Test Car Specifications
Model: 2024 Renault Scenic E-Tech Iconic Long Range
Price: Scenic from £37,495; Iconic Long Range from £45,495; £46,745 as tested
Engine: 160kW electric motor
Battery: 87kWh lithium-ion
Transmission: single-speed automatic, front-wheel drive
Power: 184hp
Torque: 300Nm
Emissions: 0g/km
Economy: 3.7mi/kWh
Range: 369 miles
0-62mph: 7.9 seconds
Top speed: 105mph
Boot space: 545-1,670 litres
Styling
With the move to an SUV shape, the Scenic has become much more desirable in its design, offering a modern and sharp style that’s designed to fit in alongside the smaller Megane E-Tech model – another Renault nameplate that’s suddenly morphed into an SUV, albeit less blatantly than the Scenic. Anyway, the overall image is rather attractive, from the jutting jaw to the little details such as the Renault badge-shaped fragments of the ‘grille’ area, which means we can’t really find anything to complain about. A solid start for the new-look Scenic.
Interior
The Scenic's cabin takes more than a little inspiration from that of the smaller Megane, but it still has its own highlights. The overall design is smart, and it looks really cool from a distance, but there are one or two quality issues that let the side down when you get up close and personal. The gear lever, for example, feels quite flimsy, and some of the panels feel lightweight and tinny. While it's true that efficiency-aiding weight-shedding is partly responsible for all that, it's still a bit of a disappointment.
What is not a disappointment, however, is the touchscreen infotainment system, which uses Google tech to be more responsive and more useful than most of its rivals' systems. The embedded Google Maps tech is particularly useful, not only using data to tell you of traffic and other hazards, but talking to the car to ascertain your predicted battery level on arrival and to inform you of available charging stations. It's really useful and intuitive technology, and it works well with the pin-sharp digital instrument display.
There's more technology at play, too, in the shape of the Solarbay roof that comes as standard on this high-end Iconic model. Using electronics to change the opacity of the glass one segment at a time, the system 'opens and closes' either using voice commands or a button, and changes the amount of glare that comes through. But either way, it's never completely opaque, so you get a light feel in the cabin without the sun always making its way in. And as with a conventional blind, you can open it only part-way if you so wish.
Some solutions are less high-tech, but equally clever. There are pockets for smartphones in the seat backs, for example, and there's a clever rear armrest with lots of cradles and holders. There's even a slot designed to hold your phone, allowing those in the back to comfortably watch videos on their mobiles without having to hold them.
Practicality
The Scenic's cabin is spacious, as well as stylish, and those in the rear seats are in for a treat. Legroom is more than ample, and headroom is sufficient even for tall passengers. The former is more impressive than the latter, but the feeling is one of light and airiness, thanks in part to the Solarbay roof and the lighter upholstery.
However, boot space is marginally less impressive. At 545 litres, the Scenic's cargo bay is hardly small, but it's only on a par with the VW ID.4 and it's 40 litres down on the Enyaq SUV. Of course, that's not a disaster, and the Skoda brand is renowned for its focus on spaciousness, so we won't complain too much, but the rear space is definitely the highlight of this section.
Performance
Renault is offering the new Scenic with a choice of two powertrains, named Comfort Range and Long Range. The former has a 60kWh battery that powers a 170hp electric motor, offering 260 miles of range on the official test and a 0-62mph time of 8.6 seconds. Both those figures are adequate, but with real-world range expected to be 200 or so miles on a good day, that might be a bit tight for some customers.
So Renault's Long Range option is expected to be more popular, if only because unlike the Comfort Range it's available across the Scenic range, rather than solely on the base model. That version gets an 87kWh battery and a 217hp electric motor, which cuts the 0-62mph time slightly to 7.9 seconds, but that isn't the real draw. The selling point is the range, which shoots up to 379 miles on the industry-wide official test, and will probably work out at 250 or so in the real world. Perhaps more like 300 if you're careful or steer clear of motorways.
Ride & Handling
How the Scenic drives largely depends on the mode it’s in. The Eco setting, for example, makes the car feel quite limp and gutless, while the Sport setting makes the steering heavier without adding any feel, and the throttle response becomes spikier. Neither suits the car brilliantly, but Comfort mode makes quite a difference. The softer suspension setting takes away some of the brittleness the ride has in other modes, leaving a slightly more peaceful ambience inside. It still rides heavily at low speeds, despite its relatively low kerb weight, but that may be a by-product of the big wheels. At higher speeds, though, it feels pretty supple.
That feels much more Renault-ish, because even with the more powerful motor on board, the Scenic never feels sporty in any way. It handles tidily enough, and there’s adequate grip, but it doesn’t encourage you to throw it about and there is a bit of body roll there, in spite of the fact most of its weight is low down. Nevertheless, it won’t wallow or roll too much, and it stays stable enough to feel unthreatening. It just never really engages the driver.
It is fairly refined, however, and you can make it even more refined with the help of a little button down by the side of the steering wheel, which offers a shortcut to the driver assistance settings. By law, Renault has to turn most of the tech on the minute you switch the car on, but it knows drivers won’t always want that. So you can customise the settings you want to keep or remove – we’d keep the blind-spot monitoring tech but bin off the irritating (and often inaccurate) speed limit warning and lane departure warning systems immediately – and then use the button to activate (or, more to the point, deactivate) them every time you get in the car. It’s tech more and more companies are implementing, and we’re pleased to see it.
Value
Renault has kept the Scenic range simple, with just three trim levels to choose from and paint colours representing the sole options. If you want more kit, step up a trim level. However, even the basic Techno comes with quite a bit of kit, including 19-inch alloys, the Google-powered infotainment system and two-zone climate control, as well as parking sensors, a heated steering wheel and an electric power tailgate. It’s also the only model to offer the option of both powertrains, with the Comfort Range coming in at £37,495, while the Long Range costs £40,995.
From there, customers can upgrade to the Esprit Alpine (£43,495), which gets larger 20-inch alloy wheels, heated front seats and some Alpine-inspired styling, or the range-topping Iconic tested here. That car costs £45,495, and it gets a Harman Kardon audio system, an around-view 3D reversing camera system and the Solarbay panoramic sunroof.
Of course, none of these cars is what you’d call cheap, but the price is at least competitive. The Comfort Range is fractionally cheaper than the equivalent Enyaq, while the most upmarket Skoda SUVs – the L&K and the vRS – both cost more than £50,000.
Verdict
The new Scenic may not have the practicality of its predecessors, but it still has plenty of appeal. Decent range, a smart design and (in Comfort mode, at least) a likeable gait means it has much to commend it. But it falls short of the Enyaq in terms of polish and boot space, and though prices are competitive and the Scenic is likeable, it can't quite match the best in its class as an all-round product. As a more imaginative alternative, though, it's worthy of consideration.
