Renault Espace - It revolutionised family transport! But what is it like to drive?

[@bentullett6068]

This is another vehicle that was once on nearly every street in the UK in the early 1990's and even into the early 2000's. All year Renault Espaces are a rare to find now. I can't believe people got rid of these practical cars for slightly less practical SUV's that had worse economy and environmental issues.

[@copperkipper1]

they are unreliable turds all scrapped

[@bentullett6068]

@@copperkipper1 true really but I think the scrappage scheme finished a lot of them off even some of the late 1990's early 2000's Espace's disappeared during the duration of that scrappage scheme. Saying that, reliability wise looking at todays new cars with their many computer and electrical faults, the old Espace's probably look a better choice for reliability.

[@6ettinold]

@@bentullett6068 having owned two Espaces, I can honestly say it was a lack of reliability, compromised build quality and high garage bills caused by that lack of accessibility that killed off many of them. I loved both of mine...when they worked. I reckon I've still got PTSD 20 years on.😉

[@ALFA-XL-]

@@bentullett6068 unless it is from Sunriseland/Japan like Toyota/Lexus which is übertrustworthy

[@MaximilianvonPinneberg]

There are couple near me but rate as hens teeth now. Apparently any repair is £1000+.

[@MrShadownoise]

I bought a 3 year old Mk1 2000Txe in 1991 'cos I could no longer fit 3 kids+wife+stuff in a Mk1 Golf Gti. I kept it for 24 years. It never had any serious faults whatsoever - just a few silly things, wiper motor seized, fuel pump solder joint, a single suspension knuckle, a temp sensor. All easy DIY along with the service stuff. Best of all it was utterly rustproof. In 2015 the galvanised chassis still looked new. I started out grieving over the loss of the Golf, but grew to really admire, like and respect the Espace. It was just astonishingly versatile, carrying everything from building materials, motorcycles, fridges to family+friends and camping stuff. For 20 years we did a frequent commute from London to N.Devon, to visit my mum. It was extremely comfortable and relaxed, and handling was terrific when lightly loaded - still fine, but less fun when piled full of people and stuff. I once did 1,100 miles in it, in a day. It would cheerfully sit at 85-90mph for hours, not in UK obviously... One thing though, it was not a vehicle you'd want to have a crash in. There was almost no side protection above floor level, and lap only belts on the 5 removeable seats. You certainly wouldn't want to roll it. Anyhow, I never did any of that. People were always knocking off door mirrors, and some fool in a blue truck scuffed the back and twisted the tailgate while it was parked. I found a s/h one in the same colour for £40. But after 25 years, kids grown up, not much use for work... in the end I just wasn't using it much. 21mpg around town was expensive, and I seldom ever saw 30mpg even on a long run. It had terminal lacquer peel and the interior fabrics had gone the same way as this one, only worse - the holed fabric around the rear pillars, and dogeared headlining. It needed cosmetic work, but I had no garage nor spare cash. If I had... I would have kept it. It deserved to be preserved. I sold it to a FOAF for peanuts, just before tax and MOT expired. Sadly he didn't collect his new car or sort out the documentation, and it was towed away by the council and no doubt crushed. I still miss it enormously. Especially any time I have something to move.

[@brianquinn1545]

Always thought that the shape of the Espace hinted at or referenced the TGV high speed train - an impression of high tech and modernity in trains and cars in France at the same time. In the early mid 1980s France seemed to be ambitiously pushing forward and the Espace was part of it.

[@FergusPol]

Yes, that was deliberate. A bullet train for the road capable of high speeds. The original was called Supervan - a nod to the 175 mph Ferrari Superfast.

[@matthewgodwin3050]

That shade of green is glorious, as is that interior. Don't think I've ever seen an Espace in such good condition. Great 1980s icon.

[@NOWThatsRichy]

Hand painted with a brush, "Hubnut" style!!

[@BungleBare]

And I noticed a headliner made of carpet. Oh, and some sound deadening similar to what you find in flight cases stuck to the underside of the bonnet and in the engine bay. Inventive stuff, and it doesn’t look bad at all, but not exactly factory-spec.

[@Twistededgemedia]

I remember my Dad buying one of these when we were kids, it was the first in the area at the time and got a lot of attention. I remember one Saturday evening me and my sister came out of the video rental shop to find my Dad demonstrating it to a completely random family who were sat inside it, all 6 of them! Good times.

[@ianmilleris]

Ah, they were good times

[@alles_klar]

Your dad probably sold quite a lot of them! My dad owned two third-gen V6 versions and they're still the best cars I've ever traveled in.

[@bentandre5524]

compliments to the owner that it doesnt looklike its painted with a brush...

[@davidbillberg2203]

That colour! Wow.....

[@MapleMarmite]

Nice to see an Espace on here and that looks to be a nice example. Would like to see how it looked when the owner took it on. Top marks for going down the hand painted route - nothing wrong with that if a bit of care is taken. The expense of a respray takes a lot of older cars out of the realms of a justified restoration so just grab a brush/roller and go at it as best you can, I say. You’ll find you are less scared to use the car after a budget paint job like that than after spending 1000s in a pro respray, too. 👍🏻

[@peterriggall8409]

Fascinating story of a ground breaking vehicle. Thanks Ian and the owner. Looks a lovely example of a piece of automotive history.

[@RevBillyG]

The siren was suprising eh? 1st Monday of the month at midday they test all the warning systems here in the Netherlands. So, nothing to worry about :)

[@jonathanmagness5370]

This and the Avantime are two of my favorite people carriers built by Renault

[@borderlands6606]

The Vel Satis was rather funky.

[@BungleBare]

Is an Avantime really a people carrier? The lack of doors means getting people in and out is more of a struggle than it should be. I’d imagine sorting out a child seat on the roadside or in a car park would be an absolute nightmare given the length of the doors. It’s almost as if, despite its size, the Avantime wasn’t really intended to carry many people at all. LOL-worthy and interesting though a test/solo drive of an Avantime might be, I’d imagine owning one would just leave you with a feeling of “what exactly is the point of this thing?”, which was probably the thought of many people looking at them sat in a Renault showroom. I’m all for diverse car designs, but surely making the Avantime three door only was a “different” design choice too far? Maybe if there had also been a five door version things would have been different? - that could have been pitched as the luxury version of the Espace in the same way as, say, a Range Rover Sport is to a Discovery; same basic car underneath, different design for different customers.

[@jonlincoln6069]

@@BungleBare Avantime was a mashup of MPV and estate but wanted to look like a sporty 2+2 coupe, Think Renault marketed it more of a grand tourer than an mpv. It was a bit of design exercise more than anything started as a concept and because it got a good reaction they put it in to production. It technically wasn’t a Renault though as was designed and built by Matra, Renault just badged it and marketed it

[@BungleBare]

@@jonlincoln6069 I’ve no problem with the Avantime. It’s different, and if someone loves owning one then all power to them. I just couldn’t understand why Renault/Matra didn’t also develop a five door version. Then if anyone wanted the undiluted (cough) style and individuality of the 3 door they could have it, but if you wanted 90% of the same vibe, but in a form actually practical for use as a large car, then there would be the 5 door version. It’s a trick that worked well for JLR with the original Evoque - the 3 door being the “pure” concept car derived version, and a five door variant following along and outselling it. And a weird cabrio that hardly anyone seemed to want, but let’s not go there …..

[@antonycharnock2993]

Someone owns a Belgian plated mk IV black Espace on my estate. Its one of the few I see on a daily basis.

[@bsimpson6204]

It still looks good today doesn't it, anyone who owns a Berlingo will appreciate an Espace so I'm in. After driving through Germany, 100kph is wonderfully relaxing

[@danieleregoli812]

Jeesh! I was so in love with the original Espace when it first came out in '86 or so, I dreamed of having one in that exact same jade green colour! LUVLY car!!!!

[@jdtseventyfour]

I've been looking forwards to this review since you mentioned some 'Espace Action' when I comented on your Matra Murena review video. I had 2 Espace's. The first was a 1994 mk2 2.1 Td which was still to this day the best car I've ever had. I did 60k miles in the 6 years I had it. In that time the biggest failure it had was a gearbox which was a bit of a nightmare to find a replacement. My friends and family loved its practicality. it was a great car and appart from the gearbox issue never let me down. The engine was the good old fashioned mechanical diesel so went up to 195000 miles before the turbo failed. Sadly I was moving house and not local so she had to go. A chap baught her and repaired her and got her up to 220k miles. I still regret selling her as she was that good to use. I revisited Espace ownership with the purchase of a 2002 last of the Matra line mk3 2.2 Td which again was an amazing car that was even more comfortable and great to drive. Sadly it developed fuel injection issues that were going to cost a fortune to fix and I just didn't have the time to DIY it. The chap I sold it to fixed it up and its still on the road to my knowledge (the MOT is due this month so hopefully she carries on going). Great memories of a great car. I even measured it up to see if my Kawasaki GPZ900R would fit in the back for track days and it would. I never got around to making up the jigs to support the wheels using the seat supports in the floor though. I had a Citroen picasso more recently whicha again was great but not as good as the espace

[@bebobism]

When I typed in the licence plate at the RDW site , I saw that this is a 2 owner car and the first owner drove it for 32 years ! Something I don't see happening with any modern car these days. 😏

[@simonhodgetts6530]

The Espace mk1 is fascinating. I still can’t get over the amount of room it has inside, within overall dimensions similar to a conventional family car. The exterior and interior styling still looks good to me. The later models got unnecessarily large, and the styling lost its charm. Can’t quite figure out the love for SUVs - compared with cars like the Espace, a lot of them seem quite crude, and unless you live up a muddy track, or pull a trailer, I don’t see the point in them for an urban family.

[@PeterBee911]

As much as I dislike SUVs, you can do pretty much everything with it. Transports the kids, go to vacation, go to work, have a bit of fun for the sportier one, pull a trailer, go on a sketchy trail... And, as ugly as some of them are, they are still much prettier than a people mover like the Espace. The Espace (or any other of the category) would feel out of place or not usable at all in a lot of scenarios, except when you have to transport your 6 kids.

[@davidcrtalic9795]

Don't know about II and III, but Espace IV is pretty much a van once you take out the seats. My dad has owned one and with seats removed you could easily put in 5, possibly more adult sized bicycles.

[@jamesmiller113]

A lot of HN's points in this video echo the mk1 Zafira, Opel/Porsche clearly took a lot of inspiration when designing that masterpiece, and, dare I say, they also pack a fair bit of charm these days

[@04dram04]

Where I live people use their SUV to pull their family boat or Camper trailer

[@robenglish416]

I absolutely love the first gen Espace! Unfortunately never owned one but a Renault Scenic, also a brilliant family car!

[@Spookieham]

I had one of these in Paris for a week in 1992. Absolutely loved driving it so roomy. One thing Renault used to be fantastic at was building cars that rode extremely comfortable. Renault 25s were like driving a sofa down the road.

[@guywerb]

I owned one (the slightly revamped one in a beautiful dark green with a yellow fine striping, don't laugh, very fancy back in the days! 😀). Amazing experience with the kids, especially on hilidays. Incredible practicality, panoramic view and drove relatively well for that kind of a car (the sound of the Philips audio system wasn't too bad either for the time). Biggest problem was the electrical system: when you lowered a window, you were never really sure you would get it closed again. 😀 But all in all, an incredible piece of creativity and engineering.

[@jfv65]

Espace storytime: I once had to drive a company/demonstration car, an Espace turbo-diesel, the facelift version of the one in this video. I had to drive it from NL to Paris, France. This car was maybe 2 years old but had already been extensively used by many of my collegues over a looooong period of time. It had really racked up the km's in those 2 years. The consequence was that absolutely NOBODY of the numerous drivers gave 1 iota about it. There was no logbook, nothing. They just got in and drove it. As did I. But as i got deeper and deeper on Belgian territory i got worried about the lack luster performance and i thought it was running kind of warmish. So when we needed to make a fuelstop i opened the bonnet to check out what the deal was and maybe check the oil... The heat coming of that engine was a dead give away that something was indeed wrong: There was NO OIL on the dipstick...OMG! None! So, what to do? The car HAD to be in Paris the next day. Luckily the fuelstation sold oil so i bought 3L(!). Expensive! But what do you do in a situation like that? I started to add 1L, still nothing on the dipstick, 1.5L, there it was visible on the tip but still not nearly enough. In the end i had added 2.7L of oil before it registered at the right level again. After that the car ran cooler, had considerably more power and we had no problem reaching our destination in Paris. Crisis and fatal engine damage averted! I never drove that car again and i never heard any bad news about it either. So i suppose that's good, i guess. This is my stressful experience driving an early Espace. The only thing i remember is that it was a nice stable highway car. For 4 adults + bagage. But tbh i liked the Pontiac Transport 3800 so much better. #truestory

[@bjthedjdutchdude1992]

We had a Pontiac dustbuster Trans Sport. It did not have a 3.8. ours was a 1992/93 model. We got rid of that car in the early 2000s. It was replaced with a brand new 4th gen Dodge Grand Caravan. Aka Chrysler grand voyager

[@bfapple]

What an absolute trooper of a vehicle.

[@junkman6456]

As always the car is not the problem when some idiots mean they have a lifetime fluid fill.

[@mick0846]

My earliest memories of the early mpvs was the toyota previa. Either way the mpv was a fantastic idea basically have a van and a car all in one without the insurance issues and they where excellent in Either form

[@EricksonJunior]

I love the 1st gen Espace! And for a brush paint job, it's looking great! 😍 I wish my BX looked like that!

[@tomhart-shea8344]

I like the hand-painted finish. Back in the olden days I owned a hand-painted Vauxhall Viva - painted with silver Hammerite. It had its very own patina and panache .

[@svengubelmann3038]

I owned all 5 Renault Espace and for me they all were amazing. So many memories of holidays and weekend trips, using it as a camper and so on... But unfortunately the Espace V is just not the same anymore. It's a great car of course, but I will never understand why they had to do this crossover. I have it for 3 years now and every day I think about selling it and buying an Espace VI again...

[@andrewentwistle515]

Goodness me I can't believe how many miles that Espace has done. I remember seeing a lot of them when I was growing up & now they have all disappeared from the roads except for the one that you found & test drove. I look forward to seeing the next episode.

[@citronr1]

Mine has over 389,000 km and runs as new. Seriously. I am the origianal owner as well.

[@R-Tap]

I remember when they came out, they were way out there, so different. Great colour, superb wheel trims.

[@kennethjohnritsema7019]

Great video,this man did also a great job painting the car "A typical Dutch Master Painter " 16:20 That sound is our air-raid alarm,its sounds every first Monday of the month at 12:00 The car looks right out of a 80's Sci-fi novel "Lost in Space chariot " Oh, why is it pronounced: E-spass and not E-space !? Wouldn't the latter be more logical "Economical Space " Regards kenneth John The Netherlands

[@tilerman]

Oh man i remember when the Espace came out and it looked amazing then and even more amazing now. And those seats! It's different, it's quirky, and the green paintwork is awesome. Nice motor!

[@TheGarnetNugget]

It's great to see Timo's car getting some love and fame from across the globe! Can't wait to see the Avantime make its KZbin debut :)

[@brianreay4104]

We bought one, new, in 1993 and kept in 13 years. It was one of the best / most practical cars we’ve own. I never thought I’d buy a French car and probably never will again but the Espace was one of a kind.

[@ZedsDeadOK]

Many years ago I remember seeing one of these that ran in to the back of a Shogun or Landcruiser which ever had a metal rear bumper the parked car hardly had a scratch on it but the Espace front was totally obliterated due to the fiber glass front.

[@Ben-ig3bf]

My Espace J11 is by far my most favorite car in the world. It is my first car ever, its all i've ever driven, its awesome, reliable, easy to fix, cheap to fix, runs like a beast. My Dad is a huge fan of the J11, as am I. Mine is a J11 turbodiesel, his is a petrol J11. Mine is Black, his is white. We drive to oldtimer conventions together, we fix them together, we work on them together. Its generally just awesome

[@Michael_Michaels]

I was very fortunate to do a trip with a uncle of mine in this car. It was such an awesome experience to be on it and cruising it in those comfy and changeable seats! So much that nowadays I drive an 2012 Renault Grand Espace 2.0 dCi! Whatever people say, it is such a wonderful cruiser for me and my family of 5!

[@fleskip]

If I'm correct this exact car in the video used to be our family car! Many great memories, good to see it in this conditions and to see it still going strong!

[@Timo.1990]

I've bought it in Enschede and the previous owner owned it since 1990 until 2018.

[@fleskip]

@@Timo.1990 jup, you bought it from my dad. Great job, it looks a lot better nowadays!

[@Timo.1990]

@@fleskip Ooh, how nice!!

[@TheShinyShow]

Love the sloping front, similar to the Toyota Previa type thing. Those wheel trims really suit it as well

[@nostreamavailable9090]

I served my apprenticeship in a Renault dealership in the early nineties hence my scathing hatred for most french cars. The way to tell if a car is any good or not is to listen to how many swear words come wafting out through the workshop doors lol, generally the espace was quite well thought of by us technicians , as were quite a few Renault models, my personal favourite being the Renault 25 which I really liked even as an apprentice and went on to own one later in life. Stuff like the Clio and the 19/chamade were new models at that time and stuff like the 5, 9, and 11 were outgoing. The worst pains in the arse l recall were the couple of alpines that used to come in because they were always taking up a ramp to wait for parts and the 21 automatics were particularly horrendous. During my time there l also got to see things like 17 and 18 and even the odd fuego. Our workshop foreman drove a white 12 which was his pride and joy and in immaculate condition. One espace memory that springs to mind is when one of the other aprentices dropped an espace v6 quadra off a ramp onto it’s very expensive arse while changing an engine mount , he let the ramp down too far with a prop under the engine and the car rocked back and fell. Strange days those Lol 😂

[@-DC-]

Renault 25 V6 Turbo was an absolutely wonderful car for crossing Europe in still miss it !

[@nostreamavailable9090]

@@-DC- mine was only a 2.2 txe but it was certainly a great drive and surprisingly brisk

[@JamesG75]

That is a marvellous shade of green

[@zebedep]

Nice to see an early Espace again and it's easy to forget how groundbreaking these were when they first came out.

[@bentullett6068]

This generation of Espace seemed to last well into the 2000's it was only near the start of the 2010's that they started to disappear probably due to the darn scrappage scheme, saying that the late 1990's Espace models also started vanishing around that time as well also probably due to the scrappage scheme.

[@Admodeus]

This car actually looks really cool, and looks immaculate.

[@stephenjcuk7562]

We really do need more hand painted cars. A DIYers dream and the result can be very durable and easily repaired.

[@joshbrailsford]

I love an Espace! I'd genuinely like to own one at some point, but a MK2 or MK3; the cars of my childhood. My dad had an M-reg MK2 Champs-Elysee edition in metallic green, while my grandad had a Ruby Red MK3 Grand Espace RXE. I spent many a summer holiday in the back seats of those cars, even going as far afield as Sweden with a Swift Challenger caravan in tow behind the MK2.

[@rmay7]

First, I don't know why this stands out to me, but I'm amazed by rear headrests that early - my family had a few first gen Caravans/Voyagers, and they weren't that modern. I mean, in general, they seemed like Chrysler didn't want to scare off older buyers, but that small detail stood out. Also, between the plastic body, modular seats, and the expansive dashboard, I wonder how much the Espace inspired GM's Dustbuster vans.

[@ianstanley7230]

I had a second generation Espace and I loved it. The 2.1 diesel was great and gave 40mpg even including driving around Birmingham. The only disadvantage was overtaking with the air conditioning on. The A/C took so much power that it was best to turn it off if you needed some extra oomph.

[@Technology-Repair-Proto]

I'm not a car driver myself (former biker) but I've been in a lot of cars and this is one of the many I've ridden in and I loved it! It has such a lovely and open feel to it. The Avantime was also one of my favourite cars and still is even though it failed so badly. Awesome video Ian! :D

[@stratfan]

Great video! - Lovely to see an early Espace again. I was a young Renault salesman at the time of the Espace UK launch in 1984 and remember a fun day thrashing Renault UK's demo cars through some Midlands lanes. The first one we had in the showroom (a metallic Blue TSE I think?) created a lot of interest and many compliments but in general the Espace wasn't a quick seller, possibly because of buyer reluctance towards Renault and possibly also because of it's wonderful quirkiness. Looking back to the mid 1980's Renault launched some excellent cars which were far more mainstream than many of their previous offerings including the new 5 , 9/11 and later the 21.

[@77funtomas]

This vehicle must have appeared like from another planet when it was first launched in 1984. Beautiful. Especially in this "spearmint"green🤩 colour. 👍👏👏 Cheers Ian🤝

[@martinneumann7783]

Awesome roadtest! This car is typical french: beyond the usual engineering and practical for families and general transport. Our father wanted to have a Simca 1100 because of the hatchback but he never made his driver's licence. His really poor eyes were the reason... Thanks, Ian! I'm looking forward to the next Espace time.

[@vivremaintenant841]

Je suis français et c'est la meilleur démonstration en vidéo que j'ai vue jusque là! Bravo🤗👏👍🇫🇷

[@kimcason8764]

Good to see the 'Hand Painted' vibe is catching on. Do Wonder if a Roller would be more Practical than a Brush..? Cheers All. 😎

[@andicog]

I remember my wealthy cousin buying one when they first came out, he was an orthodontist, when he was leaving my mum asked which was his car? He proudly pointed to this latest French creation, my mum said "oh, you've got a van now..." he was deflated. I later went on to be forman at a Renault specialist body repairer, the main dealers wouldn't fix them, some of the new fibreglass panels where rough as F. and took lots of preparation. We had to even paint the special texture on door shuts, door backs and bumpers, wings glued on using Sikaflex and we used specialist Galv primer on the main structure.

[@citronr1]

Mine still has its original silver paint and needs no attention except on the very top ... some sun damage. No rust of course. Ever.

[@TheBlaert]

They were revolutionary for sure. I bought an old 1990 model Turbo-diesel in the late nineties for going to work in. It was a great driving thing and one of the most well thought out interiors ever.

[@loveisall5520]

These are so cool. I'm old enough to remember when Chrysler started the minivan fad here in the US and of course by then Renault had ruined their reputation over here--for a second time. So glad they saw the trend and developed this vehicle.

[@CarringtonHollister]

Renault still exists in the States however it’s known as NISSANS nope not making this up.

[@Luke-PlanesTrainsDogsnCars]

@@CarringtonHollister Time you caught up with Carlos Ghosn and the world.

[@curiouscrandall1]

Owned a couple of Grand Voyagers. Comfortable, roomy, and seemed to take an infinite amount of stuff in the back.

[@davidallen513]

I had a 1989 2 litre quadra 4-wheel drive. It drove beautifully and was great at pulling trailers. It had plenty of oomph and space.

[@grabham59]

God, a proustian moment with that central locking - my Dad had a Renault 18 estate that had it, and that sound takes me back to my childhood!

[@histriamagna1014]

We need more affordable MPVs today. The practicality, simplicity and roomy interiors are just phenomenal.

[@histriamagna1014]

@Lord Rupert Knob Me also. I always try to find good used ones.

[@plunder1956]

I remember traveling in several of these over the past 25+ years. The massive front storage shelf means that coats. Maps, files and even substantial equipment such as video cameras and lights could be dumped into them for events or video shoots. Add to this the ability to remove and restructure the seating for different applications (or even remove some) made them superb video shoot transport. I did a round Britian shoot covering 2000 miles with a crew of 4 plus the client and all our gear. But even the big V6 struggled a bit.

[@citronr1]

I own a 1986 Renault Espace 2000GS with over 389,000 km on it. I bought it new in late 1985. I have replaced the clutch twice but nothing else of note: About two years in I replaced the original exhaust system with a stainless steel one and never touched it again. Obvious there is no rust anywhere and the galvanized steel box is like new. This is the only Renault I have even owned but the title reads Matra Espace, not Renault. It has the same identical length (4250 mm), width (1777 mm and wheelbase (2580 mm) as our 2016 Fiat 500 X yet can seat up to 7 (as opposed to 4 in the 500X) or 5 with an enormous rear boot space and a much tighter turning radius than the 500X ... for no reason that I can think of. An amazing car I cannot imagine ever parting with. Every Espace after this first series got longer and a bit wider with no more discernible interior space. Nothing rattles. Everything fits as new. During this same time period I have owned twelve 2CVs (from 1954 to 1986), two Meharis, one 2 CV AK 400 Fourgonette, three DSs, two IDs, one Traction Avant 15-6 and a Burton 2CV. I still own the Mehari, the AK400, the Burton 2CV and an ID19. So you can see I am a Citroen enthusiast NOT a Renault guy. Don't know why this Espace has held up so well. Perhaps because it was built by Matra? Just guessing. We can cart around an enormous amount of stuff in the Espace with zero problems ... including one time a full set of spare parts for a DS23 I bought in France including an extra DS23 engine. Our Espace NEVER fails us. It has never been babied. Lives most of its life outside. Original silver paint and looks like new from about 10 feet away after a wash (well, the top of the roof may need attention soon as it does shows its age .. but only at the very top and you have to look carefully. You have got to love a car like this.

[@kimmohietala5359]

A great vehicle. I have lots of memories travelling in one. Back in the days when I lived in engerland we used to travel from Reading to Manchester to watch City games. One of the guys had a series 1 espace and that took 6 all the way to mcr and back in great comfort. So much nicer than the rattly LDV minibus that was the alternative transport.

[@andrewstones2921]

I had one of these, it was about 5 years old and I bought it to use for a European driving holiday with the intention of selling it on return, which I did with no drop in value.. it was fabulous, that was in around 1995. Those seats that swivel and move and just incredible, the dual sunroof and even the remote stereo was amazing for the year. I loved it, but I already had 2 cars and could not justify keeping it. I wish I could buy a nice one today.

[@petersimpson5859]

Also worth a mention is the 0.32 Cd it achieved which is still better than many new SUVs. Many people would switch to an MPV if given a go in one, they also came as a "Quadra" with all wheel drive. Having had experience of driving a Galaxy, I can't understand the obsession with soft-roaders. The Sharan was a delightful vehicle too, great stereo.

[@jonytube]

We had a 98 Alhambra, lovely car. Bulletproof TDI powertrain, sipped diesel and it was very reliable and affordable to upkeep. The only real downsides were the short gearing which made for terrible highway cruising above 65mph and the abysmal body roll. Other than that, the interiors were top notch as per VW standards and it had room to carry 7 adults *very* comfortably.

[@erik_dk842]

I have a Galaxy MK2 as a work van and also drove many miles in a Sharan mk 2. Loads of space and a non tiresome driving position.

[@test-tl8dt]

this is a rare example of a van or a minivan or pickup etc. that i would actually like to own as a hobbyist vehicle. the first generation particularly just looks cool.

[@dorsetoctaviaman]

Ah, memories memories of driving in convoy with my cousin in his (older) Mk1 Espace behind me in my (much newer) Volvo 850 SE Estate down the Normandy-Rennes-Nantes-Fontenay le Comte route to the Gironde for a gite holiday for 8 of us between Libourne and Bordeaux in 1994. The motorways didn't meet back then; a huge August Saturday stop-start crawl after Fontenay resulted in his clutch cable snapping. Rather than abandoning the Espace we decided to press on; the longitudinal engine-gearbox set up was very strong for carefully-matched clutchless gearchanges over the next 180km 112 miles or so! Thank goodness for European breakdown insurance, too (the cable was replaced by Renault Libourne and we worked around being 1 car down for about five or six days).

[@HA05GER]

We had a 2005 Renault grand scenic when I was a kid as motability and 2 weeks old took it all the way to South of France very comfortable and spacious brilliant car.

[@Shane_Marsh]

yellow lights, YELLOW LIGHTS 😍

[@Tiesproductions]

I saw this Espace at a car show here in the Netherlands not to long ago, and it was probably in my top 5 of the show. I also remember thinking "Oh, this is very HubNut", but never thought I'd see it in a video!

[@anthonyrichards3785]

We had three: briefly a Mk1, for rather longer a Mk2 in glorious Amethyst and finally, and an absolute silver spaceship, a Mk3 Grande Espace. The last one was a very quick diesel and with the two rows of passenger seats removed, capable of collecting a huge commercial freezer! All three were brilliant cars.

[@EnthusiastCarHangar]

The Chrysler minivans and Espace were seen all over and I ... hated them back in the day. Good video though.

[@joez8914]

Fascinated by this guys critique of classic British vehicles. I’m from the states and my first car was a 1985 Pontiac Parisienne. Wonderful ride and a truly quality vehicle. The ethanol gasoline ate up the the fuel system and I eventually got rid of it.

[@gg_vard]

A proper MPV, a big spacious family car! (a category we call πολυμορφικά, polymorphic, meaning they can take a lot of different "shapes", meaning sitting and cargo space arrangements) I can also say that I'm very proud that a Greek man, Antonis Volanis for being a part of the design team of this very revolutionary car, as we never had a big industry - he also had worked on the Rancho, the Bagheera and the Murena too.

[@mondyboy81]

The Espace is a genius bit of packaging, something Renault were very good at. I have a 1st gen 1994 Twingo and that whilst being very cutesy to look at, is also an incredibly practical car for people and luggage in comfort. I helped move a friend last week and I took the Twingo over my daily Volvo C30 because it's infinitely more practical. People are surprised until I demonstrate it to them. Ian if you fancy testing a mk1 Twingo for the channel then drop me a line and my 94 will be available 👍

[@kamrankhan-lj1ng]

That's great

[@matthewbrown2037]

I remember waiting outside school, for my mum to pick me up, when one of the other parents pulled up in a brand new Espace. We'd never seen anything like it, but before long you began to see them everywhere. Renault had obviously been onto a surefire winner when they launched this pretty revolutionary mode of family transport, and it didn't take long for all the other manufacturers to follow suit. Although in the US, Dodge had launched the Caravan in the same year, the Espace was the only people carrier available in Europe at that time, and I don't think the Dodge was anywhere near as versatile either. But before the Renault came out, if you wanted a multi seat van, with luggage space, you were pretty much limited to a Transit minibus.

[@rovertwonefour]

growing up in a larger family ive always loved people carriers. My dad hasn't ever had an espace, opting for 2 galaxy's, a citroen grand c4 picasso and a rather miserable y reg kia carens but, as soon as i discovered the espace it has been one of my favourite cars... one day i aim to own a mk3, it has always looked so much more premium and almost luxurious to the other mpv's of the late 90s and early 00s. i believe the rear seats are all on one continuous rail so you can slide them to however far forward and back you want, the triple sunroofs on certain models are just pure bliss, the mirrors with the little grills are so unique.... ahhh i could go on forever... the renault espace is a truly fantastic vehicle

[@shaunfleming8668]

Love Renaults of this era. Look back fondly on to my R19 with 1.7 engine. Low revving, full of tractable torque and an easy 40mpg. My 1.0t Fiesta is highly strung and as needy as a Latin lover, and guess what..... 40mpg. Progress indeed

[@ianlainchbury]

I had one of those Agila's :) Brilliant little car, albeit slow. Very comfy while recovering from a broken pelvis. Also of interest, is that the later V6 Espaces were fun in the service dept... I believe, at 80000 miles the engine had to come out for spark plugs.

[@scottlp2323]

I used to walk to school past a metallic blue Espace. It looked amazing. We had a Cortina estate at the time and I often dreamed of us going on holiday in the Espace instead. I managed to get my own MPV a few years ago. A 1st gen Alhambra. My favourite car I've owned so far. So useful and enjoyable to drive. As a driver, it's easy to forget how terrible it can be to be a passenger in most vehicles. I couldn't keep any of my family out of the Alhambra though, they loved travelling in it. My dad recently retired and was looking for a vehicle to potter about in and drive the 20 odd miles to our family static caravan. I managed to find a mint, low mileage 2011 Alhambra with all the bells and whistles. He loves it, whether carrying shopping, grandkids or pallets for dismantling and making flower planters. :) MPVs really are fun for all the family. Me and dad even camped in mine for the Fairford RIAT one year. I took the seats out and made a bespoke bunk bed from MDF and 2x2. Worked a treat with two airbeds top and bottom. :)

[@andrewclark891]

The styling still looks fresh

[@andyg3]

my dad has an espace for years, bloody loved it, great cart

[@binarydinosaurs]

Takes me back. 2004 and I'd accepted a job 250 miles from home so I'd be away during the week. My trusty Passat had been written off outside the house so I was looking at alternatives. Sat in a mk2 Espace and loved it, vowed to buy one as soon as I could afford it - £25k at the time. Never happened unfortunately, I'm still driving Passats to this day.

[@daveys]

We had one at work and I only drove it once. It was like driving a piano with those up and down foot pedals.

[@joelwebster8227]

Our company car in the late 80s - early 90s was a MkII Espace Td, which I got to drive all over Western Europe from our parking garage underneath the Boulevard Haussmann in Paris. It was a brilliant car for moving people and camera equipment over long distances, but not great in a crash (though I never crashed ours).

[@keef71]

i think it looks amazing - a bit typically 'exciting '80s' styling with a lot of straight lines but really clean, crisp and smart. when you think how the Picasso ended up looking like a lumpy double-ended banana, i know which i would prefer! love the colour too

[@LordClunk]

I had one of those on a D plate. MK1 facelift version. I liked it. It was good and pokey. It had one major issue though. When it rained, it stopped working. Literally, driving along, rain falls, car stops. No idea what caused it. I ended up scrapping it and getting an LDV 200 minibus instead.

[@HubNut]

#BecauseFrench

[@johngriffiths118]

Did you keep the WD 40 reservoir topped up ?

[@LordClunk]

@@glennpowell3444 Mine was ex MOD, and as such had uprated components including rear axle, suspension, and a few other bits. It was re-plated from 2.8 tons to 3.5 tons. It also had a dirty fuel system in it so I often used various oil based products in the tank. I used to get funny looks pouring 40 litres of vegetable oil into the tank in Tesco's. It was noisy when I first got it, but a new prop shaft bearing solved most of the noise issues. Steering wise, mine used to suffer from the tramlining you get on motorways. Where the vehicle wants to drop into one of the ruts that trucks leave in the road. But I guessed that was mostly lead by the rear axle which was noticeably narrower than the front track. I loved that van. Sadly, rot got to it and at the time divorce and lack of space meant it had to go.

[@sammygirlie345]

Love that very much

[@robinforrest7680]

We rarely see them even in France now. They really were something, and those Renault engines and drive trains are unbreakable. I found a 1993 Renault 21 2.1TD last year as a first car for my son. €250 ! It has 220000 km on the clock and still drives beautifully. I had one of the last Nevada (Savanna in the UK) estates in 1994. It was brilliant. A friend here had one too, it’s still in the family and has over 850000km on the clock! Just checked out adverts on Leboncoin (our Gumtree). There are precisely none for sale in France at the moment…

[@wellchuffedrailways]

What an amazing shade of green! ☮️😀

[@carlmarkwyatt]

I enjoyed that, that you. We always had small french hatchbacks in my family as a kid (AX, Saxo, Clio) but a school friend's dad had an Espace and it was a revelation.

[@K_Bizz]

I love these more serious, in depth reviews. Almost as much as I love these early Espaces. God I want one. French cars are just the best.

[@Carlo_Verhaar]

‘What was that noise?’, you ask in the final seconds. In the Netherlands every first Monday of the month we test the alarm signal. At 12.00 on the dot this air raid siren sounds throughout the country, just to test if it still works. As your lovely Espace review video demonstrates, it does…

[@caw25sha]

They used to do that in the UK when I was a kid in the 70s, but only rarely, perhaps once or twice a year. Apparently on the day I was born there was a fault with our local one and it went on for half an hour.

[@DumbleDank1337]

late to this video but my late step father used to have a renault espace he used to transport all of us when i were a kid then "upgraded" to a nissan serena which coincidentally was the first car i learnt to drive, the memories of being in these big ol' slabs of metal

[@nickthomas181]

Totally excellent and the green is an amazing colour.

[@Truthseeker1515]

In 1988, my late father hesitated a lot between the Renault Espace and the Citroen BX turbo Diesel Break as a new vehicle so he hired the Espace for 2 weeks for a family vacation to Italy and an amazing passenger experience it was. Very comfortable, especially at the back. Moreover, there were few wagons back then so Renault was ahead of the competition. However, the Citroen was cheaper and a Diesel car....

[@Rjhs001]

Cheers Ian, another really interesting vid on an equally interesting car. Tbh, I never took to them back in the day but you have seriously changed my opinion.

[@carstenweiland7896]

My uncle had one and it seems that the paint came off those fiberglass panels - at least after 15 years on his car, loved it and thought it was really a clever design.

[@GrayFoxGamingHD]

Im a hardcore Japanese car fanatic , however , im fascinated by quirky Frech Cars like this.

[@christopherdavies5762]

Had 2 of these ahead of their time

[@markrobinson1458]

I loved mine, blue metallic and a effortless cruiser, I once had 6'x6' patio windows diagonally in the back, a van when needed, went through a few clutch canes because of the length of the buggers, I sold it after it suddenly became wanted by the local criminals, god knows why, all in all a great practical car for our family of six 👍

[@andyarmstrong1493]

Brilliant detail. I hadn't realised these were from Matra, to me it makes them even more sought after. My brother had a Rancho, in the late 70's I think. Many thanks.

[@linseyyoung1772]

These things truly were like spaceships when they appeared among all the old 70s stuff that was on the roads at the time.

[@coolfin007]

Had a silver mk 1 it was fantastic..one of the best cars ever made by Renault..