G'day all
This is my first post on Aussie Frog and after reading all 9 pages again of this sub-forum I can comment on a few issues mentioned these past years. Like others I too graduated from a Scenis to a Koleos because there were no new Scenics to be bought in late 2012. And the 0% finance deal on the Koleos beat the other brands like a lay down misere!
I only got rid of the 2001 Scenic 2WD Dynamique because it got smashed and written off in Oct., 2012. Had 183+ Kms when written off and was reasonably reliable. Some things broke [rear shock absorbers, twice] but that's because I'm a hard driver.
Now with my 2012 Koleos 2WD 2.5Ltr petrol Expression 6 spd manual and am becoming more satisfied as the Kms build. As I just got back from a 10 day / 5,900 Km return trip from Parramatta, NSW, to Trinity Beach [Cairns], FN Qld, I'm doing an A type service, and then some, at 45,760Km. As I've done that trip usually twice a year plus 6 - 10 return trips to Noosa area each year since I bought the Scenic in Feb., 2002, I'm in a got position to compare the two Renaults.
For me, the Koleos handles like a truck on it's OEM Kumho Solus tyres when compared to the Scenic's Michelin Energys [and the Goodyears on my old Volvo]. My research has me intending to fit Continentals next, as recommended by a recent Choice magazine article. My 24y.o. son just swapped from M/Energys to the Continentals for our 2001 Pug 206 GTi and was very impressed with them on a recent 500 Km return trip from Hornsby to Rylstone, NSW, via Bells Line of Road and the Galston Gorge [for you interstaters, these are iconic Sydney area twisty roads]. And I have run 34 psi front and 32 psi rear [when unladen] on both cars for years, adjusting the rear pressures for cargo. With the Scenic / Michelin combo I could always get the back end to back free in hard corning for some rear wheel 'steering', just like my Volvo and XJ6s on the Putty Rd and the like. I tend to avoid the coast highways and travel along the Great Dividing Range as much as possible on trips to Qld & Vic. [BTW, I'm also a motorcyclist so I like my corners].
I also intend to change tyre size when I fit the Continentals by downsizing from the 60% aspect ratio to 55% so to gear the Koleos down for better top gear acceleration at the posted & strictly enforced 100 & 110 Km/hr speed limits here in the east of Oz.
On the Koleos maintenance issues:
- I replaced the original oil filter [a blue Nissan product as per posts by others] with another OEM one at 297Km, then again at about 1,500 Km, with an oil change, just to remove the initial metal wear of the engine. I also have a practice of fitting a magnet to the outside of all my vehicles oil filters ever since seeing the practice as an aftermarket fitting to BMW 'Boxer' motorcycles some years [decades] ago. The idea is that the magnet holds and fine metal wear material within the filter and I get the magnets from the back of speakers taken from old broken radios & the like;
- I have used Penrite oils for years now and have found in my Scenic, Volvo 940, Merc 280SE, Subaru Brumby, Jaguar XJ6's, Moto Guzzi's, BMW K model, Pug 405 Mi16 as well as the Koleos that I get a lower fuel and oil consumption with that brand, provided I use the correct viscosity and mineral vs semi-synthetic vs full synthetic, as per the car / motorcycle manufacturers' recomendation. The Koleos is too new [>46K] to use any oil at all and I too go with 15,000 oil changes for the last two occassions. With the Scenic, somewhere around the 120 - 140K Km mark it started needing a top up at about 10K, so I just changed oil and filter then;
- at the scheduled 25K Km replacement of the OEM paper air filter I bit the bullet and fitted a $102 K&N filter. Been using these filters on my vehicles for years, always with better fuel consumption IF I don't make use of the better accelleration. In the Scenic, on some steep hills I regularly drive up 5 -10 times / week, just the K&N filter change was like having an extra 1/2 a gear lower going uphill. On the Koleos, 105-110Km/hr overtaking is now commonly done in top gear, saving the change down to 5th;
- changed the cabin pollen filter myself at about 32K Km & t'was a doddle. Don't see why any competant home handyman would need to get a mechanic to do it. I went OEM for about $52 because I was in a hurry that day. Good to know I can get two for the price of one if I bother to buy off the Internet well in advance of my next time replacement [like many males, I have a wife with a sense of smell very sensitive to foul odours of a dirty cabin filter];
- like others above, I rotate my wheels from front to rear and back again about every 10 - 15K Kms. Just did them again on the Koleos noting I've done them at 12-13K intervals. I also bother to check the brake pads & rotors for wear while the wheels are off;
- I also prefer to OEM 17" alloy wheels of the Expression Koleos as they're much easier to clean than most, even the OEM 15" alloys on the Scenic. I also take the trouble to keep the contact surfaces between the wheels and brake hub scruptiously clean and free of rust & muck to ensure the wheels sit absolutely square if nothing else;
- re the droopy sunvisors: I had this happen on the Scenic somewhere around 80-120K Kms = bloody annoying! Early days yet but it apears to me that the Koleos has a better mounting / hinge / swivel mechanism. Hope so;
- re the dashmat: I got the charcoal grey one [off the Internet with about 1 week delivery] so to only slightly contrast with the 'near to black' interior fittings of my gloss white [not pearl white] exterior. Being a retired superannuation pensioner since last September, I wanted paintwork that I could easily and economically fix stone chips myself;
- re the floormats: I wasn't too fussed about a precise fit so I've got off the shelf black carpet mats that are made for a Toyota Camry, for about $35-40. Close enough = good enough as I'll replace them in a few years when worn somewhat;
- a Koleos fault I've experienced that no one else has mentioned, operation of the radio: sometimes when wanting to change between AM & FM bands using the column mounted control, I cannot get a response in the first instance from the appropriate button [near side button on the back side i.e. closest to the dash]. I can solve it by scrolling through from radio to CD to auxilliary then back to radio so that the correct button functions properly to scroll up & down between AM / FM modes. Noticably, this doesn't happen in the first instance after starting the car but occurs intermittently on the second or a latter occassion. Has anyone else experienced this phenomenon? I mentioned it to the dealer under warranty service but they didn't experience it and told there was no factory fault notification about it;
- another issue urgent for me now is the handbrake adjustment: does anyone in this forum know how to do it on the Koleos? I cannot find a workshop manual for the Koleos and under & in my car there is no obvious adjuster, unlike on the Scenic [& all my other cars]. Currently, I presume I'll have to remove the centre console plastics to access a mechanical adjuster. But even these plastic covers have no visible metal screws or plastic pins as retainers. And I'm loathe to start pulling on these plastic panels, for the obvious reasons. Info anyone?
2012 Renault Koleos Expression 2.5Ltr petrol 6 spd manual
2003 Peugeot 307 2.0Ltr 4 dr hatch 5spd manual
2001 Peugeot 206 2.0Ltr GTi coupe / hatch 5spd manual
1993 Subaru Brumby 1.8Ltr 4wd Sport utility 4spd manual
1992 Peugeot 405 Mi16 1.9Ltr 4dr 5spd manual
1991 Volvo 940 2.3Ltr sedan 5spd manual [conversion from a 244 Volvo]
1974 Jaguar XJ6 Series 2 4.2Ltr sedan 5spd manual [conversion from a Toyota Supra]
1970 Jaguar 420G 4.2Ltr sedan 3 spd automatic [for when I'm too decrepid to no longer be able to drive a manual]
and then there's all the motorbikes I've collected since my learner days in July, 1969.
This is my first post on Aussie Frog and after reading all 9 pages again of this sub-forum I can comment on a few issues mentioned these past years. Like others I too graduated from a Scenis to a Koleos because there were no new Scenics to be bought in late 2012. And the 0% finance deal on the Koleos beat the other brands like a lay down misere!
I only got rid of the 2001 Scenic 2WD Dynamique because it got smashed and written off in Oct., 2012. Had 183+ Kms when written off and was reasonably reliable. Some things broke [rear shock absorbers, twice] but that's because I'm a hard driver.
Now with my 2012 Koleos 2WD 2.5Ltr petrol Expression 6 spd manual and am becoming more satisfied as the Kms build. As I just got back from a 10 day / 5,900 Km return trip from Parramatta, NSW, to Trinity Beach [Cairns], FN Qld, I'm doing an A type service, and then some, at 45,760Km. As I've done that trip usually twice a year plus 6 - 10 return trips to Noosa area each year since I bought the Scenic in Feb., 2002, I'm in a got position to compare the two Renaults.
For me, the Koleos handles like a truck on it's OEM Kumho Solus tyres when compared to the Scenic's Michelin Energys [and the Goodyears on my old Volvo]. My research has me intending to fit Continentals next, as recommended by a recent Choice magazine article. My 24y.o. son just swapped from M/Energys to the Continentals for our 2001 Pug 206 GTi and was very impressed with them on a recent 500 Km return trip from Hornsby to Rylstone, NSW, via Bells Line of Road and the Galston Gorge [for you interstaters, these are iconic Sydney area twisty roads]. And I have run 34 psi front and 32 psi rear [when unladen] on both cars for years, adjusting the rear pressures for cargo. With the Scenic / Michelin combo I could always get the back end to back free in hard corning for some rear wheel 'steering', just like my Volvo and XJ6s on the Putty Rd and the like. I tend to avoid the coast highways and travel along the Great Dividing Range as much as possible on trips to Qld & Vic. [BTW, I'm also a motorcyclist so I like my corners].
I also intend to change tyre size when I fit the Continentals by downsizing from the 60% aspect ratio to 55% so to gear the Koleos down for better top gear acceleration at the posted & strictly enforced 100 & 110 Km/hr speed limits here in the east of Oz.
On the Koleos maintenance issues:
- I replaced the original oil filter [a blue Nissan product as per posts by others] with another OEM one at 297Km, then again at about 1,500 Km, with an oil change, just to remove the initial metal wear of the engine. I also have a practice of fitting a magnet to the outside of all my vehicles oil filters ever since seeing the practice as an aftermarket fitting to BMW 'Boxer' motorcycles some years [decades] ago. The idea is that the magnet holds and fine metal wear material within the filter and I get the magnets from the back of speakers taken from old broken radios & the like;
- I have used Penrite oils for years now and have found in my Scenic, Volvo 940, Merc 280SE, Subaru Brumby, Jaguar XJ6's, Moto Guzzi's, BMW K model, Pug 405 Mi16 as well as the Koleos that I get a lower fuel and oil consumption with that brand, provided I use the correct viscosity and mineral vs semi-synthetic vs full synthetic, as per the car / motorcycle manufacturers' recomendation. The Koleos is too new [>46K] to use any oil at all and I too go with 15,000 oil changes for the last two occassions. With the Scenic, somewhere around the 120 - 140K Km mark it started needing a top up at about 10K, so I just changed oil and filter then;
- at the scheduled 25K Km replacement of the OEM paper air filter I bit the bullet and fitted a $102 K&N filter. Been using these filters on my vehicles for years, always with better fuel consumption IF I don't make use of the better accelleration. In the Scenic, on some steep hills I regularly drive up 5 -10 times / week, just the K&N filter change was like having an extra 1/2 a gear lower going uphill. On the Koleos, 105-110Km/hr overtaking is now commonly done in top gear, saving the change down to 5th;
- changed the cabin pollen filter myself at about 32K Km & t'was a doddle. Don't see why any competant home handyman would need to get a mechanic to do it. I went OEM for about $52 because I was in a hurry that day. Good to know I can get two for the price of one if I bother to buy off the Internet well in advance of my next time replacement [like many males, I have a wife with a sense of smell very sensitive to foul odours of a dirty cabin filter];
- like others above, I rotate my wheels from front to rear and back again about every 10 - 15K Kms. Just did them again on the Koleos noting I've done them at 12-13K intervals. I also bother to check the brake pads & rotors for wear while the wheels are off;
- I also prefer to OEM 17" alloy wheels of the Expression Koleos as they're much easier to clean than most, even the OEM 15" alloys on the Scenic. I also take the trouble to keep the contact surfaces between the wheels and brake hub scruptiously clean and free of rust & muck to ensure the wheels sit absolutely square if nothing else;
- re the droopy sunvisors: I had this happen on the Scenic somewhere around 80-120K Kms = bloody annoying! Early days yet but it apears to me that the Koleos has a better mounting / hinge / swivel mechanism. Hope so;
- re the dashmat: I got the charcoal grey one [off the Internet with about 1 week delivery] so to only slightly contrast with the 'near to black' interior fittings of my gloss white [not pearl white] exterior. Being a retired superannuation pensioner since last September, I wanted paintwork that I could easily and economically fix stone chips myself;
- re the floormats: I wasn't too fussed about a precise fit so I've got off the shelf black carpet mats that are made for a Toyota Camry, for about $35-40. Close enough = good enough as I'll replace them in a few years when worn somewhat;
- a Koleos fault I've experienced that no one else has mentioned, operation of the radio: sometimes when wanting to change between AM & FM bands using the column mounted control, I cannot get a response in the first instance from the appropriate button [near side button on the back side i.e. closest to the dash]. I can solve it by scrolling through from radio to CD to auxilliary then back to radio so that the correct button functions properly to scroll up & down between AM / FM modes. Noticably, this doesn't happen in the first instance after starting the car but occurs intermittently on the second or a latter occassion. Has anyone else experienced this phenomenon? I mentioned it to the dealer under warranty service but they didn't experience it and told there was no factory fault notification about it;
- another issue urgent for me now is the handbrake adjustment: does anyone in this forum know how to do it on the Koleos? I cannot find a workshop manual for the Koleos and under & in my car there is no obvious adjuster, unlike on the Scenic [& all my other cars]. Currently, I presume I'll have to remove the centre console plastics to access a mechanical adjuster. But even these plastic covers have no visible metal screws or plastic pins as retainers. And I'm loathe to start pulling on these plastic panels, for the obvious reasons. Info anyone?
2012 Renault Koleos Expression 2.5Ltr petrol 6 spd manual
2003 Peugeot 307 2.0Ltr 4 dr hatch 5spd manual
2001 Peugeot 206 2.0Ltr GTi coupe / hatch 5spd manual
1993 Subaru Brumby 1.8Ltr 4wd Sport utility 4spd manual
1992 Peugeot 405 Mi16 1.9Ltr 4dr 5spd manual
1991 Volvo 940 2.3Ltr sedan 5spd manual [conversion from a 244 Volvo]
1974 Jaguar XJ6 Series 2 4.2Ltr sedan 5spd manual [conversion from a Toyota Supra]
1970 Jaguar 420G 4.2Ltr sedan 3 spd automatic [for when I'm too decrepid to no longer be able to drive a manual]
and then there's all the motorbikes I've collected since my learner days in July, 1969.
I'd suggest they're some kind of ABS plastic rather than rubber, but they've left out UV stabilisers.
