The French manufacturer has just unveiled the silhouette of a model that is more like a stretched Austral than a minivan.
The Renault Espace participated in the popularization of minivans in Europe as early as the 1980s. This type of bodywork was very popular in the 2000s before suffering a decline during the following decade. Evidenced by its fifth iteration, produced from 2015, which only sold a hundred thousand copies, almost three times less than the previous model.
An iconic name to replace the Koleos
At the beginning of 2022, SUVs accounted for 50% of cars sold in Europe, which shows their tremendous popularity. This trend has had an impact on the market for family vehicles, so much so that it could be easy to predict the disappearance of the Espace from the production lines. It is now a bit done, since it will no longer be found in the range of minivans.
It is above all the name that will remain. The manufacturer has unveiled the lines of its Espace VI, which turns out to be a stretched version of… the Austral, the SUV that replaced the Kadjar. Renault seems to want to capitalize on the name of its emblematic model, which will celebrate its 40th anniversary this year, and offer a replacement for the Koleos, which has failed to seduce in the family SUV segment.
A hybrid vehicle that can accommodate up to 7 passengers
This new model will be 4.73 meters long, i.e. 22 centimeters longer than the Austral, but 14 centimeters shorter than the Espace V. It will still be able to carry 7 people thanks to a straighter stern than the Austral, and so a ” longitudinal roominess of 2.48 m up to the third row “, according to Renault. A somewhat poetic way of promising that no passenger in the back will have a stiff neck after several hours on the road or bumps after visiting Saint-Malo.
Like the Austral, this model should be built on the CMF-CD platform of the Renault-Nissan Alliance, and therefore emphasize the hybrid with E-Tech engines of 160 and 200 hp. It will therefore probably be necessary to give up the 100% electric option for this time. But, after all, what would a Space be without its stops at the gas pump announcing the chaotic awakening of the little darlings dozing in the back?
Sources: Clean Automotive, Renault on Twitter
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