Renault 5 Gt turbo

These cars are seriously more fun than any audi.

Yeah there are a few chav spec'd examples but ive owned two of these now and they were both quicker than my boring s3 and handelled considerably better.

You must take it for what it is, of course they arent cool, but with some wilwoods, coilovers and a bit of engine work they are awesome. I ran mine day in day out for about 2 years @ 25psi with no engine faults at all. And i certainly embarresed a few classier cars....like a porsche gt3.
 
5GT Turbo, a fun car in its day but certainly pipped by a 205GTI (1.6 or 1.9) for all round enjoyment, I should know as i've had all three :)

True, if you fettle a 5GT it certainly is quicker in a straight line, but if you shove an Mi16 or GTi6 lump in a 205 then its a different ball game entirely. Also round a track a fettled 205 with a capable driver will munch 5GT's all day.
 
A good friend of mine has an mi16 205 and it is awesome, almost 200bhp now, goes really well, handles nicely etc..

Imo though the gt-turbo has the x-factor, setting it above the rest.
 
Renault 5 GT Turbo was built baddly and was amasingly flimsy and when pushed hard was skittish. But as they are now so rare they are kinda cool:cool:
 
bubstar said:
100% Agree. In their day no other 'hot hatch' could touch a 5 GT in a straight line. The Pug' may have had a better chassis but that didn't matter because you'd left him behind at the last set of lights.....
Click to expand...

but then the pug would overtake the R5 on the outside of the 1st bend whilst the driver was changing his tape and lighting a fag

In response to the R5 being the fastest hot hatch in a straight line I have 3 words - Lancia Delta Integrale.

I thought that one of the biggest problems with the R5 (non gordini) was that Renault decided it would be great idea to run the fuel line over the top of the turbo, resulting in at best the fuel vapourising before it hit the injectors or at worst an under bonner fireball.
 
I had 2 of these R5's back in the day and I loved them, Still like them now but of course wouldnt have one. Mine was Pearlecent 'anything' I had more flips in mine than the dreamcoat itself. Slammed 80mm rear, 100mm front, extremely low and loved every head jerking, jaw banging minute of it. 170-ish BHP and I was wrapping it round the country side no probs. Had some interesting plays with the 'Astra GTE 8v and the 16v. Underestimated in their days.
Chavvy now maybe but noway chavvy back then.

..but back in them days no one cared about how ridiculous your ride looked, Whether you was driving a **** or classic, aslong as it had 15" alloys on it!!
 
Fragile, quirky money pits, but I loved mine!

First one was a pup but bought more wisely with the 2nd and it didnt break down too much (honest).

So its not not everyones cup of tea, 205 1.9 was another favourite but too pricey to tune. Stick a £40 bleed valve on a R5 and youve more bang for your buck than the other hot-hatches of its day.

Had a string of Pugs, GTEs, Gtis etc etc and none was as much of a laugh as the R5T.
 
Def a classic symbol of hot hatch back in the day. The 1st turbo'd car I ever went in, and since then owned nothing but turbo'd cars thanks to that thrash in my mates R5. So I have this motor to thank for that!
 
Was never a huge fan of the R5GTs, but I did have a soft spot for the 5 Turbo Raider editions - they looked pretty cool back then with their dark metallic paint.

Quite ominous cars back then, because you never knew how much power they were packing. If you wanted to race one you just had to hope that it would blow up before overtaking you.

GT Tuning used to build 300 bhp versions - lord knows how they squeezed that much out of the 1.4.

N
 
I too always regarded the later 5 turbo's as a typical piece of french kit-unreliable, cheaply made but somehow alluring.I have a fondness for the Gordini turbo but the original MK1 just looked halfway serious,a bit like the Renault alpine....hmmm now there's another post.
 
I love its oldschool looks but the build quality is so terrible. I owned 10 years ago and its been the most unreliable car Ive ever owned.
I used to drive about with my eye constantly on the temperature gauge LOL.
 
J7USS said:
I had 2 of these R5's back in the day and I loved them, Still like them now but of course wouldnt have one. Mine was Pearlecent 'anything' I had more flips in mine than the dreamcoat itself. Slammed 80mm rear, 100mm front, extremely low and loved every head jerking, jaw banging minute of it. 170-ish BHP and I was wrapping it round the country side no probs. Had some interesting plays with the 'Astra GTE 8v and the 16v. Underestimated in their days.
Chavvy now maybe but noway chavvy back then.

..but back in them days no one cared about how ridiculous your ride looked, Whether you was driving a **** or classic,


aslong as it had 15" alloys on it!!
Click to expand...


sorry bit late into this thread.....
15" tsw blades.. or venoms i do believe!!!

5gt`s were fast but shat on corners imo.
 
How can you call a R5GTT chav? Most chavs wouldn't know what one was never mind hanker after one.

The few examples left that I've seen are pampered and cared for and treated like a classic. 80's icon and at the time maybe a bit of an Essex image but certainly not chav
 
jojo said:
Have you driven one? The one I tried seemed to hold the road pretty well, but I did only have 15minutes in it.
Click to expand...

Ive owned 2.
They corner fantastic, fact

And lets not forget its a 25 year old car!!

Chav car? Errrr...:think:

Modern classic more like.
 
go really well but blow up just as easy (sold mine after 2 rebuilds)
fun to drive and handled well for a 80s sports car
 
The 205 was a much better car especially those that had the Mi16 engine in them.
The renault's bonnet didn't even open the right way!
 
A4Quattro said:
The 205 was a much better car especially those that had the Mi16 engine in them.
The renault's bonnet didn't even open the right way!
Click to expand...

The 205 was a lot more money second hand, and according to the `experts` had no more than a marginal edge over the R5GTT in the handling stakes (I remember reading a few hot hatch group tests many many moons ago)
I test drove a 205 and owned a 309Gti at one point, and both are fine cars.

Im sure the 205 would have been more reliable than the R5 (what wasnt!) but the R5 was more tuneable and slightly quicker out of the blocks.

M16 205s werent factory cars anyway and where built by tuners using donor 405 MI16 lumps so its not a fair comparison to pitch a modded car against a std car.

Anyway none of this matters when deciding whether a car is `cool` or not and its a resounding and biased yes from me.

How the R5 would fair on a `reliabilty wall` or `handling wall` is another matter.

cheers
Paul
 
I had the 205GTI the R5 Turbo and the Clio 16v. Of all three, the R5 was the best fun, the best handling and with a strut brace on the front it can it razor sharp turn in.
 
I don't know what the problem is, lots of things are in bad taste or "Chav ****" as you put it but most things are cyclical.

I loved mine, never broke down, but then it was as clean under the bonnet as it was inside. Its 50 year old push rod design with a big blower offering big lag with thrills. the XR2 fiesta was as dull as a dull thing on a dull day at the time, TBH even the RS turbo Fiesta wasn't as fun, with a flat torque curve and the same interior as the 1.1 made it average and without the punch of the big blower, but it was quick.

The R5 has very DEEP bucket seats, so you sit in a low touring car position with the factory momo steering wheel high up. Its a great driving position and a great car.

Yes its not good to crash, yes its not as efficient as modern cars, but the advert for the R5 summed it up.

As Bill Clinton said "Its all about the 0-60 stupid"

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Be-U86y1LMo
 
Great write up in Novembers EVO Magazine on the R5 GTT.
5 Stars no less.:salute:
 
Lol interesting read!! my 1991 on a H plate GT turbo is in my garage had it about 13 years now!! its in Mint A1 condition, and has had extensive 'upgrades' over the years! even went to the Nurembergring a couple years ago in it! yeah build quality not the best, but you do need to look after it! i am pushing out about 190bhp in it and its very rapid! since i have owned it it has had only one clutch go on me and is still on the original head gasket from build!! its all about sensible maintenance. Dont drive it much these days but still puts a smile on my face when i get it out for a drive!!
My Audi i'm sure will be fun as well!! i pick it up tomorrow!:redrs4:

Phil
 
Quality car!! As with anything the Chavs moved on to other cars like the Saxo etc and the R5 became cool again. Just seen a mint condition Grey G plate and it looked ace. I had the Escort series two and i actually have dreams about still owning that car!!!
 
Great little cars! Back when I passed my driving test in the late 90's there were lots of these about and you knew they meant business when you heard them coming with the dump valve chirping away!

Never got to drive one, but they were at least a match for the 205 1.9 GTi, which I owned 3. I was lucky enough to own a 1.9 GTi Turbo Technics so I suppose this would have been similar in away - just with more power. That remains the best car I've ever owned!

I never really agreed with the critics argument that the 205 1.6 was really the better car - owned one of these, and it was nothing on the 1.9. Handling may have been very very slightly better, but the lack of shove-you-into-the-seat performance was a big minus.

Mint R5GTT's will only be going UP in value these days!
 
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