Faults:

Bought with exhaust air flap broken.

General Comments:

I bought the car at a low price because the mileage was high and the service fault light was on. I used to work in the motor trade and the car drove so well that I didn't think it would be expensive to repair. It was €6000 for a 4 year old diesel estate, so a very good price for Ireland.

I read the OBD and it pointed to the exhaust air flap, which is a motorized throttle in the exhaust behind the cat, which partially closes off the exhaust to help the cat warm up. I found a low mileage second hand exhaust section, and once that was fitted (cost of €170 in total) there have been no more mechanical faults in 2½ years.

I replaced both number plate lamps as the internals had corroded, and about 6 months ago replaced the front shock absorbers as one had started to rattle over rough roads. Other than that, it has just needed servicing, consumables and tyres. Also the A/C needed re-gassing when I bought it. It was done 2 years ago and is still working properly.

It's quite a basic trim level,so rather plain inside, but the seats are comfortable, and it's still quite well equipped, with 4 electric windows, parking sensors, Bluetooth, alloy wheels, and the above mentioned A/C. It's quite roomy in the front and back. The driving position can be adjusted to suit almost anyone. The estate has 6cm of extra wheelbase compared with the hatchback. The boot is large.

Performance is adequate, the car cruises easily at 150-160 and noise levels are low. I took it to Austria in 2018 with no problems.

Economy is good, with consumption figures of 4.8 - 5.3 l/100km in mixed use. On a long cruise it's possible to only use 4.5. The range is good, with a tank full lasting for 1000km-1100km, depending on whether it's summer or winter.

The ride is comfortable, just not up to Citroen hydro-pneumatic standards, and the car steers, handles, and grips well.

I had doubts originally about buying a Renault, because of the reputation some older Renaults had, but I asked around and was told that these are bulletproof. Nothing is really perfect, but the car has been great so far over 65k km. Also, it's more stylish than most other estates in its class.

Faults:

Like on our previous road trip two years ago, we did not experience anything major with this car. This car took us wherever we wanted to go with ease.

The only things we don't like about this car are that it only had one cupholder, automatic locking, and a windshield washer that would have been useful, since we had more rainy days on our road trip, and to wipe all the bird poos off it!

General Comments:

Everything went well, from the time we met the guys at Renault Eurodrive to pick up the car for our road trip last April 4, up to the time we returned the car today April 30. We had so much fun with the car, and we went to many places in Europe that cannot be reached by a car. We went to The Hague in the Netherlands, Bottrop, Schloss Hugenpoet, Aachen, Frankfurt and Baden-Baden in Germany, then to Zurich and Luzern in Switzerland, then back to Germany in Garmisch. After that we went to Salzburg and Vienna in Austria. Then to Bratislava for a lunch in one of the famous places there, then off to Prague, Rothenburg Ob Der Tauber, Strasbourg, Reims, Nice, Cannes, Monaco, Fontainbleu, then back to Paris.

The performance of this car is good, although not as good as the one we had two years ago, when we had a 2.0 engine, which was very powerful for the car. Reaching 160+ kph on some stretches of highways is a little bit of a struggle, since the engine of the car is being strained already. The 1.5 engine is not recommended for German Autobahns, where there is no speed limit. I wish we just had the 2.0 engine now. On the positive side, this car is more fuel-efficient. We spent less money on gasoline on this trip.

The GPS is much more responsive now. It recalibrates quicker now, and helped us get to our destination without getting lost, or having to rely on our maps.

I would definitely recommend Renault Eurodrive to anyone who wants to visit Europe. Leasing a car is better, because you can see more of Europe without having to worry about fixed schedules, baggage check-ins, and security checks.

I wish the next owner would enjoy this car and will use it on another road trip. I hope I get to see this car again!