Megane RS Reliability And Alternatives

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martini96

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Jan 22, 2021
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Hi All

I am looking at the following cars (in order of preference)

2012 Megane RS 265
2005 Nissan 350z
2014 Ford Fiesta ST

Also looking at, but not mad about:
2013 Ford Focus ST


Budget about R160k

I LOVE the Megane RS the most but im so concerned about running costs and reliability that I keep second-guessing it. Are spares easily available? Do they require expensive maintenance? Coming from a 1995 Toyota Corolla with 200k on the clock I guess im in for a rude awakening? My heart wants the Megane, but my pockets don't want the maintenance, as I am only 24 on only started working last year.

-The Nissan is nice (RWD V6), apparently reliable, but is quite impractical, and a bit thirsty.
-The Fiesta has great reviews, drives amazing, light on fuel, but both the interior and exterior do nothing for me.

What car would you guys recommend? I like them all, but I like the Megane the most.

Any advice appreciated

Thanks :)
 
U

ubercal

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3,988
martini96 said:
Hi All

I am looking at the following cars (in order of preference)

2012 Megane RS 265
2005 Nissan 350z
2014 Ford Fiesta ST

Also looking at, but not mad about:
2013 Ford Focus ST


Budget about R160k

I LOVE the Megane RS the most but im so concerned about running costs and reliability that I keep second-guessing it. Are spares easily available? Do they require expensive maintenance? Coming from a 1995 Toyota Corolla with 200k on the clock I guess im in for a rude awakening? My heart wants the Megane, but my pockets don't want the maintenance, as I am only 24 on only started working last year.

-The Nissan is nice (RWD V6), apparently reliable, but is quite impractical, and a bit thirsty.
-The Fiesta has great reviews, drives amazing, light on fuel, but both the interior and exterior do nothing for me.

What car would you guys recommend? I like them all, but I like the Megane the most.

Any advice appreciated

Thanks :)
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go with what your heart says ..... so its either the Megane or the 350z.Both are unique and not many people have them.The ST is well just a ST , and there are a billion of these things running around.
 
M

Meister-Man

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RS all the way.
Do your research, take your time and look for a clean and preferably standard or lightly modified one.
 
M

martini96

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TheChamp said:
Keep the Corolla well maintained and go buy the Megane RS, you only live once.
Anyway I doubt it's going to start falling apart for no reason.
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Id love to keep both but unfortunately I dont have the money or the garage space for both. That would be ideal though :)
 
M

martini96

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Jan 22, 2021
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Crowley said:
A bit thirsty is a understatement.

Just get the Renault, life's too short to not drive the car you want.
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Agreed. I prey it dosent turn into a money pit as it ages past 300k kms. Il probably get one with 100k on the clock
 
M

martini96

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Jan 22, 2021
Messages
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If anyone has owned a Megane RS kindly let me know your experience with reliability and running costs :)

Saw one on the road today and I think im in love.

Being a massive petrol head is getting in the way of my financial freedom haha
 
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Meister-Man

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martini96 said:
Being a massive petrol head is getting in the way of my financial freedom haha
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You still being somewhat sensible, a new RS is over R600k list price.

Couple of things for you to note:
1- because of your age and car choice, your insurance will probably high, but you can always shop around.
2- you can consider a mechanical warranty if you'd like, I've heard hollard has a decent one, no personal experience of it though.
 
JOEY_8

JOEY_8

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Never owned a Megane, but we owned a Sandero, Grand Scenic and now have a Kadjar. All have run perfectly and never gave us issues. The scenic did have a small wait time to import parts in some cases, however this seems to have improved
 
6spdmanual

6spdmanual

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martini96 said:
If anyone has owned a Megane RS kindly let me know your experience with reliability and running costs :)

Saw one on the road today and I think im in love.

Being a massive petrol head is getting in the way of my financial freedom haha
Click to expand...
A former mate had one of these. The Cup version, with the nice bucket seats. Was his daily. Pretty reliable from what I could make out. Not too thirsty, but you’d notice the difference big time from you current car. I think his overall consumption was between 9.5 and 11l/100km. The insurance part will be an issue for you though, but shop around. If you can get one well looked after, I’m almost certain you can drive it for a few years without massive issues. A third party warranty is non negotiable though, get that.
 
M

martini96

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Messages
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Meister-Man said:
You still being somewhat sensible, a new RS is over R600k list price.

Couple of things for you to note:
1- because of your age and car choice, your insurance will probably high, but you can always shop around.
2- you can consider a mechanical warranty if you'd like, I've heard hollard has a decent one, no personal experience of it though.
Click to expand...
Yeah, the Insurance quote came in at around 800, I dont mind that. What I do mind is VW level reliability where they say its 'reliable' but my dad has one and I can promise its nothing compared to Toyota. I hope the build quality is better than VAG. Thanks :)
 
M

martini96

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JOEY_8 said:
Never owned a Megane, but we owned a Sandero, Grand Scenic and now have a Kadjar. All have run perfectly and never gave us issues. The scenic did have a small wait time to import parts in some cases, however this seems to have improved
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That's comforting to know. What was the highest mileage result you owned?
 
M

martini96

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6spdmanual said:
A former mate had one of these. The Cup version, with the nice bucket seats. Was his daily. Pretty reliable from what I could make out. Not too thirsty, but you’d notice the difference big time from you current car. I think his overall consumption was between 9.5 and 11l/100km. The insurance part will be an issue for you though, but shop around. If you can get one well looked after, I’m almost certain you can drive it for a few years without massive issues. A third party warranty is non negotiable though, get that.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the advice :)
 
SauRoNZA

SauRoNZA

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Bolt on an extended warranty for some piece of mind.

If it doesn’t break in the two years it’s unlikely to break later.

Haven’t heard any real horror stories.

Insurance is going to cost as much as the car per month though. Maybe wait until you are 30.
 
SauRoNZA

SauRoNZA

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martini96 said:
Agreed. I prey it dosent turn into a money pit as it ages past 300k kms. Il probably get one with 100k on the clock
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Being willing to take a car at that mileage and understanding it’s still virtually brand new is a good start.

It’s when people love to sell in a panic having either just done the cam belt service and then pissing away the money they just spent thinking this normal every day expected maintenance suddenly made the car too expensive to own.

Or they expect it coming up and want to avoid the cost...and then spend infinitely more buying a new car because they are idiots.

Just be careful not to buy one where this service was skipped which is also common place.

You want a FULL verified service history on this kind of car and preferably one where it was all done by the dealer.

And any part of it is in question or “will be fix before it’s sold” then just walk away. If it’s not in tip top shape when test driven it’s never going to be because they were already willing to try pitch it in that state which means they like taking shortcuts instead of doing things properly.
 
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