28 May 08
Renault Espace
Renault Espace
4Car rating: 4 stars
Price: from £18,445
For: Quiet and refined; very comfy seats; smooth ride and luxurious feel.
Against: Huge to manoeuvre; some quality and reliability concerns; expensive.
In France, the Renault Espace qualifies as a fully-fledged prestigious luxury car, and this is about as sumptuous as (relatively) affordable family vehicles get. Now built in-house by Renault and featuring conventional steel body panels (early Matra-made examples had composite plastic bodies) the Espace is more solid and substantial-feeling than ever - but boy, is it huge, even in standard form. Stretched Grand Espace models clock in at 4861mm long.
A five-star Euro NCAP crash test score is confidence-inspiring, and all models have high equipment levels and armchair-like seats. The 3.0 V6 dCi diesel engine gives a great drive, but beware - it falls into Band G for road tax and is thus liable for the £25-a-day London congestion charge. Best stick with the 1.9 and 2.0 diesels.
