Faults:

Early on when I first bought the car for £350, the clutch cable broke. This has since happened again.

Oil has been leaking out of somewhere for quiet a while. I seem to get through about 1 liter every 2 weeks.

The 11 failed it's M.O.T for having to high emissions, loose steering, rusty suspension mount. All fixed for £120.

The front electric passenger window has never worked since I bought the car.

General Comments:

The car is quiet quirky and you don't see many around.

The stadard equipment is OK, I don't think you would see sliding sunroof, electric windows, remote central locking, front fog lights, rear wash/wipe and aiwa stereo in an F reg fiesta?

The performance is good for a 1.4. I have seen an indicated 105mph and it feels unbreakable.

The poor speakers need to be replaced though.

Faults:

Left and right hand drive-shafts.

Wheel bearing.

Ignition switch.

(It is 17 years old!)

General Comments:

The 11 has never failed me in 4 years.

It cost £70 and I have never broken down in it.

It has always started 1st time.

It returns 55mpg when travelling at 60 MPH.

The front Monotrace seats are supremely comfortable and even paint can be wiped clean from them. I cannot fit in a Laguna or Cavalier but have room for a hat in this car!

The ride is comfortable, the cabin free from wind and road noise, though the engine is a little noisy.

A stone chip has taken 4 years to begin to rust!

Construction is a little flimsy, thus parts often require tightening.

However, as the car has had 11 previous owners, there is evidence that it has been altered in a couple of ways.

The 11 isn't very quick but it feels nippy and has run at an indicated 109 MPH.

Despite a soft ride it corners as if it is on rails, unlike many firmer British, Japanese and German equivalents.

Faults:

Blown head gasket!!! (these are the amount of times it has happened).

Turbo failure.

Distributor drive worm gear cracked and damaged a cam.

Exhaust manifold gasket leak.

Heat shield catching on fire.

Cylinder liner o-ring.

Cracked cylinder liner.

Clutch slip.

Clutch cables!!!

Clutch pedal. This self adjusting mechanism had stop adjusting.

Accelerator linkage on the back of carb.

Accelerator pump diaphragm leak.

Engine mounts (all three of them).

Sub frame crack. Where it mounts to the rear gearbox mount.

Rear brake pad keeps flicking out. This is due to the slow wear over the years on the retaining surface. It was rectified later on as the Clio which uses the same caliper also has retaining bolts.

Cooling system problems such as a heater matrix leak, various water pipes, radiator leak and water pump leak.

Wheel bearing.

Driveshaft constant velocity failure.

Various electrical faults, including relay failures. Harness connection corrosion was the most common.

Door locks refusing to let me in (turned out to be the electrical connections on the rear of the lock).

Fuel tank leak. There is a water trap above the tank and it rusts over time.

Many other little things, have forgotten them over time.

General Comments:

This Renault is seriously underrated! In good working order it is a very capable car. In many people's eyes the 5 Turbo is better. Apart from its appearance, which I would argue against, it will out perform the 5. It only weighs 70kg or so more, does not suffer as much from overheating problems, due to its larger engine bay. The 11 will also handle better as it has a much wider track and wheelbase.