Renault Scenic review - Electric motor, drive & performance

We found that the range-topping Scenic has plenty of power for most situations, making it feel pretty quick and easy to drive smoothly, even if it doesn’t serve up the outlandish performance of some EVs. 

Not only should this suffice for most families, but the way the Scenic tackles a twisty road is pretty impressive as well. 

To make things a little more interesting, Renault has enlisted the help of legendary electronic synth musician Jean-Michel Jarre to create a novel driving sound that replaces the space-age whirr of older Renault EVs such as the Zoe.

Is the Renault Scenic good to drive in town?

The light steering and smooth power delivery of the Scenic both suit town driving really well, and this being an EV, there are no gears or clutch to worry about. Its steering is fairly sharp for quick manoeuvres, and its 10.9-metre turning circle isn’t bad for a family SUV. Its regenerative braking has four settings, from almost no braking effect to one-pedal driving where you barely need to touch the brake pedal at all. Most work well, but in its lowest setting we found the brake pedal a bit mushy in feel.

Is the Renault Scenic good to drive on long journeys?

With supple suspension the Scenic rides well at higher speeds, so it’s pretty relaxing for longer stints. Our only gripe here was louder tyre roar than we’d hoped for, but the Scenic’s acoustic glass did keep most wind noise out of the cabin.

Is the Renault Scenic good to drive on B-roads?

Careful positioning of the battery pack means the big Renault is evenly balanced over its front and rear wheels, giving it a pleasant feel through corners. This natural poise has allowed engineers to make the suspension a bit softer than you might expect, so even over less-than-ideal tarmac the Scenic could be felt ironing out the biggest impacts and camber changes.

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0-62mph and top speed

As mentioned above, the 217bhp Renault Scenic will have plenty of punch for its target audience, and it doesn’t seem overly phased by the car’s hefty 1,800kg weight. In contrast to the Volkswagen ID.4, it sends all its power to the front wheels, but you’re only likely to ever notice this when accelerating hard out of a greasy T-junction.

With just 168bhp the entry-level version takes 8.6 seconds to cover the same benchmark, which should still be quick enough to keep up with traffic, but is well off the pace of EVs like the Tesla Model Y.

Carbuyer notes

“There’s also a selection of driving modes with Sport, Eco, Normal and ‘Perso’ which lets you choose your own combination of settings. We’d recommend just leaving it in Eco where the most noticeable difference is a firmer throttle pedal, it’s well suited to day-to-day driving. “ Alastair Crooks, senior news reporter.