1994 Renault Laguna RT from UK and Ireland - Comments

I have only owned the car for a few months, but will add an update once I have had it a bit longer. The car was a trade-in, and had a few visible faults, but with a comprehensive service history with such high miles, I thought I would take the risks. The faults when I got it were a power steering leak, a rattling noise on idle and the sunroof was not operating. The leak was fixed by tightening a loose joint, the rattle was fixed by tightening the exhaust heat shield, and the sunroof was inoperable because of a blown fuse, which was also fixed. After these initial faults were fixed, in 9000 miles the only other problem was the water pump, which was leaking. This was discovered when my mechanic was changing the timing belt, so he fixed that at the same time. The belt change and water pump cost £90.

I think the car still looks fresh, with the dark metallic grey paint on my car. There was a chip in the headlamp and the rear taillamp, but these were both replaced by parts from the scrapyard (£30). The paint does scratch easily. After ownership of my 21 (which was a fantastic and underrated car) I was very impressed with the fit and finish of my Laguna, which was something the 21 lagged behind in compared to its rivals of the time.

The interior is incredibly durable, and the velour seats extremely comfortable, especially over long distances. Its easy to get comfortable because of all the adjustments you can make to the seat and the steering wheel. At 6'1 the headroom is acceptable, but not fantastic.

Mechanically speaking, I feel the car has been branded with an unfair reputation for reliability which is down to high costs and poor service at Renault dealers. Find yourself a trustworthy independent garage, and you will not have a problem with repair bills.

The performance of the car also seems to have gained mixed feelings judging by the reviews on this website. If you use the gears, the car will perform well, but this will seriously harm the economy. Be light footed, and the car is surprisingly economical, especially on the motorway. The 1.8 unit in mine is a fine engine, and is more than capable of powering the car.

Value for money is excellent, with the RT being second from the bottom of the range, but is certainly well equipped, with everything you would expect from something closer to the top of the range!

The boot is a good size, and will easily swallow most loads.

My overall opinion is that a properly maintained Laguna is no more or less reliable than most other family cars of the time. I think it has the edge over most comparable cars because of superior comfort and equipment. I really enjoy my Laguna.

Update: owned the car another few months now. No problems to report except that the heater is not working (air blows fine, but will not get hotter when your turn the dial) this has been traced by my mechanic to a blocked heater matrix, apparently an issue on Lagunas and some other Renaults. Quite a big repair actually, part of the dashboard has to be removed. Luckily I don't have air con, which involves the removal of the whole dashboard. A new matrix itself is only about £50, but the labour for the job will be at least £100! Also, the battery and stop light came on the dash, thought the alternator was shot, but turned out to be a loose connection on the battery which I tightened by hand. Problem solved!

My second hand t reg laguna is one of the best buys I have made in my years of driving cars. the interior is of good quality and well laid out and there is also ample room in the boot. it drives extremely well in all road conditions, and has never let me down mechanically. whats more the overall look of the laguna is very pleasing to the eye and would suit young and old alike.

I have a 1994 model which is still up and running, the only thing is I need a new set of front headlamps as I was told the reflectors are not effective. Any ideas anyone, how I can improve this condition without having to buy a new set.