Renault Clio Bonnet problem

01Surveyor

I have been asked to re-post this in a new thread as opposed to in the original thread on the same topic.




On the Saturday before Christmas 2012 I was driving my mothers Clio on the N9 when the bonnet flew open smashing the windscreen. I was in the overtaking lane on a 3 lane motorway. I managed to get the car into the hard shoulder without hitting, or being hit by, anything. Renault took the car for 6 weeks to carry out a technical inspection. The outcome?
They offered to replaceme the bonnet catch FOC.
My mother had given the car to my son for his 21st but fortunately I was driving.....I reckon 40+ years of road and track experience and sheer good fortune saved me and others from potentially awful consequences.
Watch this space.....

listermint

01Surveyor wrote: »

I have been asked to re-post this in a new thread as opposed to in the original thread on the same topic.




On the Saturday before Christmas 2012 I was driving my mothers Clio on the N9 when the bonnet flew open smashing the windscreen. I was in the overtaking lane on a 3 lane motorway. I managed to get the car into the hard shoulder without hitting, or being hit by, anything. Renault took the car for 6 weeks to carry out a technical inspection. The outcome?
They offered to replaceme the bonnet catch FOC.
My mother had given the car to my son for his 21st but fortunately I was driving.....I reckon 40+ years of road and track experience and sheer good fortune saved me and others from potentially awful consequences.
Watch this space.....

Watch this space ?

How old was the car ? Was the bonnet not closed properly? Was the springs rusted ? How was the vehicle maintained ? Has it ever been inspected?

So many question not enough answers.

MuppetCheck

This is a known issue with Renault Clios.

listermint

MuppetCheck wrote: »

This is a known issue with Renault Clios.

Personally never heard of it. And i know of x3 people with Clios and a neighbour whos had clios since around 94.

By known issue is it 1 in every 10,000 ? 100,000?

01Surveyor

The car was 2001 with 25k on the clock, carefully maintained and in immaculate condition. The car had passed its NCT just a few weeks before the incident The catch was perfect and Renault reported no fault with it. The weight of the bonnet is supposed to engage the safety catch and then you push it fully closed to engage the locking mechanism which is usually released from within the car. As I understand it the problem with the Clio relates to the bonnet weight not being sufficient to engage the safety catch when there is any extra resistance from the the catch itself. Apparently the safety margin between the bonnet weight and catch resistance is quite slight. My mothers car was bought from, and maintained by, Renault dealers who either closed down or became non Renault dealers and I'm guessing that the technical advice on the bonnet catch problem didnt get to the owners or non official dealers - in Ireland at least. In the UK there has been quite a fuss about this problem and the BBC Watchdog program and several newspapers have done 'exposes' on the issue. I dont believe that we in little Ireland will do any better than the UK consumers did but as the car is popular as a starter car with young and inexperienced drivers I think it is important that they are aware of the need to give the bonnet catch particular care and attention. Its also important to be clear that the problem only relates to a specific Clio model series- MK2 I think its called

TimmyTank

OP I owned a 00 Clio a couple of years ago and I remember it being recalled to fix an issue with the bonnet.... So definitely a known issue....

ThisRegard

listermint wrote: »

Personally never heard of it. And i know of x3 people with Clios and a neighbour whos had clios since around 94.

By known issue is it 1 in every 10,000 ? 100,000?

From what I can remember there was a big campaign in the UK to have Renault UK recognise it and make it a recall issue, even had it's own recurring spot on Watchdog at one stage.

listermint

01Surveyor wrote: »

The car was 2001 with 25k on the clock, carefully maintained and in immaculate condition. The car had passed its NCT just a few weeks before the incident The catch was perfect and Renault reported no fault with it. The weight of the bonnet is supposed to engage the safety catch and then you push it fully closed to engage the locking mechanism which is usually released from within the car. As I understand it the problem with the Clio relates to the bonnet weight not being sufficient to engage the safety catch when there is any extra resistance from the the catch itself. Apparently the safety margin between the bonnet weight and catch resistance is quite slight. My mothers car was bought from, and maintained by, Renault dealers who either closed down or became non Renault dealers and I'm guessing that the technical advice on the bonnet catch problem didnt get to the owners or non official dealers - in Ireland at least. In the UK there has been quite a fuss about this problem and the BBC Watchdog program and several newspapers have done 'exposes' on the issue. I dont believe that we in little Ireland will do any better than the UK consumers did but as the car is popular as a starter car with young and inexperienced drivers I think it is important that they are aware of the need to give the bonnet catch particular care and attention. Its also important to be clear that the problem only relates to a specific Clio model series- MK2 I think its called

Fair enough. But i dont think the weight of the bonnet has anything to do with not closing the bonnet correctly.

My BMW doesnt close the bonnet completely without a final press. Is that a bonnet weight issue ?

01Surveyor

listermint wrote: »

Personally never heard of it. And i know of x3 people with Clios and a neighbour whos had clios since around 94.

By known issue is it 1 in every 10,000 ? 100,000?

According to BBC Watchdog there are apparently hundreds of similar incidents recorded in the UK. Try googling 'renault clio bonnet fault'
At one stage there was a special forum set up by owners who had suffered the problem

listermint

01Surveyor wrote: »

According to BBC Watchdog there are apparently hundreds of similar incidents recorded in the UK. Try googling 'renault clio bonnet fault'
At one stage there was a special forum set up by owners who had suffered the problem

As i said fair enough. But was it closed properly? As i stated above. Or did the catch just 'fall apart'

Cant blame the bonnet weight for not checking a closed bonnet. I wouldnt drive off with out giving it that satisfying firm close.

Maybe im old fashioned though.

01Surveyor

listermint wrote: »

Fair enough. But i dont think the weight of the bonnet has anything to do with not closing the bonnet correctly.

My BMW doesnt close the bonnet completely without a final press. Is that a bonnet weight issue ?

As I understand it all bonnet catches engage in two stages. When you lower the bonnet its weight is supposed to cause the first stage engagement (the safety catch) you then have to push the bonnet fully closed to engage the locking mechanism which prevents the bonnet from being opened from outside the car. The safety catch is supposed to prevent the bonnet from flying open where it is not fully closed to the locked position, either because someone forgot to or failed to close the boonet to the locked position or because the locking mechanism failed. The bonnet releases are spring loaded and cause the bonnet to 'pop' up a fraction allowing you to release the safety catch manually and open the bonnet. In my experience it is not unusual to have the bonnet release activate as a result of hitting a pothole or a child fiddling with the release lever. The first stage or safety catch locking is what is critical to safety as it prevents the bonnet opening fully. I doubt if anyone can say with absolute certainty that thy fully locked the bonnet every one of the thousands of times they closed it and the safety catch is designed to protect against such inevitable human error

01Surveyor

listermint wrote: »

As i said fair enough. But was it closed properly? As i stated above. Or did the catch just 'fall apart'

Cant blame the bonnet weight for not checking a closed bonnet. I wouldnt drive off with out giving it that satisfying firm close.

Maybe im old fashioned though.

I dont think you are old fashioned, I think you are absolutely correct. However not everyone is the same and the safety catch is the primary bonnet locking device and is designed to protect those of us who cant be absolutely certain that we always close the bonnet perfectly, or that inquisitive little hands haven't fiddled with the lever while we were in the shop.There was no problem with the catch maintenance and it certainly didnt fall apart.

bbuzz

I had a 2002 Clio and Renault checked my car to make sure the bonnet catch was safe.

From what I remember the safety catch (the one you release above the grill after you pull the bonnet release in the car) was made of plastic that was too weak. Renault recalled the affected cars and replaced it with a metal version.

Afaik it affected the early Clio mkII, before the facelift (so my car already had the metal catch).

01Surveyor

bbuzz wrote: »

I had a 2002 Clio and Renault checked my car to make sure the bonnet catch was safe.

From what I remember the safety catch (the one you release above the grill after you pull the bonnet release in the car) was made of plastic that was too weak. Renault recalled the affected cars and replaced it with a metal version.

Afaik it affected the early Clio mkII, before the facelift (so my car already had the metal catch).

I think you are right only the Mark2 had the problem. The earlier and later models had a different catch and had no problems. Its hard to see how Renault were able to claim there was no problem with the Mark 2 catch in the circumstances.
See the attached image for the result.

bbuzz

Here's an article about it:

http://www.whatcar.com/car-news/renault-to-issue-second-clio-warning/231776

jca

The safety catch looks to be made of metal. Its all very dry looking around the safety catch/locking spring area on the bonnet. The mechanism in the slam panel also looks very dry. I think the bonnet was opened and due to lack of lubrication the bonnet didn't engage properly into the second locking mechanism when it was closed. The safety catch probably didn't spring back to engage on the safety loop. Very scary experience indeed, it happened me once while driving the aul lads Hillman Hunter.... I always give the locking mechanism a spray of the grease every service. Once bitten....

colm_mcm

bbuzz

jca wrote: »

I always give the locking mechanism a spray of the grease every service.

That's essentially what the Renault garage did for me when they checked it.

jca

bbuzz wrote: »

That's essentially what the Renault garage did for me when they checked it.

Don't think I'm being smart but that's probably all that was wrong with it. Saying that if the car was being maintained by a main dealer it should have been lubricated at each service. That would have been on the list of service items. As a matter of interest, have the door locks/hinges any sign of lubricant on them?

01Surveyor

colm_mcm wrote: »

Nice one!

I'm off to collect the car from Renault this morning after its six weeks of technical assessment. To be honest Ive learned more from this and other forums than I have from Renault. The following appears to be the case;

• There have been hundreds of 'bonnet incidents' in the UK and Irealnd alone.
• The 'bonnet incidents' only affect the Mk.2 Clios.
• Mk1 and post Mk2 Clios were fitted with a different bonnet catch and suffered no such 'bonnet incident' problems
• Renault have investigated the 'bonnet incidents' and have found that there is no design fault in the bonnet catch and therefore they have no responsibility.

I have to accept that what Renault say is true even if I wonder if the criteria by which a design fault is established conflict with the reality of the evidence. However what baffles me is that, after six weeks of technical inspection of my lads Clio, the only outcome is an offer from Renault to replace.....................wait for it ...... .........................................................The Bonnet Catch!!

This bonnet catch has to be the most technically assessed and certified 'designfault free' part of the car so what is the point of replacing it. In the case of my sons car it wasn't even found to be corroded or lacking maintenance and the car had just passed its NCT (during which bonnet catches are assessed BTW - also news to me)

The unfailingly pleasant people in Renault Customer Services are very much 'on message' and make it clear that 'Renault have no responsibility'.Renault have proven to be more than a match for the media and public alike. I just hope no one gets hurt as a result of a Clio Bonnet incident. I think I'll advise my son to pass on the new bonnet catch offer and stick to his bicycle for the moment.

Anyone want an immaculate (apart from bonnet and roof) 25k Mk2 Clio. I'll throw in a new bonnet catch if you contact me before midday?



BEATS ME???

Bigcheeze

Are they not repairing the windscreen, bonnet and roof ?

01Surveyor

Bigcheeze wrote: »

Are they not repairing the windscreen, bonnet and roof ?

Afraid not. Insurance replaced the windscreen and all the rest are my son's problem......,..except of course for the bonnet catch. Its surprising that the insurance companies havent taken an interest in this issue but fortunately, and somewhat surprisingly based on my experience, it appears that no one has been injured as a result of the bonnet incidents so the Insurance company's exposure has been limited to windscreens and bodywork where covered by victims policies.

Bigcheeze

01Surveyor wrote: »

Afraid not. Insurance replaced the windscreen and all the rest are my son's problem......,..except of course for the bonnet catch. Its surprising that the insurance companies havent taken an interest in this issue but fortunately, and somewhat surprisingly based on my experience, it appears that no one has been injured as a result of the bonnet incidents so the Insurance company's exposure has been limited to windscreens and bodywork where covered by victims policies.

By replacing the bonnet catch are they not admitting there's a problem with the bonnet catch ?

Would be interesting to see what would happen through the small claims court as you seem to have plenty of evidence that this is a design fault and not a wear and tear or aged-related issue.

01Surveyor

Bigcheeze wrote: »

By replacing the bonnet catch are they not admitting there's a problem with the bonnet catch ?

You would think so but that doesnt seem to be the way it works for some reason.

Would be interesting to see what would happen through the small claims court as you seem to have plenty of evidence that this is a design fault and not a wear and tear or aged-related issue.

I'm not sure I have the heart for all the hassle particularly with what happened in the UK.

colm_mcm

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-456894/Thousands-Renault-Clios-recalled-safety-checks.html

On reading this, renault uk seem to be recalling them even they say there's no probem with them. With around 250 cases of it happening, it may be a problem.

There shouldn't be a knack to safely closing your bonnet.