The Versailles Court of Appeal issued four orders, ruling that Renault would not be required to provide certain documents requested by customers who had suffered an engine failure.

These thousands of owners of Renault, Dacia or Nissan cars equipped with Renault engines have reported excessive oil consumption and breakdowns, accusing the manufacturer of knowing about these problems from the beginning. We also talked about the contours of this case on “Auto Plus” in a special article.

Renault does not intend to reveal everything

In March 2023, these plaintiffs were granted simplified access to numerous internal documents related to the production of these engines. Although the manufacturer submitted certain documents, he contested part of the requested documents. The Versailles Court of Appeal ultimately ruled in favor of Renault, finding that these particular documents were neither relevant nor helpful.

These parts, six in number, either did not exist or covered too broad a request, including factories that were only responsible for installing engines in cars. So, clients were ordered to pay attorney’s fees and appeal proceedings.

Renault’s press release emphasized that Thursday’s decision “completely reject the request for additional documents” made by the plaintiffs. However, the Court noted that the elements put forward by the clients have been demonstrated “presence of a legitimate reason” to search for these documents, which the client’s lawyer Christoph Legevak interprets as a victory.

“The judicial obstruction strategy implemented by Renault is not working; justice does not allow itself to be impressed, and it is very lucky”emphasized Christoph Legevakes in a press release through his lawyer’s MyLeo collective action platform.

What are customers looking for?

Customers are especially eager to have access to vehicle approval files, internal audits and exchange with French authorities. Vehicles fitted with 1.2-litre TCe petrol engines manufactured by Renault between October 2012 and June 2016 have been accused of consuming too much oil, leading to higher maintenance costs, more pollution and potentially leading to engine failure between 65,000 and 125,000 kilometers, depending on customers.

The warning was launched in 2019 by consumer association UFC-Que Choisir, and since then thousands of owners have banded together under the name “Motorgate”, referring to the “Dieselgate” scandal involving counterfeit Volkswagen engines. Currently, the action unites 2,600 motorists, according to Christoph Legevakes.

On June 5, 2023, a complaint was filed against Renault for deception and endangering the lives of other persons. However, the plaintiffs remain “open to discussion” if Renault finally shows respect to its customers, according to the lawyer. For our part, we will remind you of this Renault has confirmed excessive oil consumption on a small number of modelsstating that full coverage is provided if customers are scrupulous about maintenance.

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