Renault Grand Scenic MPV (2016-2020) - Engines, drive & performance

Get behind the wheel of the Renault Grand Scenic and you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how it drives. It’s no sports car by any means, and the Ford S-MAX is still the enthusiast's pick, but the big Renault is reassuringly competent.

Push hard into the corners and you’ll notice it develops a fair amount of body lean, but the sense of surefootedness the Grand Scenic imbues is impressive. It’s a shame the diesel engine gets a little loud when being revved, while we found the manual gearbox a little notchy – though this may improve as the car loosens up with time.

We do wish Renault would offer an alternative to the Grand Scenic’s 20-inch alloy wheels, though. They look fantastic without question, but smaller wheels would almost certainly improve the way the Grand Scenic copes with bumps and undulations.

Renault Grand Scenic diesel engines

Renault simplified the Grand Scenic's engine range in October 2018, leaving one Blue dCi 120 diesel with 118bhp. Performance figures for this engine haven't been released yet, but the outgoing dCi 130 diesel took 11.4 seconds to get from 0-62mph, so we expect a similar figure is on the cards for the new engine.

Petrol engines

Available with 138bhp, the turbocharged 1.3-litre four-cylinder petrol replaced the 1.2-litre petrol at the start of 2018 and has been designed to deliver improved urgency throughout the rev range. It gives improved acceleration and with 138bhp it's faster than the diesel, taking 10.3 seconds to get from 0-62mph.