1985 Renault 5 Reviews

I have had two wheel bearings and the carburettor diaphragm replaced.

Slight rust on front right wing and under front window, although for its age, it's not bad at all.

I love everything about this car (almost).

It's light with a kerb weight of only 700kg.

It's fairly nippy for a 1.1.

It looks great.

Not so good up hills ha ha.

Avoid standing water, as this car will rust!

Brake Hoses required replacing. Front to rear pipes on their way out as well.

Alternator issues which turned out to be poor wiring after all.

Interiors wear badly.

Excellent driving position, very comfortable seats that I've never seen on another car. They roll forward and back and are so comfortable.

The engine is a little noisy at 75mph+ in 5th gear, but the other gears are very well spaced and 60mph takes no time at all.

Fuel economy is better that many smaller engined Renaults because the engine doesn't have to work as hard.

Easy to work on compared to other French cars. Expect the unexpected when tackling a problem on these cars though. My alternator problem turned out to be the regulator connections!

Engine has lots of torque, it pulls up hills as well as much larger engined cars, and is a beauty when overtaking going up hill.

Comes with a good electrical spec (electric windows, remote central locking and electronic ignition module) but the electrics need to be looked after.

Handling is nothing like the R5 GT Turbo, but B road performance is still good.

Getting rarer now, but far superior to other standard model Renault 5s. If you can find one, choose it over the other models and you won't regret it.

The car has overheated quite a few times, but this is now fixed by 'careful' driving.

Needed a top engine rebuild, as there was no compression (kindly done by a friend for a few pints).

Heater did not work, same with the fan once the heater was fixed.

Driver side shock absorber fell off (due to poor fitting by the dog of previous owner).

Despite the problems I love my Renault Five. I deliberately chose the mark 1 version, as it had more personality than the newer ones.

I hope to keep it for long and to put it back into pristine condition (eventually).

I don't particularly recommend it for people with no mechanical experience, as it requires some attention. However, if you would like to learn about car mechanics it is a good starting point, I have learned a load already.

Hope no more problems arise!

Brakes (replace with GT Rurbo calipers and disks).

Front suspension is very soft (replace with new harder springs (Koni, Spax, Avon...)

Easy to get parts for because most GT Turbo parts will fit.

Hard to work on under the bonnet because it opens the wrong way.

Handles well with new springs and will look good with GT Turbo bumpers and side skirts.

The usual wear and tear items, brakes, tyres etc.

The most basic and slow car I have ever driven, had a nasty habit of cutting out when pulling away from junctions.

Ran it on buttons, and it always started (eventually!).

It was making all sorts of terminal sounding noises when I got rid of it.

Quite rust resistant, which was surprising as most of the older Renault 5's I see are rustier than the Titanic.

Leaky passenger door seal, results in a puddle in the passenger foot well.

Leaky radiator, replaced most of the coolant system.

Alternator blew and battery leaked, due to old age.

Fantastic first car. Solid as a rock and simple to fix.

Lightness makes for a relatively nippy vehicle, slow to warm up but fairly smooth after that.

Alternator failed at 80,000 miles.

Front brake pads/discs replaced every 2 years. Binding problem never sorted.

Battery replacement.

Water thermostat seized so no heat coming through to the car (shortly after I bought it).

Died at the MOT because of corrosion of the front offside shocker and suspension mounting.

Performance sluggish to say the least, but cheap to run and a comfortable ride. Good town runabout.

Tyres last 2000 miles! Re-tune and oil change every 3 months! Shocks every year, usual service stuff every year.

Central locking, sunroof leaks, oil sensor plays up now and then, front fogs every year.

Very rare model, 1 of 300??? Renault refuse to service it in UK, needs to go to France for computer service.

Carbs always need tuning, but goes fast (115bhp at wheels), lowered 45mm, BB2 exhaust, K&N conversion, electric everything, leather interior, 14" 5 spoke alloys standard!

Only Yokohama make tires for this car.

Drinks petrol! (120miles per tank!)