Should we avoid spending time in Bordeaux? We need to drop off a rental car somewhere in the Dordogne Valley and need to locate train station back to Paris?
I would encourage you to spend some time in Bordeaux.
Visit/see the Place de la Bourse, the Pont Jacques Chaban Delmas, the Chateau Pape Clement, the Opera National de Bordeaux Grand Theatre and the Port of the Moon if you can.
The food is exceptional also.
We enjoyed our stay in Bordeaux before picking up our car for the Dordogne. Car rental places are at Gare St. Jean so it would be easy to drop the car and get the train to Paris.
The city of Bordeaux does not make Rick's list of priority sightseeing for a first or second visit to France. Brive or Libourne are common train connection spots, with direct service to Paris. If you wanted to include Oradour-sur-Glane in your driving, then you could switch to train at Limoges. (Sarlat has fewer train departures, all with a connection needed.)