Renault Scenic 1.6

I have recently bought this car for my girlfriend. We have a child, and regularly carry 4 adults and a child in a child-seat in the car, and even in our estate car this proved to be uncomfortable to say the least. So we decided to look at the MPV market. Having a budget of £8,000, this meant we couldn't entertain the newer mini-MPVs such as the Zafira or Picasso, so we looked at the Scenic, Espace, Galaxy etc.

The Scenic won hands down - mainly as we didn't need a 7 seater, five good seats was what we were looking for, so that we can put the child seat in the back, and then still seat two adults along side it, in comfort.

So we bought a 2nd-hand one privately - a later shape 1999/V reg with 62,000 miles and full service history for £7000. We did look at some of the S/T reg earlier shape ones for similar price with slightly less miles, but they all looked much more shabby than the newer shape ones, and had loose trim, lots of stonechips, and in 2 cases, the beginnings of rust! So we decided to pay for the slightly higher mileage, to get the later shape model, which seems to withstand day to day wear and tear much better.

The RXE model is extremely well equipped. It has power steering, electric windows front & rear, electric mirrors, electric twin sunroofs, driver & passenger airbags, ABS, CD player, fuel computer & air conditioning. The only thing it misses is alloy wheels. The interior has a nice cloth design, and is remarkably roomy and airy.

The dashboard has been modified from the standard megane model, and whilst it works reasonably well in the scenic, one or two of the switches aren't the easiest to find when watching the road ahead. I find the heated rear window switch very difficult to locate. It is a shame that the ergonomics were overlooked a little, as it detracts from what is otherwise an extremely well sorted car.

On the practicality side - this car is unsurpassed. All the rear seats slide forwards/backwards, fold down and if necessary can be removed - this was invaluable on a recent trip to Ikea, when the scenic basically became a small van for the day! With the seats in, the boot is cavenous (much bigger than the 7 seater MPVs), remove them, and you could fit a tall fridge/freezer in the boot, and still have loads of space. On top of this, there are extremely useful stowage facilities under the rear carpets, under the rear seats, by the rear seatbelts, and in the side walls of the boot. There are fold down tables for rear passengers, and there are an absolute wealth of accessories available from Renault, including fridges, dog-guards, etc - although these are not cheap, and some can be purchased 2nd-hand. A 2nd cigar socket in the back can be used for powering laptops, game-boys, dvd players, or one of the electrical accessories.

The seats are extremely comfortable, especially on long journeys, the stereo is adequate (albeit not sparkling!), and the drive is surprisingly positive - plenty of feedback through the steering wheel, and good cornering capabilites from a low centre of gravity. This is good praise for me - I'm more used to driving Escort Cosworths & Clio Williams (see my other reviews!). The 1.6i 16v engine is lively, and whilst it won't set any land speed records, it will comfortably beat the metros and micras away from the lights. In hindsight, I'd have preferred to go for a 2.0i model, but these are very thin on the ground, unless you want an automatic version, and neither me nor my partner wanted one of these.

The fuel economy is very good for a car of this size - it returns 34mpg typically. They are simplicity itself to service, and I don't think that this car will need to see a Renault dealer again, as we have a reliable local garage who is more than capable of working on what are rather basic components for this day and age. Which is a good thing - as that means it is easy and cheap to maintain! Despite its relatively high mileage, it sailed through its first MOT first time.

If you're buying one, I'd strongly consider going for a later shape version (i.e. 1999 on) as it is clear that the build quality came on leaps and bounds in that facelift. Check carefully for body damage, many people can't handle the fact that these cars are so big, and are easily bumped in the car parks. Also, children getting in/out of the back seats can scuff the door sills, and damage the internals. There is a reasonable selection of cars out there, so walk away from tatty ones. Look at the front of the car- the early one's especially pick up stone chips very easily which can soon turn to rust. If you can afford it, get electric sunroofs, and air conditioning, as models without these features are very hard to sell on later. Also, they are invaluable features, as all that glass does mean that the interior gets very hot in the summer!

If you do buy one, I think you'll be very pleased with it - a fantastically comfortable & practical car, which is good to drive, performs well, and is reliable & great to look at.

If you're not the world's best driver, get a parking distance sensor fitted - they're cheap to buy (about £40-£60) and will save you from damaging that bodywork!