathanger, wedge the top of the door open a little and hook the door button up.

[trigger]

[Richard]

That's always a possibility if you're going to have to find some spare parts anyway. Always do the back driver's side window, you don't need to see through that one.

[dieselnutjob]

Even with only 88 bhp, they're certainly quicker off the mark than my 806 HDI 110.

 

Maybe there's something wrong with your 806 because my 806 HDI is quite quick even fully loaded.

[Guest Leonard Hatred]

Old tech diesels with wastegate turbos have a real whoosh of acceleration that variable nozzle turbos have cancelled out, maybe that's what makes 'tic's Espace feel quicker.

[Pete-M]

My brother owns a '54 plate Espazz 2.2? dci thing. It goes rather well. He's had it from new and it's on about 70k now. It has been totally reliable.

 

Renault quoted him £900 to do the cambelt and water pump on it. Local specialist did it for about £350.

 

Other than that (and the fact he bought it three months old for £19k, list price £27k), it's been a pretty sensible thing to own.

[dieselnutjob]

the 2.0 litre HDI 110bhp doesn't have a variable geometry turbo. It's a standard turbo but with a vacuum controlled wastegate whereas the 90bhp has purely mechanical wastegate. The 110 runs 1.0 bar boost as standard (under ECU control). I'm not sure what the 90bhp is set to.

The gearing might be higher on the HDIs than the Renault 2.1 though

[Guest Leonard Hatred]

I thought it did, the 406 110 I've been a passenger in certainly felt like it had a very linear power delivery compared with older diesels.

[Espacetic]

My HDI has nothing in first but second onwards it gets to 2600 revs and all hell breaks loose. It seems to fly between 50 and 70. Feels a different beast to the Espace.

[dieselnutjob]

I thought it did, the 406 110 I've been a passenger in certainly felt like it had a very linear power delivery compared with older diesels.

 

Although it's not a variable geometry turbo it is computer controlled and I think that the computer will smooth things out if you aren't driving flat out. The simple spring and piston arrangement on the older diesels doesn't quite have the same subtlety of control.

[dieselnutjob]

the other thing with my 806 is that it has no EGR valve, no cat, a slightly bigger intercooler and later model Expert / Dispatch injectors (which have slightly larger nozzles), and all the lubricants are fully synth. I suppose that that lot might make a difference.

Also they say cars run at their best just before they expire and mine has got 205,000 miles on it.....

[Espacetic]

I think the MAF on mine needs changing, it may improve matters.

[RENOMAD]

Well I went for my second viewing yesterday. I'm a bit disappointed I must say. Interior is very clean, by the picnic tables are missing, only 60k on clock with loads of main dealer paperwork to verify incl timing belt done in 2007 at 45k.Started fine but I took a heavier shunt than I had hoped of the ofside front corner.. Bonnet is a gonner, bumper maybe salvagable,headlamp and repeater are ok, but the bumperand and rad has been pushed back and is holed and I presume that the air-con condersor is the same.Headlamp panel also gone back about 1 inche. If you stand back and look at it, it is gone up on that side with a slighly twisted look. Now it probably looks worse than it is.Looks like all the front panel work is quite light so should pull easy enough---any thoughts,,before I walk away...My brother-in -law who is a mechanic recons it isnt too bad,,,,but I am nervous

[George-Roper]

Difficult to say without seeing it but go with your gut instinct. If it says walk away then do so. Its not a rare vehicle you will never see again.