Renault shows off Grand Scenic seven-seater

Renault has revealed a longer, more spacious version of the all-new Scenic it unveiled at the Geneva motor show in March.

Called the Grand Scenic, the new family-orientated Renault shares its name with the model it replaces but, like the new five-seater, is more SUV than people-mover, the French car-maker claims.

Substantially larger than the old car it replaces, the new Grand Scenic measures 75mm longer overall, plus 20mm wider, 15mm higher and, sitting on standard 20-inch alloys, is said to have 160mm of ground clearance, adding some credibility to those SUV claims.

Compared to the car launched at the Swiss show, the Grand Scenic gains an extra 240mm in length to help it accommodate the third row of seats.

Featuring an auto one-touch-and-drop third-row, luggage capacity increases to 718 litres with the rear seats stowed -- 222 litres more than the five-seat Scenic.

Load space can be maximized further to 866 litres with the second row of seats slid forward.

If that's still not enough, the Grand Scenic comes with yet another 38.5 litres of additional storage space all over the cabin, in places like the four underfloor compartments.

Focused on its family role, the second row of seats comes with folding tables that can mount different-sized tablets to keep rear passengers entertained on a long drive. There are also twin USB output to keep those electronic devices charged on the move.

Under the bonnet of the new Grand Scenic, which is based on the same CMF platform as the upcoming new Megane, the new Renault offers two petrol and six diesel engines -- one of which, the diesel dCi 110 engine, will come with what the French car-maker’s calling ‘Hybrid Assist’ -- in which a 48V battery powers an electric motor supplementing the diesel engine to cut fuel use.

Despite being engineered for right-hand drive, Renault Australia has already ruled out the shorter five-seat Scenic for Down Under but, with the absence of a seven-seat version of the new Koleos, the French car-maker has announced it's working on a business case for the Grand Scenic.

If the numbers add up, the Grand Scenic -- which goes on sale in Europe shortly after its official launch at the Paris motor show this October -- could be with us in 12 months' time.