iltis@ucsbcsl.UUCP ( ) (01/21/86)
There is absolutely no question in my mind that the WORST car
ever built was the
Renault Dauphine
andrew@grkermi.UUCP (Andrew W. Rogers) (01/25/86)
In article <379@ucsbcsl.UUCP> iltis@ucsbcsl.UUCP ( ) writes: >There is absolutely no question in my mind that the WORST car >ever built was the > > Renault Dauphine Oh, boy... someone else remembers this one! For one month (12/59), this device (does it deserve to be called a "car"?) was the #1 import in the U.S., toppling the beloved VW Beetle from the spot it had held (and would continue to hold) for years. Renault is still living it down 25 YEARS LATER!!! Memories of the Dauphine, in fact, triggered so much negative reaction to the Renault name among market-study guinea pigs that the admen wisely chose to emphasize the Alliance/Encore's AMC (those wonderful folks who gave us the Gremlin, Pacer, and Matador) lineage! Now does anyone remember the Caravelle, Renault's answer to the Karmann Ghia? The convertible came with a bar that you were supposed to wedge into the door opening whenever jacking the car up... to keep the body from buckling! And how about their molded ski-boot from the late 70's, "Le Car"??? Due to the design of the rear suspension, the wheelbase was longer on one side than on the other! AWR
dsi@unccvax.UUCP (01/28/86)
> >There is absolutely no question in my mind that the WORST car > >ever built was the > > > > Renault Dauphine > No, it was the '69 - 74 Renault R16 estate car. For one month (6/76) this car was in my life, until it blew up at my attorney's house (we were 16 then).... First, take the Solex 31 DIDTA carburetor (and if you have one, throw it out into the scrap heap). Why do the Solex people put 45 jets where 1 will do? Its almost as if Solex engineers build carburetors like a bunch of sophomores would build a high gain insturmentation amp: trimmers everywhere. Then, there is the cooling system, or lack thereof. You haven't lived until the experience of "bleeding" the air out of the assisted thermosiphon cooling system scalds your fingers. The "assist" is provided by a water pump whose impeller is about the size of a newborn baby's fist, and I am convinced that Renault engineers really put the "pump" there as an idler pulley. Yes, it is true that Renaults are softly sprung with unbelieveable suspension travel. It leans like an office chair (sideways) in the corners, nibbles in the straights, has the *worst* torque steer I have ever seen despite the fact that the driveshafts are equal length. R16's have FOUR ON THE TREE!!!!! The transmission and engine are oriented north-south, with the transmission in the front (no comments about midengine sportiness, please). The person I bought my R16 from *liked* his Dauphine. There is still one running every day 'round here which is owned by the local convenience store clerk. My best friend's spouse had TWO R10's, and it is amazing to realize what total pieces of junk Renaults of that period were (on this one point, it was like listening to yourself describe your own car... an R10 is a "saloon" version of the R16). Is the Yugo a reincarnation of the R10/R16?? -dya-