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"New R4 EV-not as horrible as I was expecting"; the title rather poses the question just HOW horrIble were you expecting it to be; pretty ghastly I expect! As has been said, the "retro" revolution in car manufacturing-the Fiat 500 & the MINI to name but two shows just how good the earlier...

......Careful now!

Nigh on impossible and somewhat dangerous..... If you don't have a copy of the Haynes manual for the Renault 4, obtain one and read the section on torsion bar replacement. It'll help you appreciate what's involved!

The primary resistance is between the two little terminals on the coil. It doesn't matter which way round you connect the meter but it DOES matter that all the connections to the car's electrics are removed from the coil before you measure the resistance. If your meter has crocodile clips at the...

This is THE best explanation in layman's terms of a car's ignition system I've ever read!

As I said, when the engine's off but the ignition ON 12 volts should be coming "down the line" from the battery. With the points closed that 12 volts passes through the coil, into the points and then to earth. In this position the coil is being energised. As the points open, the pathway to earth...

The coil might be dying, but that's not definitive. As it warms up it breaks down and produces less spark, hence the car not re-starting. The 0.9 volt reading should really be 0.0, so it might be worth either removing the points and trueing up the surfaces, or, if the points appear pitted...

The higher pitched noise sounds like a tappety one to me, so I should check the head gasket bolt tightness settings and then the tappet settings. The lower pitched one had a "bom bom (pause) bom bom" sound, which suggests something's loose somewhere. Have another go with the stethoscope & see if...

Depending on how far you want to go, it might be an idea to have the carburettor refurbished. Carburettor Exchange in Leighton Buzzard do a very good postal service and if you were to go down this road you'd eliminate any carburettor problems at once. Another factor might be a small irregularity...

Some very early 747cc Renault 4s suffered from an engine "rumble", which was eventually diagnosed by Renault's engineers as "camshaft whip". I think the later 848cc engines had re-designed camshafts, that ran in a different type of bearing. I'm not saying this is what your engine is suffering...

The first thing to do is to gain access to the top of the sender unit. 1/Remove the live feed to the float unit and connect it to a good earth. With the ignition on the petrol gauge should now read "full" and remain so. Leave this connection in place and drive around for a day or so and see if...

Let's go back to first principles to sort this. Using a decent multi-meter carry out the following tests: 1/ With the ignition switched ON, confirm that there's 12 volts at the "+" terminal of the coil. If there isn't, find out why! 2/ Whip the plugs out (it makes turning the engine easier!)...

The best arrangement is to have clear lenses and add yellow bulbs for that quintessential "French" look. Using P45T bulbs, which fit into the circular holders you'll have 60/55 watt halogen bulbs, and you can slide a yellow cap over the bulb, still gaining that "French" look, but with seriously...

Yes, number 1 cylinder is at the front of the car, nearest the flywheel, as explained on page 42 of the workshop manual. Remember that you might have the engine 360 degrees 'out', which might explain why it won't fire. The engine goes through TWO complete cycles for every one power stroke in...

I've seen the same thing on a more recent Renault; a Clio! At my recommendation a customer of mine took their car to a local tyre fitting baby for 2 new rear tyres. The fitter removed and attached the wheel using an air powered tool (quite normal practice) but the vibrations caused the lining to...

I'd forgotten about that. Water-cooled Dafs used 1100 & 1300cc Renault engines and the wiring was identical, producing the same effect.

This may sound like a silly question, but bear with me: Switch on the ignition but DON'T start the engine. The oil pressure warning light should now be ON. With the ignition still on, disconnect the wire from the pressure sensor in the engine block. The warning light should now be OFF. If the...

As your Renault does NOT have filter the oil isn't being cleaned, so it will become dirty more quickly. The French article produced here says to change the oil every 5,000 Km (or 3,100 miles) but I've always believed in changing it more than the manufacturer says, so I would half that and change...

In the absence of a filter I would change the oil every 1,000 miles. Idk I were you I should use Castrol Magnetic 10W40, which I've always found a really good oil for classic engines. Remember to flush the engine with flushing oil first, as this will shift any crud around the valves & the oil ways.

Have faith, my friend! I should have thought any French garage would be able to sort out a Renault, in much the same way was any British garage, regardless of franchise, would be able to sort out a Ford. My R.A.C. membership offers European cover, so perhaps check out any breakdown cover you have.