Laguna v Focus

Am looking for a second hand car for about 10k Can anyone suggest which would be a better buy a Ford Focus or Renault Laguna?

French car manufacturers have a reputation for not being as reliable as onther makes like Ford / Toyota, the Laguna is prone to problems , mainly electrical, keyless key fob failing 200 per key to replace, timing belt expensive 500 to replace with Renault.Ford is ireland no1 seeling brand - more parts available more models for sale.
Looks and comfort wise the Laguna is better but too many problems with
this car (alot reported in this Forum) go for the Focus.

Laguna is a much bigger car, but the Focus is miles ahead in al other respects, and won't break your heart either.

focus for sure.100% car ford nowadays are very very superior and alot more superior than a renault.....great comforting seats but the rest crap

The Focus. Some Renault dealers hate to see customers come back and attempt a trade in with one.

I have a laguna at the moment and am changin to a focus. I love the comfort of the laguna and not really had any problems -but then again it is still in warranty. Might be different outside of warranty. A friend of mine also has a laguna - '02 - had to get the roll bars changed and also had a couple of problems with the key.

The focus in my opinion is a drop down but on a trade in the laguna in some places was making ridiculous money. I was offered €9,000 by one garage for my '04!!!!. Even reanult offered my rubbish on a change to a '06 laguna (diesel model).

Ford on a trade in would be much better as they seem to have held their value reasonably well.

My friend has a 02 renault laguna and had to spend 1500 euro a few weeks ago timing belt. For a car only a few years old you should not be expected to pay out this amount. And the stupid keys they have rarely work for her. As the chip wears out in them they need to be replaced which costs over 200 euro.

Go with the focus as better for getting parts and cheaper to run as more reliable

Either of those cars (Ford or Renault), should be good buys. Everyone has a friend who something happened to, you just gotta take a chance on it I guess! If you see a car in mind, then I would suggest getting a mechanic to have a look at it before you decied to purchase.

Laguna (40' barge pole springs to mind)


From Honest John

oint Second Bottom (to Espace) in 2002 Which reliability survey of cars up to 2 years old; 56 cars surveyed. Only 87% breakdown free (same as Alfa 156) in 2003 Which survey. Renault had above average warranty repair costs in 2003 Warranty Direct Reliability index (index 114.24 v/s lowest 31.93). Link:- www.reliabilityindex.co.uk Petrol and diesel models poor for problems and faults; petrol poor for breakdowns; diesel average for breakdowns in 2003 Which survey. 4th from bottom out of 137 models in 2003 Top Gear survey. Laguna joint 10th bottom model in 2004 JD Power Customer Satisfaction Survey. Only 88% of cars up to 2 years old breakdown-free over previous 12 months in 2004 Which? survey. 2004 Which? quote: "A stupendously unreliable car. Renault seems to have restricted building the Laguna to Friday afternoons. An unenjoyable drive, too, especially for tall drivers." Laguna II 7th least reliable car in 2005 Warranty Direct Reliability Survey with 50 repair claims per 100 cars. Link:- www.reliabilityindex.co.uk

Focus

Best accolade of all, in April 2002 the German TUV announced that the Ford Focus was the car with the least problems over a three year period. Joint third top of 2002 Which reliability survey; came out 98% fault free; 488 cars surveyed, which was by far the greatest number in the survey. Ford had 7th lowest average warranty repair costs in 2003 Warranty Direct Reliability index (index 65.51 v/s lowest 31.93) ST 170 Estate for 2003, listed at £17,245. TDCI 115 Sport and 115bhp 1.8 LPG added to range August 2003. 1998-2000 petrol models rated fewest breakdowns, problems and faults; 1998-2000 diesel models rated average for breakdowns, problems and faults; 2001-2003 petrol and diesel rated average for breakdowns and fewest problems and faults in 2003 'Which' survey, making the Focus a Which 'Best Buy'. TDCI voted one of Autocar's top ten cars of 2003. Run-out specials include Focus Edge with 100PS 1.6 of 115PS TDCI. Kit includes twin airbags, ABS, 16" alloys, side airbags, a/c, CD. I.6 Flight 3-dr with a/c and CD on offer at just £9,995. Which? Best Buy 2004. Which? used best buy up to £5,000 2004. Ford 4th top top of Reliability Index for 2004 combining very low average cost of repair of £207.58 with average 32.16 failures per 100 Warranty Direct policies. Link:- www.reliabilityindex.co.uk Focus range HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.



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Murt

Thanks for the info folks! I guess it's the Focus, though still liking the look of the Laguna..

The Laguna is a lovely car - elegant looking and a fantastic ride but you do need to consider everything!

I think the Leguna is starting to look dated. More importantly, I have friends with Meganes and they've all had major problems with their cars...including catching on fire! Avoid Renault like the bubonic plague.

Do not go near a Renault Laguna!! They are a nightmare. I had a friend who had a 00 model, he had so many problems with it - it was towed into the garage 5/6 times so he eventually demanded a replacement, the 2nd car, a 01 model had as many problems so he threw that back at them & got a ford!! Don't do it!!! French cars = rubbish!

I am in the exact same predicament, have a choice of a 01 Focus (38k miles) or a 02 Laguna(60k miles)
I was swaying towards the Laguna, but after reading all the posts above, i think i will switch to the Focus, thanks guys

Hi

I'm cataching up with threads and looked at this, I'm curious what was bought in the end , I am on my 3rd Laguna currently driving an 05 dynamique now , a brilliant trouble free car, I have 2 kids and a dog , including the wife we travel in style, cannot fault them guys !

The fact that even Renault wont offer a good trade in on their own product speaks volumes. I tried to trade a 98 espace against a Toyota MPV and the salesman (Independent garage) refused to even make me an offer. He told me a Clio is the only renault he would recomend to anyone.

a bit of a mix of things:

I agree with PaleRider, in that I currently have a Megane Rxi hatchback for the railway station dash in the mornings, which hasn't given a days trouble in 6 years. Great wee car.

However, I can also agree with Froggie; we recently trader my wifes Clio, and the garage was fighting to take it from us (was a minter, very low mileage). we ended up selling it privately (on carzone) in about 4 hours!!

By the way, we traded it for a '07 Ford Focus )

go figure

Have an 02 Laguna. Had problems in beginning with it.
Had a crash, car was a write off (economically), but I came out of without a scratch (A car crossed in front of me on the main road).
Went to look at a replacement with the intention of changing from the Laguna.
Ended up with another Laguna. Main Reason was my crash.

I have this 02 Laguna now for 16 months and so far no major problems.

I thought Renault had sorted out their old electrics issues of the past.

Ford would always have a better resale value than a Renault.
I know in the past that Renault were always a hell of a lot more comfortable to drive but I think that days has gone.

Why not drive Japanese, the most reliable and all that...

So do the initials FORD no longer stand for F***** Only Runs Downhill ?

jmayo said:

I thought Renault had sorted out their old electrics issues of the past.

Ford would always have a better resale value than a Renault.
I know in the past that Renault were always a hell of a lot more comfortable to drive but I think that days has gone.

Why not drive Japanese, the most reliable and all that...

So do the initials FORD no longer stand for F***** Only Runs Downhill ?

Click to expand...

Speaking generally,

Renault would not be good for reliability (especially electrical problems). They would be above average for comfort and standard specification. This is consistent with all French/Italian cars.

Of the mass manufacturers, Ford have arguably the best range of cars from a driving perspective. They are of average reliability but have below average repair charges.

Japanese makes are the most reliable. The only drawback of Japanese cars is that many suffer from blandness in styling and driving experience. (Some people would not consider blandness an issue in choosing their car).

It is up to the buyer to decide what qualities he/she wants in a car and then chose accordingly.