I have a 1997 P reg 1.6 Rt Auto Renault Megane Scenic. Accelerating is poor at first but main issue is clunking noise when gears are first engaged. Also if this does not make a noise the car appears to lurch when accelerating from a standing start.

What's wrong and what can I do to solve it?

Any free service manuals around?

David Brewer, July 2007

the problem is with the forward drive gear and it will cost approx £850 to fix you need to go to a recommended auto gearbox specialist if you are in the Mansfield area the man you need is Eddy Rose on the Hermitage Lane Industrial site

Carl, August 2008

Hi there David - I also have a 1997 P reg 1.6 Rt Auto Renault Megane Scenic which by the sound of it has the same fault as yours. It clunks and lurches slightly as I pull away from standing. It was my sisters car originally - she took it to a Renault dealership in Norwich and they told her it was a lubrication problem in the automatic gearbox but because it was a sealed unit it could not be fixed it could only be replaced. When I acquired the car I asked my local Renault dealer about it and they gave me the same story so it must be a common problem I reckon. Basically it would cost more than the car is worth to replace the gearbox so they more-or-less said just "drive it until it fails". They said it could be weeks or it could be years before that happens. That was a couple of years ago and the fault is still there but now there is a starting problem as well! anyway I know this doesn't answer your question but it may shed some light on it.

David Bell, August 2007