Faults:

New fuel canister, the previous one leaked small amounts of petrol when the engine was first shut off.

The exhaust completely fell off, luckily only 5 minutes walk from home. where the pipes meet between the cat and back box, both ends are reduced, so it doesn't just slot in. The collar which is supposed to hold them together is useless and gradually they come apart.

Water pump leaked without warning, no overheating. This lead to an air-block in the coolant system. Difficult to change, think about having it done with your next cam-belt change. Plus you need to use Renault's own coolant for the system.

Because the water pump died so did the heater matrix. this is a big job to change as the whole dash needs to come out. I haven't bothered yet.

Head gasket is now seeping oil at 100,000 miles.

General Comments:

Overall it's a lovely looking car.

Very Comfortable.

Handles well.

The 1.6 8v gets a bit breathless unless you really red-line it.

Really expensive to keep going.

Bit claustrophobic inside, no room for rear-seat passengers.

The boot opening is tiny.

Faults:

Entire exhaust needed replacing shortly after purchase.

Several oil leaks.

Driver's side locks non-functional.

Brake pads wear out every 6 months!

Etc.

General Comments:

With a mere 90 break horse power available, the Megane's slow pace really becomes a pain. Uphill struggles become power-sappingly mundane and overtaking National Express coaches becomes a long, drawn-out affair.

- Not my words; the words of Top Gear magazine.

Faults:

Catalytic converter has been replaced 4 times since July 2002.

Exhaust mid and back section went at 46000 miles.

Head gasket went at 58000 miles.

Dash lights constantly go out, but come on after you tap/thump the dash.

Ignition coil went at 40000 miles.

Manifold cracked at 41000 miles.

Rattling dash.

Whistling from around window seals at motorway speed.

Rear shock absorbers went at 52000 miles.

General Comments:

I bought the car from a Used section of a Renault Dealer. Within the first 4 months the ignition coil, catalytic converter (twice), manifold, rear shock absorbers needed to be replaced. The dealer refused to replace any of the parts. After many telephone calls he finally agreed to pay for some of the parts. Courtesy cars were never there when promised and I ended up taking nine days off work. I would never buy another Renault car and I would never buy another car from this dealer.

Faults:

Fuel line sensor blown 52000 miles.

Catalytic converter failed 76000 miles.

Cylinder head gasket failed at 75000 miles.

Exhaust and engine valve replaced 70000 miles.

Engine completely destroyed 83000 miles.

General Comments:

Although the car is quite nicely made and comfortable, the litany of (expensive) engine faults mean that I could not recommend anyone to buy one.

The performance of the engine was fine initially and, although not exciting, the cars performance was adequate.

After problems with the exhaust and engine inlet valves, the engine was beset with problems culminating in a cylinder head gasket failure costing about £800 to replace.

About six months later the engine appeared to completely destroy itself by somehow contriving to force oil through the cylinder head, through the cooling system and onto the engine. Result: One dead engine and a decision to scrap this waste of metal.

Avoid.