Cars with history: Renault Avantime

The Renault Avantime is one of those cars that marked a before and after in automotive history. This model from the diamond-badged brand was ahead of its time and, perhaps for that reason, became one of the great misunderstood cars from the French house. This is the history of the Renault Avantime.

The Renault Avantime was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in 1999, as a concept, but it was not until 2001 that it began reaching the market. In Spain, specifically, it arrived in 2002. The diamond brand combined a coupé body with an MPV, so the result was a very peculiar car, unlike anything seen daily on the streets.

The Renault Avantime was designed by Thierry Metroz, and it measures 4.64 metres in length, 1.62 metres in height and 1.82 metres in width. It was manufactured at Matra’s Loir-et-Cher facilities and could be considered the “sporty version of the Renault Espace III“. The Avantime shared its dashboard, drivetrains and even its chassis with that model.

Renault Avantime, a true pioneer ahead of its time

Looking at its exterior, you can see an MPV with three doors; its straight roof and longitudinal lines distanced it from the idea of a coupé that we had at the time. The side doors weigh 50 kilograms and are 1.4 metres long. The doors, moreover, were hinged on double kinematic hinges. As the door swung open, it also moved away from the bodywork.

According to the French manufacturer, this type of opening allowed occupants to get in and out of the car without opening the door to a greater angle. This system was quite practical when parking in a bay. At the rear, one could see a design quite similar to those the diamond brand was using on models such as the Renault Mégane or the Renault Vel Satis, which was called fesses de fourmis. Another striking rear feature is its tail lights, made up of three triangles.

As for the exterior, it stood out for its roofs, always in silver, its B-pillar and its frameless windows. Inside, it can be seen that it shares its dashboard with the third-generation Renault Espace, but the Avantime had a rev counter in front of the driver.

When the model reached the market in 2001, it could only be had with a 3.0-litre V6 engine producing 207 CV of power, developed by Renault, PSA and Volvo, which was linked to a six-speed manual gearbox and front-wheel drive. Its aerodynamics were held back by the considerable weight of the whole. So much so that it was officially rated at an urban consumption of 16 litres/100 km. Shortly afterwards, the French marque introduced two new four-cylinder engines: the 2.0T and the 2.2dCi, with 165 and 150 CV respectively.

The Renault Avantime was available with two trim levels, Dynamique and Privilège, but both enjoyed a very generous standard equipment list. 8,557 units were registered, and it was only available on the market for 18 months.