Renault Grand Espace 3.5 V6
Discussion
I took my brother pick this up last night. Not many left in the UK I believe.
Bit of a worry over a few issues before picking it up but he is glad he didn't write it off as he seemed a genuine seller with a great car.
Took it for a decent test drive and all was well. It's smooth as you like and almost everything works!
Bit of a worry over a few issues before picking it up but he is glad he didn't write it off as he seemed a genuine seller with a great car.
Took it for a decent test drive and all was well. It's smooth as you like and almost everything works!
AFAIK it is the same engine out of the 350z, there probably are some differences. This has 245bhp and pulls nicely.
The dash is the main thing that doesn't work so it will be sent off for fixing asap. He is still using his old car until that is done. It displays everything bar fuel until the headlights are switched on, then it goes off completely. The seller threw in his satnav with the sale to give speed via GPS.
Rear parking sensors don't work and it doesn't accurately pinpoint the location on the in-built satnav, which should just be a new aerial.
Few marks on the body here and there but otherwise it's great. Huge panoramic sunroof works fine as do the elec seats and windows etc.
The dash is the main thing that doesn't work so it will be sent off for fixing asap. He is still using his old car until that is done. It displays everything bar fuel until the headlights are switched on, then it goes off completely. The seller threw in his satnav with the sale to give speed via GPS.
Rear parking sensors don't work and it doesn't accurately pinpoint the location on the in-built satnav, which should just be a new aerial.
Few marks on the body here and there but otherwise it's great. Huge panoramic sunroof works fine as do the elec seats and windows etc.
These are ace 
IMHO the Grand Espace mk4 is the most stylish MPV ever made. It's a shame that the mk5 is not coming to the UK (apparently).
I had a 3.0 V6 diesel version, and loved it. Decent performance and proper wafty French ride.
Parts are unfortunately expensive. I remember being quoted 1500 quid for a new dash cluster, but there are people that repair them. You might need to take it to a main dealer to get it re-coded once it comes back (I had to). Suspension bits etc. were not cheap either and when I had mine there was not much of an aftermarket but maybe it is better/cheaper now.
Only other thing is that it's a big engine in a small space, so some jobs are "engine out". On the diesel the engine needs to come out to change all the belts...18 hours book time, and that's assuming it all fits back together again!
IMHO the Grand Espace mk4 is the most stylish MPV ever made. It's a shame that the mk5 is not coming to the UK (apparently).
I had a 3.0 V6 diesel version, and loved it. Decent performance and proper wafty French ride.
Parts are unfortunately expensive. I remember being quoted 1500 quid for a new dash cluster, but there are people that repair them. You might need to take it to a main dealer to get it re-coded once it comes back (I had to). Suspension bits etc. were not cheap either and when I had mine there was not much of an aftermarket but maybe it is better/cheaper now.
Only other thing is that it's a big engine in a small space, so some jobs are "engine out". On the diesel the engine needs to come out to change all the belts...18 hours book time, and that's assuming it all fits back together again!
The dash is supposed to be a £90 job so hopefully nothing more to it. I will mention the possibility of it needing re-coding.
Access to the engine does look pretty poor, you can see half of it. I'd be surprised if he kept it long enough to need much work (fingers crossed)
Mechanically, it seems sound so far. Hopefully he will only have to deal with the few niggles it has. I don't really know the market prices for these but in my eyes it was a cheap buy and he has a fund for any work as and when it comes up.
The only other thing is a few dents on the body but I don't think he cares.
Doors must just be the lighting in the pic
Access to the engine does look pretty poor, you can see half of it. I'd be surprised if he kept it long enough to need much work (fingers crossed)
Mechanically, it seems sound so far. Hopefully he will only have to deal with the few niggles it has. I don't really know the market prices for these but in my eyes it was a cheap buy and he has a fund for any work as and when it comes up.
The only other thing is a few dents on the body but I don't think he cares.
Doors must just be the lighting in the pic
I don't know why my posts keep doubling up - I've deleted the duplicate above but apologies in advance if this mine rica yes itself.
Hopefully it is just a cheap fix for the dash, but that aside they are great cars - I have a 2.0 turbo diesel Grand Espace as our family wagon and we love it.
Hopefully it is just a cheap fix for the dash, but that aside they are great cars - I have a 2.0 turbo diesel Grand Espace as our family wagon and we love it.
milu said:
Was this the one in Cheshire ? If so I looked at it online but figured it would be too thirsty for my needs. Was really tempted though.
Yes, that's the one.None of my brothers recent cars have been much better, if at all, so it didn't bother him all that much. Once he is driving it regularly I'll find out what sort of figures he gets for anyone interested.
mattknight1984 said:
Why are the doors a different colour to the rest of it?
Might just be the lighting, but I seem to remember that the front wings and bootlid are made of plastic, the doors and bonnet are aluminium, and the rest is steel. So the different materials might have faded the paint at different rates over the years.These cars were expensive to make...
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