By Mike.
on 26th Sep 2002
Mike.'s Ratings| Performance | 8/10  |
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| Practicality | 8/10 |
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| Reliability | 8/10 |
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| Value for money | 10/10 |
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| Overall value | 8/10 |
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 Mike.'s recommendation |
Good Points
Strong Engine,
Good Handling (except on economy tyres),
Great Interior,
Very Comfortable,
Very Reliable,
Cheap To Insure,
Full Of Features,
Looks great,
Quiet,
Very practical car.
Can take a huge load of stuff when required!
Bad Points
Slight leak from the sunroof in really bad weather,
Poor rear vision,
Standard stereo & speakers not up to scratch,
Very few other problems.
General Comments
I own an L reg Renault 19 1.4e RN Biarittz which i bought back in April of this year to replace my Vauxhall Astra mark 2 (see my review on that in the Astra section of this site).
It has been the best car that i have owned so far (out of the four since i passed my test).
The car is packed full of features that normally you would find on cars much higher up the specification ladder. Mine came with things like remote central locking, electric sunroof, seat hight adjustment, adjustable headlights, steering adjustment, immobiliser, front and rear fog lights, and of course the all important feature power steering.
The Renault 1.4 energy injection engine is very strong and great for both pottering around town and for those longer journeys. In the mid to upper rev ranges it pulls like a train but lacks a little grunt lower down. However overtaking is effortless and stress free.
The car itself looks great both inside and out. In fact I believe that this car looks better than it's younger sibling the Renault Megane (which also happens to be based on the 19 platform).
Handling is great in the dry but not so good in the wet, although the economy tyres that my car currently has fitted could be a lot to do with it.
I'll know more about the cars handling when winter hits aberdeen properly.
There are no real reliability issues with this car, being the age that it is I expected some minor problems (and got some). It had a dead fan when i got it (cured by a fan from an old scrapped renault 19 costing £5) The radiatior got flushed a few days later. A few weeks back the alternator belt snapped and was replaced and a new expansion tank cap was fitted. I've had no other problems.
All in all the renault 19 has been a great car and i would recommend this one to anyone looking for a cheap reliable car!
