A pretty Renault Scenic, seen in Beijing in spring 2016. The cool French MPV was in une bonne forme for its age, painted in a light green shade of green and fitted with the sporty factory 5-spoke wheels.
This particular car has an optional sun roof and darkened windows. The first generation Renault Scenic was made from 1996 until 2003 with a facelift in 1999. Our green car is a post-facelift example. The first-gen Megane was sold in China from 2001 until 2004. Renault sold the base model and the extreme Megane RX4! I have pictures of the latter too, I will post them later.
Engines were the 110 hp 1.6 and the 136 hp 2.0. Our car has the 1.6 under the bonnet, it had 148 Nm toque and would spring from 0 to 100 in a leisurely 13.8 seconds. Only gearbox was a 4-speed automatic, sending horses to the front wheels. The manual was not available in China, except on the RX4.
The interior was a bit dirty but in a fine overall shape, with the original seats and radio. The pillow was a Chinese New Year’s gift from a restaurant, I know the logo but sadly I forgot the name. If you know, please tell me in the comments below.
Price of the 1.6 started at 268.000 yuan in 2001. That was a lot of money for the time but the Scenic was one of the first compact MPVs to hit the Chinese market, and it sold reasonably well to families and the like. It was apparently a reliable vehicle because there are still quite a lot of these around. Happily, the 1.6 engine was small and relatively clean, so for now the Scenic is safe for the environmental wrecking ball.
The Scenic badge name with the French name: Scénic.
The Renault Scenic seen through the window of a Honda Odyssey. What a great French scenery!
[table id=336 /]