Read this before you buy a Renault!

Unfortunately, I will never buy or recommend anyone to buy a Renault ever again. When I originally bought a Renault everyone warned me but I didn't listen.

The problem is not the vehicle itself. Aside from a few problems, which I expected considering I was not paying for the premium brands, I have never had an issue with my vehicle. With Renault, what you buy is what you get. Yes, it's cheap and you get all the perks of VW, Toyota, BMW, Hyundai, and Benz but make no mistake, the build quality is 100% Renault.

Regardless, I was set to service my vehicle in August of 2019, during this time I was unfortunately unable to book the service and although I did attempt to call my local dealership all calls were unsuccessful either not making it through to the dealership or when I do get through I get transferred and the call never gets picked up, the phone just dies. When I do eventually have an opportunity to physically go to the dealership and book a service, I am informed that I will have to pay for the service.

Okey, initially I am upset. The reason mostly pertains to the fact that my wife's Hyundai Grand i10 was 2 years over the service date and Hyundai still serviced it free of charge and maintained the warranty on her vehicle. Thumbs up! Being new to this experience, I did a bit of research and found out that it is not uncommon for OEMS to deny the service and void certain areas of the warranty should you not get your vehicle serviced on time. So, I understand, it's my responsibility, but still, I attempt to contact Renault customer care to explain to them my personal reasons for not servicing my vehicle on time and the fact that I did contact the dealership but was never able to get through to the servicing department to book a service and I had to physically go to the dealership to book a service. The consultant I spoke to, I think his name was Stephen, was extremely rude ignoring everything I had to say and kept interrupting me and repeating that my warranty was completely void and Renault would no longer pay for my services.

I can understand the fact that I missed my vehicle service date but at least give me some goodwill considering the factors. I mean the fact that Hyundai was willing to service and maintain a vehicle's warranty 2 years after its service date says a lot about their trust in their vehicles, can't say the same for Renault. Anyway, being the person I am, I decided to do some investigation to determine whether I would have any legal grounds to take the case further. Obviously, Renault has airtight terms and conditions and if you read through it, it seems more like they are inclined to look for any possible situation to not take responsibility for your broken vehicle. No doubt, a quick look through the recent reviews on Hellopeter and other sites reveal a similar experience by customers. Don't believe me, go read the terms and conditions for yourself and look at the reviews.

A little word of advice for anyone considering buying a Renault and happens to come across this review: it says something of a product if the very manufacturer has such little trust in their own brand they are willing to look for any possible escape from responsibility.

So I take responsibility for the costs of the service, no problem, Renault won't even reinstate my warranty as a sign of goodwill. They obviously don't owe it to me, but once again it says something about their trust in their own brand. So let bygones be bygones, it is what it is.

This is what got me mad: Phoning Renault customer care was almost as difficult as trying to get a hold of the service department at the Renault Dealership. I struggled for hours, constantly having the phone ****ed in my ear or getting through to a monotonous voice telling me to record a message. This was during normal work hours as stated on their website. The customer care consultant who I spoke to was rude, repeating constantly that my warranty was void and that Renault would no longer pay for ANY services. WRONG!!! This is misinformation at its best and it scares me at his attempt to convince me that this is the case. What is Renault trying to achieve?

Firstly, a short read of the terms of conditions will reveal that your warranty is not completely void. The only case that your warranty will not be valid for is if something breaks that directly relates to the fact that you did not have your vehicle serviced on time. This is in the terms and conditions which to my understanding are legally binding, don't let Renault convince you otherwise!!!

Secondly, if you missed a service this does not mean that Renault is not liable for the services after that service. As long as you continue to service your vehicle on-time Renault is still liable for the services after that service.

I phoned Renault Customer Care to question them on these terms and conditions and it became apparent that they either very misinformed or devious and trying to convince their customers that there is no way but to accept their fate and pay for the costs. It seemed more like I had caught their consultants red-handed trying to misinform me and they were set on trying to cover themselves and justify their excuses for answers. The consultant was at a loss of words and eventually when they couldn't answer me said she is going to transfer me to someone, then she transferred me to a dead line and the phone died. Shameful!!!!

It is sickening that this brand that I chose to support screams from their heads to their toes, "we don't trust our own products". 5-year warranty, seems nice, right? It doesn't mean jack if you have violated one of the terms which they don't even list on their website. Why? Because obviously it's not a selling point.

Don't be fooled. I will never in my life purchase a Renault again and I will quite frankly recommend everyone else to avoid them at all costs. Go spend your hard-earned money at a place that actually trusts their own products and are willing to sell you something they themselves will drive. I own a BMW motorbike and my wife owns a Hyundai car and we have never had an ounce of issues with wither manufacturers. I always go to the BMW dealership and see all the employees drive BMWs. Go to the Hyundai dealerships and everyone drives a Hyundai. I wonder why Renault employees don't drive Renaults? Maybe because they know more than we do?

To end on a good note. Penta Motor Group in Klerksdorp has been absolutely the best. More than willing to help and have always been kind and good people. I've had only good experiences with them and their sales staff and will recommend anyone to buy from them. They only need to learn to better use their phones.