Advantages: Space, Luxury, Reliable, Easy to drive Disadvantages: Expensive if it goes wrong.
...If you are after luxury at a bargain price you can't do much better than the Renault 25. It's a big car for £1000, or even less, and as long as you follow some golden rules they can run forever. Service history is a must, as with most cars, but more so with the 25. It is full of electronics, from engine management to gearbox and dash-related gizmo's. On the top of the range models is a computer that controls most of the major functions, as well as monitoring the state of the vehicle. If this is faulty, or on the way out, it can cost upwards of £1500 to replace, and the car is scrap without it. On the automatic models the gearbox is controlled by the computer, and it's a sealed unit, so check for any leaks (there is a guage on the dash). As long as you check these items a well looked after car will last for ages without much problem...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Smooth. Comfortable. Luxurious Disadvantages: Now a bit dated
...Advantages: Smooth. Comfortable. Luxurious
Disadvantages: Now very dated
The Renault 25 was the predecessor to the "Safrane", and went out of production around 1992/3.
It was an extremely popular car in France (for obvious reasons) and on the Continent, but never really "caught on" in the U.K. and Ireland. So popular was it in France, in fact, that for nearly its whole lifespan it consistently topped the polls in the luxury car bracket.
I bought a 1986 model of the 25 in 1989, with some 70,000 miles on the clock, and one previous owner. I ran it virtually trouble free for over 4 years, and when I eventually traded it in, I had put the speedo up to 220,000 miles.
In my opinion, this was/is a very under-rated car. It sported many inovative extras for a car of this period, not least of which was the best in-car stereo...
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful