| Manufacturer | Renault |
|---|---|
| Production | 1983–1992 |
| Assembly | Sandouville, France |
| Predecessor | Renault 20 Renault 30 |
| Successor | Renault Safrane |
| Class | Executive car |
| Body style | 5-door liftback |
| Layout | FF layout |
| Engine | Gasoline and diesel from 2.0 to 2.8 L |
The Renault 25 is an executive car produced by the French automaker Renault from 1983 to 1992. During its time, the 25 was Renault's flagship, the most expensive, prestigious, and largest vehicle in the company's line-up. It placed second in the 1985 European Car of the Year contest.[1] All 25s were built in Sandouville, near Le Havre, France.
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Introduced in late 1983 for a March 1984 start of sales,[2] the Renault 25 was a large step forward in nearly every aspect from the Renault 20 / Renault 30 range it was replacing. Its five-door liftback body was penned by designers Gaston Juchet and Robert Opron of Citroën SM fame, and the unconventional style (the wraparound rear window was its most famous feature) was aimed at giving the car a notchback look in order to overcome customer preference outside France for formal sedans in the segment.
The 25 was one of the first cars designed from the start for aerodynamic efficiency; its drag coefficient (Cd) was 0.31, a key factor in improving fuel economy. The TS model briefly held the unofficial title of "world's most aerodynamic mass-production car" with a Cd of 0.28, and at its launch the 25 was easily the best in its class for fuel economy.
All Renault 25 models were front-wheel drive, with four cylinder (2-litre and 2.2-litre petrol injection or 2.1 litre diesel) and six-cylinder (2849cc and 2458cc turbo injection) engines mounted longitudinally forward of the front axle. The 25's performance was above average for its class, with the V6 Turbo specification a match for the Mercedes-Benz E-Class and BMW 5 Series.
The 25 was praised for its ride comfort and spirited handling (despite slight understeer, and torque steer on V6 Turbo models). A newly designed manual transmission drew unanimous praise for its precision and smoothness (although the detente spring on 5th gear could cause mis-selection of 3rd gear), and though the futuristic interior designed by Italian designer Marcello Gandini (of Lamborghini fame) was controversial, the 25 was highly regarded for its quiet, spacious and well-lit passenger compartment.
Equipment levels were high and set new standards for French cars, the 25 including among other features, an express-up and down feature on the driver's power window, voice alerts (covering items such as improperly shut doors/bonnet/boot - oil pressure, engine temperature/charging circuit and blown bulbs), and one of the world's first remote stereo controls, mounted to the right of the steering column (controlling volume +/-, station search, station select (jog wheel) in radio mode & Volume +/-, mute and track advance (if supported)). For the first time since World War II, Renault had a realistic chance of breaking into the full-size market segment outside of France.
The Renault 25's least durable part was the automatic transmission. As a result, most of the 25's in service today are the 5-speed manual because only a few autos have survived. Three automatic transmissions were used on R25: MJ3, 4141, both 3-speed, and a new 4-speed AR4, later used on Safrane as AD4/AD8. The transmission itself was not that bad, but the poor quality and design of the ATF cooler, however, especially on the later AR4, resulted in this version gaining the title of possibly the worst automatic transmission ever designed. A leaking ATF cooler meant quick transmission death with little or no physical warning, except for ATF stains beneath the vehicle to which not all drivers paid attention or not quickly enough. The results were disastrous. The first transmissions started failing within a few years, that is, while the model was still in production. Renault then prepared a package that was to replace the original poor-quality cooler regardless of vehicle age and mileage. However, the fatal cooler location in front of the right wheel could not be changed. This is the reason why it is extremely difficult, if indeed possible, to find a Renault 25 Automatic with the AR4 transmission today.
The car underwent a facelift in 1988 with a new front end, taillights, interior materials, and front suspension. Essentially every panel was changed on the facelifted car, with the intent to smooth the styling. The new version also featured more powerful engines, the 2.2i engine being dropped and replaced by a 12v version of the 2.0i engine which produced 140bhp. There were a small number of run-out post-facelift cars fitted with the 2.2i engine to use up stocks, these were rated at the normal 123bhp for that engine.
Production of the 25 stopped in late 1992 to make way for the Renault Safrane.
The Renault 25 was the base of the American-market Renault Premier.[3][4][5][6] The Premier featured a body by Ital Design of Turin, Italy, and using the Renault 25 chassis the suspension was derived from the Renault Medallion (Renault 21).[7] The interior was designed by American Motors while the rest of the car was styled by Giorgetto Giugiaro.[8] The model was eventually branded as Eagle Premier after the sale of American Motors (AMC) to Chrysler in 1987. From 1990 to 1992, Chrysler also sold a rebadged version as Dodge Monaco.
An extended-wheelbase version of the initial Renault 25, called the Renault 25 Limousine, was offered. It was 22.7 centimetres (8.9 in) longer than the standard car and was available in two variants. The standard 25 Limousine had the same rear bench seat of the standard-wheelbase model whereas the Executive version had two individual seats with electric adjustment. The Limousine (only available as 2.7 V6 for right hand drive markets) was dropped from Renault UK's range within two years of its 1985 introduction, but continued in other European markets.
Coach Builders such as Boonaker provided bulletproof variants as well as fitting 2.5 V6 Turbo engines. For a time the President of France used a Armoured Limousine variant of the Renault 25 with some special modifications. Not least of these were two extra fuel injectors fitted into the sill mouldings on either side of the car at the 'B' Pillar position. These were directly connected to the engine fuel system through a switch in the passenger compartment that would, if the engine was running, simultaneously pulse high pressure jets of neat petrol and ignite them as a deterrant. Since the fuel injection system runs at high pressure this would have been a quite effective flamethrower but somewhat dangerous for innocent civilians. The system was later removed for this reason.
French-market specifications:
(French-market specifications unless indicated otherwise. All hp metric.)
The 25 was also exported to Australia. Introduced in 1985, it was priced at AUS$35000 without cruise control. It had a disc-drum brake setup, rather than a 4-wheel-discs as on the Renault 8.
The R25 was exported to the UK from early 1984, where its hatchback bodystyle helped it to stand out compared with conventional saloons. GTX in the UK was equivalent to Level 3 in the above list & used the 123hp 2.2i engine. For the facelift versions the equivalent to the GTX was the TXI, with the 2.0 12v engine of 140hp. The 12v head from the 2.0 engine was latterly used in the J7T 2.2i engine in Safrane. For the UK the pre facelift range included TS, Monaco (being a special edition with metallic brown paint, Monaco badging on boot and C-Pillar insert panels, Leather interior and some other changes from the TS spec), GTX, V6 & V6 Turbo. The Facelift cars were TX (2.0/2.2i special order), TXI (2.0i/2.2i special order), V6, V6 Turbo for a short period and Baccara (2.9i V6/2.4i V6 Turbo) which was the top of the range. The 2.2i engine in the phase 2 cars was only available 'while stocks last', and is very rare vehicle. There were also Renault 5 (1.4, 1.7), Clio 1 (1.4) and Clio 1A (1.4/1.8/1.8 RSI tune) Baccara models, all with extremely high specifications generally including leather interior and full electrics packages.
Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Renault_25 Renault 25] at Wikimedia Commons
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| Large family car | Juvaquatre | 12 | 18 | 21 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Alliance / Encore | Mégane I | Mégane II | Mégane III | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Leisure activity vehicle | Express | Kangoo I | Kangoo II | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Large MPV | Espace I | Espace II | Espace III | Espace IV | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Van | Trafic I | Trafic II | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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