Renault Clio hatchback (2013-2019) | owner reviews: MPG, Problems & Reliability

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Worst car I have ever driven. Mine is dangerously sluggish when accelerating on full throttle. The gearbox is jerky on full throttle and sometimes when my foot is off the accelerator after changing gear. It only drives smoothly when I'm driving slowly and is not to be trusted for fast driving. The steering feels very light which makes me a bit uneasy as sudden steering at high speeds can make the car turn dangerously and violently – it doesn't take corners well, it feels like its about to skid or topple over which is very frightening around roundabouts. When taking bends at 23mph it should not respond like that. The only good thing about the car is it's stylish looks. I got a service light just after driving it for 1300 miles.

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No Red thumbs down

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I bought this car from a main dealer in Swansea. It had just over 1000 miles on it and was approx three months old. It has been maintained by the dealership, all belts changed, water pump, and servicing performed as per manufacturer's recommendations. It is used for my daily commute mostly motorway. I have had a few issues. Wind noise is a problem at motorway speeds and the door seals are weak. They have been replaced twice with a small improvement. The door frame was actually bent to try and cure the problem. A headlamp began to mist up for no reason. The dealership said it was a due to a crack in the lamp. Eventually a service engineer said that it was a fault and the lamp was replaced only after Renault UK got involved. The alternator went at about 60,000 miles and was replaced under warranty as was an anti pollution component before that. You would expect the dealership to take these matters up on your behalf and not have to spend your own time liaising between the dealership and their HQ. Generally I have been pleased with the car itself, it's design and comfort with reasonable build quality and economy. However, a few weeks weeks after its last minor service at 108,890 miles which included disks and brake pads it broke down. Apparently the turbo has blown causing internal damage to the engine. The estimate for repair was in excess of £5,000 with no guarantee that that would fix the problem. Effectively it's written off a car that is barely five years old and with the current mileage worth less than the cost of the repair! As the failure occurred just outside the manufacturers warranty I have taken this up with Renault UK. I am now waiting for Renault UK to investigate further to see what options I will have if any! I'm told by other owners I have spoken to that turbo failure can be an issue as little as 50k miles. Either way I would have expected the unit to have lasted far longer than it has. You would also expected a well maintained car to give more reliable service despite an above average mileage. Renault UK came back to me offering 25% off the bill as a 'good will' gesture or a voucher for £750 towards the cost of a new car!

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No Red thumbs down

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Really happy with my Clio , love the look of it in black and white very stylish look . Had no problems so far and after care service really good.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Comfortable little car. Smooth ride with a nice little engine. The interior isn't as bad as what is stated. The traditional cheap plastic interior is replaced with smooth finishes and decorative gloss. A thing to mention is the view out the rear window is limited. But, you can get an optional rear and front sensor fitted at any point. The new Clios come with a 7" central display as standard, which has sat-nav, radio, a choice of media inputs (Audio jack, USB, or Bluetooth), but unfortunately the usb won't charge phones or iPods. The car doesn't use regular keys, instead a card shaped key that the car senses, so it can be left in your pocket, so no fiddling around with an ignition, though you can insert it into a slot if need be, and you get the fun of pressing a START button. There is an emergency key inside of the card, which can be pulled out and used to unlock from the passenger side. In terms of space in the car, being a tall gent myself, I've found it quite spacious, and even with my seat pushed back, there is still plenty of room behind for a pair of legs.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Worst car ever! Incredibly unreliable..... Returned for repair around 15 times in less than 2 years. Faults include power steering faults, wipers inoperable, full beam inoperable, horn inoperable TWICE! Window motor fault. On top of that the car has had two safety recalls on the brakes. The centre console jumps /skips when Bluetooth and satnav both in use. Renault have not taken into account right hand drivers, window demists quicker on the left, start button on left, phone speaker on left (sounds like under water to other person). On top of that, Renault are not good at customer aftercare, they pretty much take your money and then hate it if you have to bring the car in for repairs (which you probably will have to).

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No Red thumbs down

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Although this car looks great and drives nicely, this is the most unreliable car I have ever owned. It has been back to the main dealer many times (approx 10-12 times) for various faults. I have had five parts replaced in a year and a half and two safety recalls for brakes. Full beam broke, the horn broke, the car sometimes didn't lock, the wipers stay on after locking the car, I've had a power steering fault and the driver's window makes a noise. The media system is good, although when connected to Bluetooth playing music is jumpy. There's not much headroom in the back for taller passengers. Engine is nippy (not in eco mode) for such a small displacement - making tax cheap, however when it's not in eco mode the mpg reduces significantly. Finishes inside are quite nice but metallic finishes on dashboard reflects the sun into your eyes when it's sunny. Overall it's a nice car but not a brand I will buy from again.

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No Red thumbs down

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I have had my Clio since new and had no issues. It's very light on fuel on long journeys, but for short trips it's average on fuel consumption. One recall by Renault to sort out brakes, plus the car came back cleaned. Happy driving!

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Looks fantastic in bright red. Very comfy interior. The bad things are: Unexplained clutch judder when pulling off. The car is on its second clutch already. Very low power, useless on hills. No proper spare wheel, just one of those toy ones. MP3 only, no CD player. I much preferred my old 1999 Megane, which lasted nearly 15 years with no problems.

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No Red thumbs down

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I have had Renaults since 2001 and can honestly say that they have always been reliable, my latest Renault has more on the gadgets side which I am just getting to grips with. The turbo engine has a bit of a kick so the gas doesn't need a lot pressure in the town although the Eco button is great for making the fuel go further and the cruise control is great for the motorway. I have a thumbs up from my family who also have Renaults, no problems even though I have read a few different reviews that have been negative, so far so good. I love my new Renault.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Im a fan of Renaults. After previously owning a Twingo, my sister currently owning a Clio - her's is the i-music edition - and partner owning a Megane coupe all without any problems or breakdowns i decided to get myself another Renault. I got a 12 plate model, which is the older version of the Clio, which to me was good as the price i paid was £7,800 which two years earlier was about £14,000 brand new! To me, a second hand car buyer, that's a bargain, probably not to the seller. The car has 17,000 miles on it and still feels new. My Clio is white has 16 inch gun metal alloy wheels on the outside and it really looks special. Inside it has part leather seats, TomTom and piano black inserts. I think Renault added a few extras to the clio in 2011/2012 to keep attracting buyers before the new model came out. As earlier models do not have the piano black inserts and part leather. The 1.2 is enough most of the time for my driving, I did originally want the 1.2 TCE however after driving the 1.2 I thought I'd save the cash as I only travel to the next village for work. I have been on the motorway a few times with it however. I do feel it is a bit underpowered for the weight of the car if you do use it on motorways getting unto speed. Getting from 60 to 70-80 is quick enough as the engine is revving at 3500 rpm. It's perfectly capable on A+B roads. You do have to change down quite a bit for overtaking and going up hill which is to be expected. My sister has the 1.5 DCi engine and it really is quick. Picks up speed effortlessly even up hill! and she gets an average of 55 mpg, doing 80+ on motorway commutes. My 1.2 varies between 38-45 depending how heavy footed i am and the type of road. Only problem with my little Clio is that the clutch pedal squeaks when de-pressing, however after a bit of WD40 I don't notice it as much anymore. Also turning the stereo up helps. The TomTom built in sat-nav is very easy to use and I like how you can change the image to different cars and even Spongebob Squarepants, downloaded from the TomTom store. The Bluetooth works all of the time with no dropout and I always use it to play music. The speakers are great, very good bass and goes very loud without distortion. Seats are comfortable and can travel long distances very easily. The car comes loaded with kit for the money! -Sat-nav -auto lights -auto wipers -cruise control -speed limiter -bluetooth -RCA input -electric mirrors -part leather Overall I'm very happy with the car, would recommend this car to everyone as there is a lot of kit, choice of engines and in this spec very upmarket. I can imagine the lower specs I wouldn't be as nice place to be or as pleasant to drive.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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At first look the car is fantastic. The interior is very good quality, with nice touches. The problem I have is a poor automatic transmission and low fuel economy. The auto box is clunky and sometimes reluctant to engage the next gear. At 30 mph in drive, it will only be in 3 rd gear. This obviously means a low fuel return. In semi mode, it sometimes needs more than two attempts to get into the next gear. One other dislike, is that the front wings are plastic and not metal.

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No Red thumbs down

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Excellent reliability so far

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No Red thumbs down

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Yes Green thumbs up

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HAD NO ISSUES

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Yes Green thumbs up

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Yes Green thumbs up

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very good

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No Red thumbs down

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No Red thumbs down

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My brother purchased the Clio new, it was passed onto me in 2004 @ 6000 miles when he emigrated to Australia, it's completely reliable and has never broken down or failed to start, every part on the car is factory original, only requiring the usual service parts such as breaks and one exhaust.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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PRITY GOOD

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Always gets where you want but a few problems in not very much time

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No Red thumbs down

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Apart from routine servicing has been a good car considering what I paid fo it.

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No Red thumbs down

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No Red thumbs down

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No Red thumbs down

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Never had a problem

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Yes Green thumbs up

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No Red thumbs down

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No Red thumbs down

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No Red thumbs down

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Never had a problem with anything

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No Red thumbs down

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It is really reliable.

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No Red thumbs down

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Perfect so far

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No Red thumbs down

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Clio sunroof leaks !!!

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No Red thumbs down

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I've had the engine die on me once, which was weird. I got it jump started and it was fine but no one can work out whart happened

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No Red thumbs down

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no problems with starting. never broken down.

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No Red thumbs down

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Only had the car 3 months and one problem early on. A petrol gauge that when it reaches the 3/4 full mark and then when restarted shows a full tank of fuel. If only this was not fault but a bit of Renault magic.

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Always starts!

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Does low mileage and in my 7 years owning it the major parts that have been replaced are one battery and starter motor. MOTs have been no problem. Service costs have also been low. It does do low mileage!

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No Red thumbs down

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Been in and out of garage

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Car is very reliable, never breaks down (touch wood), I usually pay about Ł180 for MOT and repairs for the year.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No problems

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No Red thumbs down

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ONLY THING WRONG ARE THE TYRE PRESSURE SENSORS, THEY ARE A PAIN IN THE COLD OR WET.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No Red thumbs down

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Only relatively minor problems

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Very low annual mileage. No problems to date.

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No Red thumbs down

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Not had any issues whatsoever - it's bulletproof!

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No problems to date and nothing feels like it will go wrong.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No real problems - yet.

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No Red thumbs down

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A few problems, but reliability overall good.

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No Red thumbs down

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Largely reliable, although had an issue within 2 years with a starter error and within 3 years with rear parking sensors. Both were reparied under warranty.

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No Red thumbs down

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Not missed a beat so far

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No Red thumbs down

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Perfect! Never failed on me

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Never had a problem, always starts first time..........great!

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Yes Green thumbs up

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steering failed 28000 miles

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No Red thumbs down

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Car has been perfect, feels very solidly built.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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No Red thumbs down

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So far I have had no issues at all

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Yes Green thumbs up

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no faults in 4 years, considering its a driving instructors car

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Never have problems with the car. Only problems related to it are when the Renault dealer services it and doesn't attach the undertray properly. 2 years in a row I have been cruising back up the motorway with the undertray scuffing along the road !!

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Was ok until Last week when the battery died and I had a car that would not start

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No Red thumbs down

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not had any probs in time had it

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No Red thumbs down

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Hasn't let me down - yet - despite its other many faults.

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No Red thumbs down

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It always starts first time every time and it gets me from a to b without any problems.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Always does well at mot's and runs smoothly

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No Red thumbs down

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no issues

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No Red thumbs down

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Serviced regularly and never lets us down

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Yes Green thumbs up

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just starting to get rattles

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No Red thumbs down

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Car has been faultless

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Yes Green thumbs up

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all ok

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Twice the fuel filler cap would not open

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Small electrical problems and complete failure of the front windscreen wiper motor.

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No Red thumbs down

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No Red thumbs down

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Excellent

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Yes Green thumbs up

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BROKEN DOWN ONCE ONLY IN 18MONTHS OWNERSHIP

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Yes Green thumbs up

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In the 12 months I've owned the car I have not had any problems with it being unreliable

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Yes Green thumbs up

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runs great. checked out by my mechanic too.. all in excellent condition.

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Haven't had any problems with the car

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Yes Green thumbs up

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Not a single fault in over 2 years of ownership

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Yes Green thumbs up

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I've only had to sort out a leaky sunroof and flat battery in the time i've owned it.

Would you recommend the car to a friend?

Yes Green thumbs up

Renault Clio hatchback (2013-2019): owner reviews

"The Renault Clio is good to drive and looks great, but on the inside it’s some way off rivals, which offer more space and are better made"

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