1990 Renault Espace Quadra 4WD
Discussion
Chuffed. Stoked. Happy as a barn owl in a barn full of mice who’s taking a lady barn owl out on a first date. First picture.
These are axle stands. These are axle stands that are not under the EQ. In the background is a black rubbery thing wrapped around a challenge to anybody with OCD. Which is on the EQ. At the other corners, more of the same. The EQ starts, goes, stops (sort of) and smells of burning WD40. Not sure what hot Hammerite smells of but possibly that too. There are a couple of issues that need sorting but it’s nearly there.
The switch on the left doesn’t work, the one in the middle is on upside down…
…and if that wasn’t enough the handle came off in my hand.
This bit fell off and so far has resisted attempts to put it back.
That’s pretty much it except that the brakes are as soft as a soft thing (the Mk2 I had years ago could (almost) pull stopies), when the handbrake is on it looks like the car has an erection, the balancing weights on the inside of the rims are rubbing on the callipers. Also, it’s been so long I had to look up where the bonnet release is. Before starting her up I took out the plugs and turned her over a couple of times, the plug furthest back was covered in oil, which should have been fixed by replacing the rocker cover gasket.
Then see if the viscous coupling is OK.
Then there’s only the drivers door window, which is struggling to go up. Just as well that door card is coming off again.
The outside is covered in crud, the paint is poo, the inside could do with a shampoo. So, quick rub round with a damp sponge and we’re good to go.
Oh, and the front bumper needs to come off, one of the brackets has rusted through. Handle on the back door needs a spot of fixing. Sun rooves. Slam panel. Headlamp adjusters. Fog lights. Just as well the bumper is coming off. Radio code. Apart from that we’re good to go.
Except of course for the headlining for the back which I have in a box somewhere. And the roof rack thing is a bit duff.
When I started typing this I was feeling good. Now, not so much so.
RoverP6B. Turbo! Sacrilege. I did wonder if the V6 would fit though. Be ready to try in about ten years.
These are axle stands. These are axle stands that are not under the EQ. In the background is a black rubbery thing wrapped around a challenge to anybody with OCD. Which is on the EQ. At the other corners, more of the same. The EQ starts, goes, stops (sort of) and smells of burning WD40. Not sure what hot Hammerite smells of but possibly that too. There are a couple of issues that need sorting but it’s nearly there.
The switch on the left doesn’t work, the one in the middle is on upside down…
…and if that wasn’t enough the handle came off in my hand.
This bit fell off and so far has resisted attempts to put it back.
That’s pretty much it except that the brakes are as soft as a soft thing (the Mk2 I had years ago could (almost) pull stopies), when the handbrake is on it looks like the car has an erection, the balancing weights on the inside of the rims are rubbing on the callipers. Also, it’s been so long I had to look up where the bonnet release is. Before starting her up I took out the plugs and turned her over a couple of times, the plug furthest back was covered in oil, which should have been fixed by replacing the rocker cover gasket.
Then see if the viscous coupling is OK.
Then there’s only the drivers door window, which is struggling to go up. Just as well that door card is coming off again.
The outside is covered in crud, the paint is poo, the inside could do with a shampoo. So, quick rub round with a damp sponge and we’re good to go.
Oh, and the front bumper needs to come off, one of the brackets has rusted through. Handle on the back door needs a spot of fixing. Sun rooves. Slam panel. Headlamp adjusters. Fog lights. Just as well the bumper is coming off. Radio code. Apart from that we’re good to go.
Except of course for the headlining for the back which I have in a box somewhere. And the roof rack thing is a bit duff.
When I started typing this I was feeling good. Now, not so much so.
RoverP6B. Turbo! Sacrilege. I did wonder if the V6 would fit though. Be ready to try in about ten years.
Back in November 2013, it looked like this...
...we knew the car was solid, but it was still touch and go over whether
or not its next stop was the breakers. The only downside is the hours and
hours of searching for parts, especially making good assessments over the
reliability of suppliers. Some make a killing by charging the unwary several
of our British Pounds for rare parts still available for the same British
Pennies from Renault Dealers, of all places? Beware the word "Uprated"!
Regards,
Steve
...we knew the car was solid, but it was still touch and go over whether
or not its next stop was the breakers. The only downside is the hours and
hours of searching for parts, especially making good assessments over the
reliability of suppliers. Some make a killing by charging the unwary several
of our British Pounds for rare parts still available for the same British
Pennies from Renault Dealers, of all places? Beware the word "Uprated"!
Regards,
Steve
The pedal rubber. Soak in fairly hot water for 10 mins, then nothing
more than a smidge of lubricant, (swarfega or petroleum jelly) on
underside corners opposite where its nibbed. Maybe best applied to
the pedal. Either way, wipe your hands completely clean before
attempting to fit. Push away from end with the nib - letting that end
flex enough for t'other to clip over the top.
New rubber set _might_ be available from Renault. The truth about
parts is that someone in the "historic" department has enough clout
to order parts for cars booked on rallies and other jollies. For example,
my Driver's Door was brand new from France with a stocking date
of July 2013, near on 20 years after R5 production ceased.
Regards,
Steve
more than a smidge of lubricant, (swarfega or petroleum jelly) on
underside corners opposite where its nibbed. Maybe best applied to
the pedal. Either way, wipe your hands completely clean before
attempting to fit. Push away from end with the nib - letting that end
flex enough for t'other to clip over the top.
New rubber set _might_ be available from Renault. The truth about
parts is that someone in the "historic" department has enough clout
to order parts for cars booked on rallies and other jollies. For example,
my Driver's Door was brand new from France with a stocking date
of July 2013, near on 20 years after R5 production ceased.
Regards,
Steve
Loving this thread, like many I never knew there was a Quadra version of the Espace.
For years I worked near a clockmakers who owned a dark metallic blue 19 Quadra Turbo. Renaults answer to the Sierra Cosworth. So much love for that car. Tried to buy it several times but the owner wasn’t letting go, or when he put a price on it, it was daft money.
No idea if there are any left.
For years I worked near a clockmakers who owned a dark metallic blue 19 Quadra Turbo. Renaults answer to the Sierra Cosworth. So much love for that car. Tried to buy it several times but the owner wasn’t letting go, or when he put a price on it, it was daft money.
No idea if there are any left.
Last Saturday had a lay down under the EQ. When I woke up the hand brake adjuster had been adjusted. Sleeping on the job, not as bad a thing as it's made out to be.
Last Sunday did this...
So far so good. But to get the ali. frame off / out you need to drill out rivets. To get at the rivets you need to pull the headlining away from around the frame. Headlining is made of felt type stuff with orange foam backing which has been glued to the roof. Pull it and the felt distorts and what 30 years ago was foam and is now dust falls out / down / all over your face. Top tip for anybody doing this job, vacuum cleaner!
In the end ended up taking the all the headlining off and binning it. Looks like I’ll be getting new for the whole roof instead of trying to stick the ropey old bit back in the back.
For scale those are my toes.
Have you ever tried vacuuming a ceiling? Not so clever. Then drill the rivets. Then vacuum up the bits of swarf. Then take the dog for a walk and discover that there’s a bit of swarf stuck in your jumper and it really is uncomfortable but that it’s embarrassing to be pawing at your nipple area in public.
These are the bolts that held the glass to the hinges and leaver. They are rusty. They were a pig to get out. It took two days and a lot of penetrating oil. As far as I can tell, spare parts for this particular sunroof are non-existent. Probably not a good idea to break the glass.
By comparison, the rest of stripping down the ‘roof was a piece of bun.
Only problem is that in drilling out the rivets, the ends are rattling about inside the ali. extrusion. That’s going to be annoying.
Next. Do the same for the front sunroof. That’s the one with all the silicon rubber on it. The one that leaks. So for the next month or so, shall be doing that.
Last Sunday did this...
So far so good. But to get the ali. frame off / out you need to drill out rivets. To get at the rivets you need to pull the headlining away from around the frame. Headlining is made of felt type stuff with orange foam backing which has been glued to the roof. Pull it and the felt distorts and what 30 years ago was foam and is now dust falls out / down / all over your face. Top tip for anybody doing this job, vacuum cleaner!
In the end ended up taking the all the headlining off and binning it. Looks like I’ll be getting new for the whole roof instead of trying to stick the ropey old bit back in the back.
For scale those are my toes.
Have you ever tried vacuuming a ceiling? Not so clever. Then drill the rivets. Then vacuum up the bits of swarf. Then take the dog for a walk and discover that there’s a bit of swarf stuck in your jumper and it really is uncomfortable but that it’s embarrassing to be pawing at your nipple area in public.
These are the bolts that held the glass to the hinges and leaver. They are rusty. They were a pig to get out. It took two days and a lot of penetrating oil. As far as I can tell, spare parts for this particular sunroof are non-existent. Probably not a good idea to break the glass.
By comparison, the rest of stripping down the ‘roof was a piece of bun.
Only problem is that in drilling out the rivets, the ends are rattling about inside the ali. extrusion. That’s going to be annoying.
Next. Do the same for the front sunroof. That’s the one with all the silicon rubber on it. The one that leaks. So for the next month or so, shall be doing that.
Not A Petrol Head said:
Only problem is that in drilling out the rivets, the ends are rattling about inside the ali. extrusion. That’s going to be annoying.
Waxoil or dinitrol in the extrusion, it'll set up and hold the bits down. Careful there aren't any other holes though, it could dribble out when the suns beating down on it. Not a problem with box sections under the car! Edited for speeling
The infill pieces for the holes in the roof are waiting parts / work / enthusiasm so have been ruining other bits. Item 1, the handle for the tailgate.
It turns out that to get the thing out of the car all the bits of the lock mechanism have to be taken out / loosened off / dropped into deep deep crevices.
A bit of stinking out the place trying to weld up the crack with a soldering iron and then a small bucket of JB weld (epoxy resin with stuff in, not welding at all. I feel so let down) and it’s ready to go back on but I’m not going to do that ‘cos that’s just what THEY would expect. No. I’m going to leave it off ‘till I’ve figured out what colour to paint the EQ. THEY’LL never see that coming. Don’t hold your breath.
As an aside, after I’d done all that I found that you can get the part on line. Do I want the fix to break so that I have to order a new part, or do I want it to hold so I don’t have to take the thing to pieces again? Is that a quandary or a dilemma?
Any way, from the following pictures, in one word or less, make up your own story.
And then a lot of drilling and at least one hurt finger late...
That could have something to do with why the fog lights don't appear to be working. Rusty as a badgers arse (it’s a little known fact that badgers have a fondness for ferrous metal and hence rusty bums. This must be true ‘cos you’re reading it on the internet and THEY wouldn’t let false info, or even down right lies, get out).
And finally, going to need a new one of these as this us why the bumper had to come off in the first place.
ndg. Top tip. Might have a little test, see when things get runny. Black painted sunroof frame is going to get warm if it’s left out in the sun. Builders foam?
It turns out that to get the thing out of the car all the bits of the lock mechanism have to be taken out / loosened off / dropped into deep deep crevices.
A bit of stinking out the place trying to weld up the crack with a soldering iron and then a small bucket of JB weld (epoxy resin with stuff in, not welding at all. I feel so let down) and it’s ready to go back on but I’m not going to do that ‘cos that’s just what THEY would expect. No. I’m going to leave it off ‘till I’ve figured out what colour to paint the EQ. THEY’LL never see that coming. Don’t hold your breath.
As an aside, after I’d done all that I found that you can get the part on line. Do I want the fix to break so that I have to order a new part, or do I want it to hold so I don’t have to take the thing to pieces again? Is that a quandary or a dilemma?
Any way, from the following pictures, in one word or less, make up your own story.
And then a lot of drilling and at least one hurt finger late...
That could have something to do with why the fog lights don't appear to be working. Rusty as a badgers arse (it’s a little known fact that badgers have a fondness for ferrous metal and hence rusty bums. This must be true ‘cos you’re reading it on the internet and THEY wouldn’t let false info, or even down right lies, get out).
And finally, going to need a new one of these as this us why the bumper had to come off in the first place.
ndg. Top tip. Might have a little test, see when things get runny. Black painted sunroof frame is going to get warm if it’s left out in the sun. Builders foam?
Not A Petrol Head said:
P.S. DaveL485. Renault 21 Turbo Quadra. I think it’s the same gearbox as well. 77 00 599 159?
Different box, the 21 one is a lot stronger.Projectblue51 said:
Loving this thread, like many I never knew there was a Quadra version of the Espace.
For years I worked near a clockmakers who owned a dark metallic blue 19 Quadra Turbo. Renaults answer to the Sierra Cosworth. So much love for that car. Tried to buy it several times but the owner wasn’t letting go, or when he put a price on it, it was daft money.
No idea if there are any left.
There was never a 19 Quadra, nor was there a 19 Turbo. The competitor to the Sierra was the 21 Turbo (2wd) and 21 Turbo Quadra. There are maybe 40 or 50 2wd left in the UK, and est 20 to 25 Quadra. For years I worked near a clockmakers who owned a dark metallic blue 19 Quadra Turbo. Renaults answer to the Sierra Cosworth. So much love for that car. Tried to buy it several times but the owner wasn’t letting go, or when he put a price on it, it was daft money.
No idea if there are any left.
I think 4wd wise Renault did the 21 in Turbo and NA form (TXi), the Espace, the Safrane and that was it until the abysmal Scenic RX4.
Humm. Any way, eventually got the sun roof’s (roves?) sorted and ready to go back in but there’s no point putting them back in ‘till the roof has been painted and there’s no point just doing the roof without doing the rest of the body ‘cos, well … just ‘cos. Any way, ‘cos…
....and...
…this…
…and then the rest of the body. Where the paint had already come off, the bodywork was all pitted and horrid, so needed body filler. Were it was still good, the lacquer was still good and that stuff is a bugger to get off. It took about a day to do a section. Four sections on each side, the bonnet and boot door plus roof. That’s a lot of days with the occasional “sod this for a game of soldiers” every now and then, that’s months and months. Oh, my arms. Oh, my fingers. Oh, my lungs. Still, there do seem to have been a lot of adverts for masks of late, or is that just the search algorithms tailoring things? Any way, lacquer, it’s a bugger
However, what should look like this…
…ended up looking like…
…’cos it turns out the bugger is fitted into a metal plate that is riveted onto the glass fiber and if you don’t realise this you end up having to get your Airfix glue out and do this…
Any way, I have now embarked on a “teach yourself how to spray paint” course from the correspondence collage of Not A Clue. First tip, get a bigger compressor. Much bigger. Second tip, order more paint. Your first, second and almost certainly third go at painting will need to be rubbed back ‘cos that stuff just wants to run off the panels. That’s a day rubbing and drying and tac raging to get the blasted dust off. That or the paint won’t cover. And you’ll use a fair bit spraying the wall trying to get the gun set up. This is one of the better bits of undercoat…
Third tip. Solvent filters on your mask. Man did I have some weird dreams that night.
My thinking is that just about the time when the weather gets too cold to paint I’ll be ready for the colour. So, another winter in the garage.
All in all, the EQ is almost there.
....and...
…this…
…and then the rest of the body. Where the paint had already come off, the bodywork was all pitted and horrid, so needed body filler. Were it was still good, the lacquer was still good and that stuff is a bugger to get off. It took about a day to do a section. Four sections on each side, the bonnet and boot door plus roof. That’s a lot of days with the occasional “sod this for a game of soldiers” every now and then, that’s months and months. Oh, my arms. Oh, my fingers. Oh, my lungs. Still, there do seem to have been a lot of adverts for masks of late, or is that just the search algorithms tailoring things? Any way, lacquer, it’s a bugger
However, what should look like this…
…ended up looking like…
…’cos it turns out the bugger is fitted into a metal plate that is riveted onto the glass fiber and if you don’t realise this you end up having to get your Airfix glue out and do this…
Any way, I have now embarked on a “teach yourself how to spray paint” course from the correspondence collage of Not A Clue. First tip, get a bigger compressor. Much bigger. Second tip, order more paint. Your first, second and almost certainly third go at painting will need to be rubbed back ‘cos that stuff just wants to run off the panels. That’s a day rubbing and drying and tac raging to get the blasted dust off. That or the paint won’t cover. And you’ll use a fair bit spraying the wall trying to get the gun set up. This is one of the better bits of undercoat…
Third tip. Solvent filters on your mask. Man did I have some weird dreams that night.
My thinking is that just about the time when the weather gets too cold to paint I’ll be ready for the colour. So, another winter in the garage.
All in all, the EQ is almost there.
Secret The Pachyderms
?
??
Gareth / SJA
Yes, I remember. At the time I had a Mk.2 Espace. Years later I had a partner who was and had been on massive amounts of prescription morphine/Fentanyl. It wasn’t that that killed her. Harold Shipman was, from my experiences of clinicians, an exception.
Something like 42,000 GPs in England. If a tenth of one percent are grossly in breach of their Hippocratic oath, there are 42 potential Shipmans out there. If 0.01%, perhaps 4. I hope there are none.
?
??
Gareth / SJA
Yes, I remember. At the time I had a Mk.2 Espace. Years later I had a partner who was and had been on massive amounts of prescription morphine/Fentanyl. It wasn’t that that killed her. Harold Shipman was, from my experiences of clinicians, an exception.
Something like 42,000 GPs in England. If a tenth of one percent are grossly in breach of their Hippocratic oath, there are 42 potential Shipmans out there. If 0.01%, perhaps 4. I hope there are none.
Not A Petrol Head said:
Secret The Pachyderms
?
??
Gareth / SJA
Yes, I remember. At the time I had a Mk.2 Espace. Years later I had a partner who was and had been on massive amounts of prescription morphine/Fentanyl. It wasn’t that that killed her. Harold Shipman was, from my experiences of clinicians, an exception.
Something like 42,000 GPs in England. If a tenth of one percent are grossly in breach of their Hippocratic oath, there are 42 potential Shipmans out there. If 0.01%, perhaps 4. I hope there are none.
What ever happened to your quadra? If you're still here that is. If it's not gone any further forwards then I'd love to give it a home with my other 6 mk1 espaces! ?
??
Gareth / SJA
Yes, I remember. At the time I had a Mk.2 Espace. Years later I had a partner who was and had been on massive amounts of prescription morphine/Fentanyl. It wasn’t that that killed her. Harold Shipman was, from my experiences of clinicians, an exception.
Something like 42,000 GPs in England. If a tenth of one percent are grossly in breach of their Hippocratic oath, there are 42 potential Shipmans out there. If 0.01%, perhaps 4. I hope there are none.
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