Renault Modus problems (2004–2012)

All 2 engines of the Renault Modus that we have documented have high or critical severity faults: the 1.5 dCi and the 1.2 16v. The safest option is the 1.2 16v, with a «Buy» verdict. Outside the engine, the most-cited fault on the Renault Modus - built in Valladolid for Europe - is the electric windows, present in around 24% of the reports on fiches-auto.fr; noise or loss of assistance in the steering, clutch wear on diesels and uneven rear tyre wear are also common. A 2006 breakdown survey by the German motoring club placed it among the best in its class at three years old.

Among the 2 engines we have documented, the safest option is the 1.2 16v, with a «Buy» verdict. This is the version with the most data available and, overall, a good reputation: the reliability pages for the Clio II, Clio III, Kangoo I, Sandero I and II and Logan I and II document no catastrophic failures and no oil consumption; the most repeated issues (coils, sensors) are low-cost, and Caradisiac rates the reliability of the Twingo II with this engine as "excellent".^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]}

Outside the engine, the most-cited fault on the Renault Modus - built in Valladolid for Europe - is the electric windows, present in around 24% of the reports on fiches-auto.fr; noise or loss of assistance in the steering, clutch wear on diesels and uneven rear tyre wear are also common. A 2006 breakdown survey by the German motoring club placed it among the best in its class at three years old. The most important documented faults are: noise, play or loss of assistance in the steering (steering, high severity), premature clutch wear and noise in the manual gearbox (gearbox and clutch, medium severity), uneven tyre wear caused by the rear axle geometry (suspension, medium severity) and electric window failure (electrical system, low severity).^[9][10][11]

The most important by severity and frequency, on the engines we have documented, are: wear and seizure of the big-end bearings (1.5 dCi, critical severity), premature timing belt failure (1.5 dCi, critical severity), delphi high-pressure pump that sheds filings and damages the injection (1.5 dCi, high severity), premature turbo failure and intake hoses that come loose (1.5 dCi, high severity) and damaged head gasket and coolant loss (1.2 16v, high severity).

According to our rating by year, the best are 2012 and 2011 (6.7/10); the worst rated is 2005 (5.9/10). Each year's rating counts only the engines sold that year and the faults that affect those units: open each year to see what changes.

Yes: we have documented 2 campaigns for the Renault Modus, such as recall of the folding rear bench mechanism (2010). Check with your VIN at the official service centre whether yours has been done.