Renault Espace
Espace I (1984-1991)
Espace I
Production
1984-1991
Assembly
Romorantin, France
The Espace’s design was originally conceived in the 1970s by the British designer, Fergus Pollock, (at around the same time as Giorgetto Giugiaro’s 1978 Lancia Megagamma concept MPV), who was working for Chrysler UK (formerly the Rootes Group), at their design centre at Whitley, (now the Jaguar design centre) in Coventry. Later Matra, who were affiliated with Simca, the then French subsidiary of Chrysler, were involved in partnership in the design, spearheaded by Greek designer Antonis Volanis.
The Espace was originally intended to be sold as a Talbot, and to be a replacement for the Matra Rancho leisure activity vehicle. Early prototypes used Simca parts, and hence featured a grille reminiscent of the Simca 1307 (Chrysler Alpine).
In 1978, before the Espace went into production, Chrysler UK and Simca were sold to the French company PSA Peugeot Citron (PSA), and the Espace design was given to Matra.
PSA decided the Espace was too expensive and too risky a design to put into production, and Matra took their idea to Renault (PSA finally ventured into the minivan sector eleven years later with the Citron Evasion/Peugeot 806).
The Matra concept became the Renault Espace. The design featured a fiberglass body mounted on a warm-galvanized steel chassis, using the same technique and assembly line at the factory as the Talbot Matra Murena. In fact, the introduction of the Espace required the relatively small factory to cease the production of the Murena, to make room for the Espace.
The Espace was launched by Renault in 1984. After a very slow start a grand total of nine Espaces were sold in the first month after launch customers warmed to the benefits of the MPV concept and the Espace became very popular.
Espace I – Phase 2
Building upon its success, the Espace was revamped in 1988 with most of the Talbot/Simca content being replaced by equivalent Renault parts (the chassis and mechanical components of the car remained largely unchanged). The most obvious cosmetic exterior difference between the very first Espaces and the revamped post-1988 models were the changed headlights: the forward-slanting lights with orange indicator casing of the original Espace were replaced with backward-slanting lights with a clear indicator casing.
Espace II (1991-1997)
Espace II
Production
1991-1997
Assembly
Romorantin, France
A heavily revised Espace was launched in 1991, adopting the Renault family look to replace the Talbot-themed styling of the original. This was essentially a re-skin of the original car, with a new dashboard and other interior improvements. The chassis was essentially unchanged.
Espace F1
In 1995, Renault displayed a show car called the Espace F1 (created by Matra) to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of the Espace and Renault’s involvement in Formula One racing. It was based on a V10-powered Williams Formula One racing car with an Espace J63 body reinforced with lightweight carbon-fibre instead of the glass fibre of the standard model. The Renault-Williams engine powered it from 0200 km/h (0124 mph) in 6 seconds, and helped by the carbon-ceramic brakes, it did 0270 km/h (0168 mph) and back to 0 in under 600 metres (1,969 ft). This version of the Espace was featured in the driving simulator, Gran Turismo 2.
Espace III (1997-2003)
Espace III
Production
1997-2003
Assembly
Romorantin, France
The third generation of the Espace arrived in 1997, its most notable feature being the radical futuristic interior (with a centrally-mounted digital speedometer). A number of third generation Espaces were used as bases for NGV and taxi conversions for the Kuala Lumpur International Airport and the Kuala Lumpur Sentral transportation hub in Malaysia, rebranded as Enviro 2000s.
The third-generation Espace was the last to be built by Matra; following an end to production for Renault, Matra and MG Rover negotiated over a possible deal for the latter to build and market Espaces but this never came to fruition.
Espace IV (2003-present)
Espace IV
Manufacturer
Renault and Yulon
Production
F: 2003-present
TW: 2003-2008
Assembly
Sandouville, France
Miaoli, Republic of China
The fourth-generation Espace arrived in 2003 and was the first Espace designed and built entirely by Renault. Espace is 90% recyclable and contains numerous weight-reducing materials, thus cutting fuel consumption. The aluminium doors and bonnet are some 20 kg lighter than steel equivalents. Its styling was reflective of a new design direction at Renault, symbolised by the radical Vel Satis and Avantime models, marking a major departure from the previous model, which also saw the range moved upmarket.
The fourth-generation Espace came third from the bottom in the Top Gear Satisfaction Survey 2005.
Safety
The Espace passed the Euro NCAP car safety tests with following ratings:
Adult Occupant:
Pedestrian:
The 2003 Espace featured in Fifth Gear where it was crashed into a 90’s Land Rover Discovery at 64km/h (40 mph). The passenger compartment in the Espace was kept fairly intact, but the dummy in the Discovery was smashed between the seats and the dashboard, leaving no survival possibilities.
Reviews
The Renault Espace IV has received very good reviews from motoring journalists and is often cited as one of the best vehicles in the large MPV class.
The AA
‘The [Espace] is the MPV to beat all MPVs; it’s spacious, luxurious and drives well for a car this size. And there’s no question of it being mistaken for anything else on the road.’
Autocar
‘The interior is well executed, but even the Grand Espace isn’t that spacious with seven on board. Build quality is impressive, as are the diesels, but avoid petrol power.’
Auto Express
‘The restyle hasn’t dented the visual appeal of the Espace. Yet although the interior is more practical, it’s simply not as versatile as the cabins of rivals such as the new Ford Galaxy, or upmarket competitors like Land Rover’s Discovery.’
Car
For: Gigantic
Against: A bit unwieldy
Parker’s
Pros: Masses of cabin room, superb long distance cruiser, strong dCi engines
Cons: Can be expensive to buy, seats don’t fold flat, sheer size makes it tricky to manoeuvre
Top Gear
‘The last word in MPVs, the Renault Espace is simply vast, but manages to be stylish and unconventional at the same time. Available in regulation and Behemoth ‘Grand’ guises, either is the ultimate solution for those with a distrust of birth control.’
What Car?
‘Decent space for people, if not their luggage. The Espace offers a refined drive and some refined engines, but some rivals are cheaper and more versatile.’
Notes
^ http://www.press.renault.co.uk/releases/arc_2004/010704ren.htm Renault Press release on the model’s 20th anniversary
^ Lewin, Tony (2003). How to Design Cars Like a Pro: A Complete Guide to Car Design from the Top Professionals. Motorbooks International. ISBN 0-7603-1641-4.
^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VJDIeeSdAE Top Gear – Historic People Carrier Racing – official Top Gear YouTube channel provided legally by BBC
^ Austin Rover Online
^ http://www.euroncap.com/tests/renault_espace_2003/162.aspx
^ http://www.theaa.com/allaboutcars/cartestreports/2006054.html
^ http://www.autocar.co.uk/CarReviews/RoadTestsVerdict/Renault-Espace-Grand-3.0-V6-dCi-Privil%C3%A8ge-Auto/217581/
^ http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/carreviews/firstdrives/66571/renault_grand_espace.html
^ http://www.parkers.co.uk/gbu/Detail.aspx?deriv=37252
^ http://www.parkers.co.uk/cars/reviews/renault/grand-espace-2003.aspx
^ http://www.topgear.com/uk/renault/espace-grand-espace
^ http://www.whatcar.com/car-reviews/renault/espace-mpv/summary/25134-7
References
Chapman, Giles (2004-07-22). “Classic Cars: The Renault Espace”. The Independent. http://motoring.independent.co.uk/features/article49085.ece. Retrieved 2006-05-22.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Renault Espace
Gallery and historical data
Renault Espace Official Renault UK spec page
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previous Renault car timeline, 1980sresent
Type
1980s
1990s
2000s
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
City car
Twingo
Twingo II
Supermini
5 / 7
Super 5
Clio I
Clio II / Thalia
Clio III
Small
family car
14
9 / 11
19
Mgane I
Mgane II
Mgane III
Alliance
Large family car
18
21 / Medallion
Laguna I
Laguna II
Laguna III
Executive car
20 / 30
25
Safrane
Vel Satis
Leisure activity vehicle
Kangoo I
Kangoo II
SUV
Koleos
Mini MPV
Modus
Compact MPV
Scnic I
Scnic II
Scnic III
Large MPV
Espace I
Espace II
Espace III
Espace IV
Coup
Fuego
Avantime
Laguna Coup
Roadster
Spider
v d e
Renault S.A.
Current:
Twingo Clio Mgane Laguna Vel Satis Kangoo Modus Scnic Espace Koleos Logan Safrane Sandero
Numeric:
3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 25 30
1970 2005:
Alliance/Encore Fuego Medallion Premier Torino Rodeo Avantime
1945 1970:
4CV Caravelle Colorale Dauphine Dauphinoise Floride Frgate Ondine
Between wars:
Celtaquatre Monaquatre Juvaquatre Monasix Nervastella NN Primaquatre Reinastella Viva Grand Sport Vivaquatre Vivasix Vivastella Type MT
Pre-WWI:
10CV 12CV 35CV 40CV L/M N(a)/N(b)/S N(c)/Q/U(a/e) R/T U AS/V Taxi de la Marne Towncar Voiturette X/X-1 Y
Alpine:
A106 A108 A110 A305 A310 A440 A441 A442 A443 A610/GTA
Renault Sport:
Grand Prix de l’A.C.F. 5 Turbo Clio Williams Clio Renault Sport Spider Mgane Renault Sport Clio V6 Renault Sport
Concept vehicles:
Alpine 210 RS Altica Argos Be Bop BRV Ellypse Espace F1 EPURE Evado EVE Egeus Etoile Filante Fiftie Fluence Initiale Koleos Laguna Mgane Nepta Next Racoon Sand’up Scnic Steppe Talisman VESTA 2 Wind Zo Zo Zoom
Vans and trucks:
Estafette Fourgonette Kangoo Express Kerax Magnum Mascott Master Midlum Trafic 50-series Renault B90 et B110 Version 4×4
Dacia:
Duster Gamma Logan Sandero Solenza
Renault Samsung:
SM3 SM5 SM7
Formula One:
RS01 RS10 RE20 RE20B RE30 RE30B RE30C RE40 RE50 RE60 RE60B R202 R23 R24 R25 R26 R27 R28 R29
Categories: Renault vehicles | Euro NCAP large MPVs | Front wheel drive vehicles | 1980s automobiles | 1990s automobiles | 2000s automobiles | Vehicles introduced in 1984
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