Renault Scenic (2003 – 2009) Review
Renault Scenic (2003 – 2009) At A Glance
Far better than the previous model. The Grand model seats seven. Practical and versatile. Excellent crash test rating.
Potentially heavy tyre wear on Scenics with 17-inch wheels. Blown turbos on diesel models. Patchy build quality. Dashboard failures common. Heater fan motor failures common.
Shock announcement: I'm about to recommend a Renault. I have just spent a week with a Scenic dCi 120 Privilege and, far from finding faults, I enjoyed every minute of it.
One reason was the cheerful, perky, free-revving 120bhp diesel engine (this one had done 8,000 miles). Another was the near perfect 6-speed gearbox.
Reviews for Renault Scenic (2003 – 2009)'s top 3 rivals
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Renault Scenic (2003 – 2009) handling and engines
- Engines range from 1.4 to 2.0 16V VVT
- Readers report Real MPG to be between 24–64 mpg
The Scenic succeeded a Megane Sport Tourer and surprised me by out-handling it. Really, there's not much between this new Scenic and the Ford Focus C-Max. Except that the Renault boys invented this category of car, and have very obviously put everything they learned from the old Scenic into the new one.
So it's now a proper five-seater, rather than a four plus one. It has a Renault hands-free keycard, so you just walk up to the car, open the door and press a button to start the engine. No fiddling around with keys when you're getting in or getting out. The front passenger seatback folds forwards to make a table or an extended load platform. The dash is modern, digital with the readings in the centre. There's an optional lifting rear window so you can just dump stuff in the back without opening the big, heavy hatch. The car scored a full five stars in the NCAP crash tests.
The mammoth lists down below give the equipment and spec variations, so no point in repeating them here. It's very practical. Very comfortable. Rides well (on sensible 60 profile tyres). Handles well. Goes well. These are all aspects that can be dispassionately measured.
But the thing that surprised me was that the car I drove had real character. I simply liked it. That's not something I expected to write about a Renault. And it has a five star NCAP crash safety rating.
| Engine | MPG | 0-62 | CO2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.4 16V | 39 mpg | 14.3 s | 171–173 g/km |
| 1.5 dCi 106 | 52–54 mpg | 12.4–12.9 s | 137–143 g/km |
| 1.5 dCi 86 | 55 mpg | 14.6 s | 135–137 g/km |
| 1.6 16V VVT | 36–37 mpg | 11.8–12.8 s | 173–189 g/km |
| 1.9 dCi | 47 mpg | 9.6–9.8 s | 159–160 g/km |
| 2.0 16V VVT | 34–35 mpg | 10.3–10.9 s | 192–193 g/km |
| 2.0 dCi | 49 mpg | 9.4–9.8 s | 154 g/km |
Real MPG average for the Renault Scenic (2003 – 2009)
Real MPG was created following thousands of readers telling us that their cars could not match the official figures.
Real MPG gives real world data from drivers like you to show how much fuel a vehicle really uses.
Average performance
93%
Real MPG
24–64 mpg
MPGs submitted
345
Renault Scenic (2003 – 2009) interior
- Boot space is 200–1920 litres
| Dimensions | |
|---|---|
| Length | 4259–4498 mm |
| Width | 1805–1810 mm |
| Height | 1620–1640 mm |
| Wheelbase | 2685–2736 mm |
I liked the seating position, the steering, the handling and the thoughtful design of the interior. You can lose things in there. Apart from the glovebox, there are eight separate lidded storage compartments, and a between-the-seats console box so big it could take a small dog. It might be an idea for Renault to run a valeters competition for the most unusual object found in those cubby holes during a pre-sale clean-up.
The car has a flat floor so you can slide across with reasonable ease. To accomplish this Renault has adopted a dash mounted electric parking brake control which does take a bit of getting used to and might be a candidate for trouble in future. That said, it does apply the parking brakes far more firmly than a human arm, so there shouldn't be many cases of Scenics rolling away and becoming part of the scenery.
Renault Scenic (2003 – 2009) models and specs
| Dimensions | |
|---|---|
| Length | 4259–4498 mm |
| Width | 1805–1810 mm |
| Height | 1620–1640 mm |
| Wheelbase | 2685–2736 mm |
| Miscellaneous | |
|---|---|
| Kerb Weight | 1315–1560 kg |
| Boot Space | 200–1920 L |
| Warranty | 3 years |
| Servicing | 9000–18000 miles |
| Costs | |
|---|---|
| List Price | £13,945–£22,065 |
| Insurance Groups | 8–20 |
| Road Tax Bands | E–J |
| Official MPG | 34.4–55.4 mpg |
| Euro NCAP Safety Ratings | |
|---|---|
| Adult | 5 |
| Child | 3 |
| Pedestrian | 2 |
| Overall | - |
On sale until April 2009
| People Carrier | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Version | List Price | MPG | 0-62 |
| Conquest 1.6 16v VVT | £18,365 | 37.2 mpg | 12.8 s |
| Conquest dCi 106 | £19,465 | 54.3 mpg | 12.8 s |
| Conquest dCi 130 | £20,565 | 47.1 mpg | 9.8 s |
| Dynamique 1.6 16v VVT | £17,910 | 37.2 mpg | 11.8 s |
| Dynamique 1.6 16v VVT Auto | £17,910 | - | - |
| Dynamique 1.9 dCi 130 | £20,110 | 47.1 mpg | 9.6 s |
| Dynamique 1.9 dCi 130 Auto | £20,110 | - | - |
| Dynamique 2.0 16v VVT | £18,910 | 35.3 mpg | 10.3 s |
| Dynamique 2.0 dCi 150 | £21,110 | 48.7 mpg | 9.4 s |
| Dynamique dCi 106 | £19,010 | 54.3 mpg | 12.4 s |
| Dynamique dCi 86 | £18,065 | 55.4 mpg | 14.6 s |
| Dynamique S 1.6 16v VVT | £18,865 | 37.2 mpg | 11.8 s |
| Dynamique S 1.6 16v VVT Auto | £18,865 | - | - |
| Dynamique S 1.9 dCi 130 | £21,065 | 47.1 mpg | 9.6 s |
| Dynamique S 1.9 dCi 130 Auto | £21,065 | - | - |
| Dynamique S 2.0 16v VVT | £19,865 | 35.3 mpg | 10.3 s |
| Dynamique S 2.0 16v VVT Auto | £19,865 | - | - |
| Dynamique S 2.0 dCi 150 | £22,065 | 48.7 mpg | 9.4 s |
| Dynamique S 2.0 dCi 150 Auto | £22,065 | - | - |
| Dynamique S dCi 106 | £19,965 | 54.3 mpg | 12.4 s |
| Team 1.4 16v | £15,165 | 39.2 mpg | 14.3 s |
| Team 1.6 16v VVT | £15,710 | 37.2 mpg | 11.8 s |
| Team 1.6 16v VVT Auto | £15,710 | - | - |
| Team dCi 106 | £16,810 | 54.3 mpg | 12.4 s |
| Team dCi 130 FAP Auto | £18,910 | - | - |
| Team dCi 86 | £15,865 | 55.4 mpg | 14.6 s |
On sale until July 2008
| People Carrier | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Version | List Price | MPG | 0-62 |
| Expression 1.4 16v | £14,999 | - | - |
| Expression 1.6 16v VVT | £15,515 | - | - |
| Expression 1.6 16v VVT Auto | £15,515 | - | - |
| Expression dCi 106 | £16,605 | - | - |
| Expression dCi 86 | £15,905 | - | - |
| Extreme 1.4 16v | £14,499 | - | - |
| Extreme dCi 86 | £15,405 | - | - |
On sale until January 2008
| People Carrier | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Version | List Price | MPG | 0-62 |
| Extreme 1.6 16v VVT | £14,445 | 37.2 mpg | 11.8 s |
| Extreme dCi 106 | £16,435 | 52.3 mpg | 12.9 s |
| Extreme dCi 106 (5-seat) | £16,185 | 52.3 mpg | 12.9 s |
On sale until December 2007
| People Carrier | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Version | List Price | MPG | 0-62 |
| Authentique 1.4 16v | £13,945 | 39.2 mpg | 14.3 s |
| Authentique dCi 86 | £14,735 | 55.4 mpg | 14.6 s |
| Conquest 2.0 16v VVT | £17,945 | 35.3 mpg | 10.4 s |
On sale until July 2007
On sale until May 2007
| People Carrier | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Version | List Price | MPG | 0-62 |
| Authentique 1.6 16v VVT (5-seat) | £15,195 | 36.2 mpg | 12.1 s |
| Authentique 1.6 16v VVT 111 | £15,445 | 35.8 mpg | 12.1 s |
| Dynamique 1.4 16v | £15,745 | 39.2 mpg | 14.3 s |
| Expression 1.9 dCi 130 FAP | £17,935 | 47.1 mpg | 9.6 s |
Model History
March 2003
Slightly bigger, much better 5 or 7 seater Scenic with Renault family styling. Scenic Grande 4,259mm long; seats in 2-3-2 layout; centre three separately removable, but rearmost pair fold into the floor. Front passenger seat folds flat to provide table beside driver or carry a long load.
Drivetrain combines Renault and Nissan technology and includes Nissan auto and six-speed manual transmissions, hopefully putting an end to Renault autobox problems.
1.9dCi offers 120bhp, 0-60 in 12 seconds, top speed 118mph, economy: 49mpg, CO2: 154g/km. Other engines are 98bhp 1.4; 115bhp 1.6; 136bhp 2.0; 80bhp 1.5D; 100bhp 1.5D and 140bhp 1.9D.
March 2006
Renault Scenic facelifted. New five-seater Grand Scénic with class-leading boot space. Two new engines: flagship 2.0 dCi 150hp and first diesel automatic, 1.9 dCi 130 FAP Auto. Revised exterior styling includes xenon-look headlights, LED rear lights and new front and rear bumpers. New interior trims and enhanced cabin quality plus new options include extra tinted windows, front and rear parking sensors and MP3 compatibility. New Scénic 2006 range in UK showrooms from October 2006
June 2007
Scenic ‘Conquest’ with 20mm higher ride height and stiffened suspension launched May 2007 (2nd photo). Choice of 1.9 dCi 130 and 2.0 VVT 136. Two further engines follow September 2007. ESP with ASR traction control, rear parking sensors and roof bars. Priced £17,945 and £19,135.
September 2008
New ‘Team’ special edition launched on all three models, Scénic, Grand Scénic 5-seat and Grand Scénic 7-seat, priced from £14,495. New Scénic 2009 range structure comprises: Team, Dynamique, Dynamique S and Conquest (the latter on Scénic only). Wide choice of models with 68 versions. Available to order from October 2008, with deliveries beginning in November 2008.
What to watch out for
On early LHD production, front side windows come off regulators and drop into doors. It should have been solved by RHD production, but wasn't. A plastic part of the window regulator mechanism fails regularly, necessitating replacement of the entire window mechanism, motor and all, at a cost of £200 - £300 a go, when really all that is needed is replacement of the plastic part with something more robust.
Electric parking brake on models fitted with it may prove troublesome (has been on Espace and Vel Satis). Can fail at around 4 years old, but at this age, if the car has been Renault serviced, Renault may contribute 50% of the cost of the replacement, normally £536.
One reader had problems with the keyless go operated steering column lock, necessitating a new column under warranty three times (the design of this part has now been changed).
Another had problems with the indicators and with a rear door failing to unlock.
Possible problem with clutch cylinders on diesels.
On 1.5 and 1.9 dCi EGR valve should open to allow carbon dioxide, which acts as a cooling gas) into the combustion chambers when the engine is under load (>30% boost). This allows the combustion chamber temperature to drop and thus the temperature of the exhaust gases. If it sticks in the closed position the exhaust gas temperature will rise causing a) the turbo bearings to fail and b) engine oil into the induction system. This will cause the engine to go on running until it has consumed all its oil and then it will go bang. Problems with EGR valves in Renault dCi engines are often the cause of rough running when the valve is stuck in the open position as well. In several cases turbos have blown but the EGR valve has not been replaced. Inevitably the new turbo unit will not last long.
Can be a heavy tyre wear problem when the car is fitted with 17" wheels. "Long engine mounting bolts" appear to fracture quite regularly. Water penetration of the spark plug coil units of petrol engines can them of action. best to replace all four coils, not just one, or it could re-occur with another coil. Sagem units have been modified and have a grey top instead of black. Alternative units from Nippon-Denso are preferable. Units are approx £42.00 each and seem to be off-the-shelf at dealerships.
Repeated heater plug failure bringing up 'Check injection' warning on dash after a cold start. Three out of four failed within 33.000 miles still in warranty. One reader's experience of a 30 month old 1.6 auto: Failed cam shaft sensor, failed coils,door handle coming off, headlight bulbs blowing (and costing the earth to be fitted only by a garage), steering column being replaced and an electric door window not working.
Instrument clusters can totally fail after as little as 4 years. Becoming increasingly common by late 2009 and featured on Watchdog 8-10-2009.
Essential to replace tensioner, all pulleys and waterpump at the same time as the timing belt (at 4 years or 36k miles, whichever comes up first) as water pump failure will throw off the timing belt.
Front window regulators repeatedly fail.
Locking system repeatedly fails.
Build quality niggles. Rear tyre wear. One reader's catalogue of disaster:-
1. OS rear door would not unlock - whole door handle assembly changed
2. OS front door handle failed to lock car - door handle assembly
changed
3. Intermittent grinding noise from rear brakes, dealer unable to
identify any fault on either of the two occasions it has been drawn to their attention (9 months apart) but changed the rear caliper slides on the second time. We still have the grinding noise which is now accompanied by the OS front brake on occasion (all pads checked & all okay).
4. Intermittent heavy metallic knock from front suspension area when on or near full lock at low speed, again returned on two occasions and
again still present. On both occasions the dealer said that the steering column pinch bolt was loose and on both occasions that they had tightened it.
5. Alarm kept going off when vehicle locked - bonnet switch faulty & replaced
6. Intermittent throttle control fault. At low revs (2-3000 rpm) as you take foot off the accelerator and put foot on clutch when changing gear the engine revs rise by up to 1500rpm above where they were with foot totally off the accelerator - dealer stated they were unable to identify any fault but said they had performed a software upgrade (which they state they have done twice) which cures this problem ?? This one has been looked at three times and again the fault is still there. The same fault also presented on the identical engined loan car we had on the third visit.
7. Dashboard clips not holding onto panel which kept falling out, dealer did not fix on first occasion but did manage to fix on second
8. Passenger side window makes an intermittent screeching noise, dealer unable to identify any fault
9. Hazard warning light switch and interior door lock switch poorly aligned, hazard switch stuck on when used - panel re-aligned
10. Two of the storage box handles in the floor (which are very rarely used) have broken off.
Another reader's list of problems with a 2006 Scenic (received June 2007):-
- 2 new tyres (at 10,000 miles)
- locking problem as the boot lock not working causing no central
- locking (persistent problem)
- engine mount bracket
- new battery
- paint fault
- drivers window kept dropping
- Cam Shaft diffuser
Another reader's list of problems with a 2005 Scenic 1.6 received July 2007:
- clips in steering column had to be replaced
- drivers window sticking
- hand brake was staying on while driving
- back washer ceased to work
- starting problems work was carried out on fuel pump
- seat belts fixed due to a re-call
- Knocking noise when pulling away
- Car ceasing to start when slowing down or stopping and emission
- warning lights on (apparently due to camshaft sensor)
- Heating only running when on full and re-fixed itself
Lighting fuses inaccessible and a £45 garage job to replace.
30-05-2012:4th Least Reliable 3-5 year old family car in 2012 analysis of Warranty Direct Claims records on www.reliabilityindex.com
15-08-2012:Scenics fitted with electric parking brakes can fail their MoTs because the Bowden cables from motors to calipers can fail and Renault only supply complete motor and cable units at £600.
26-05-2013:'Check Injection' message on dash may signify nothing more than the need for a new battery if the battery is 4 years old or more.
28-06-2013:Dashboard failures seem to be on the increase again (though the problem probably never went away). On one 2004 1.9 dCi the clock started resetting itself and a day later the dash went completely black. Radio still on, though all controls inaccessible.
30-06-2013:Report of rod through block of 1.5 dCi in 7 year old Scenic on the autopista. From description read like a main bearing bolt sheared.
08-07-2013:Another dashboard failure reported.
04-02-2014:By 2014 digital dashboard failures were common on Scenics with Renault subsidising replacement leaving owners with a £150-£200 bill. More seriously, heater an motor failures are also common with a repair necessitating dashboard dismantling, which takes forever and costs a fortune.
19-09-2014:Speedo cluster failure on 2004 Scenic. Intermittently fails, then comes back on with incorrect mileage.
14-10-2014:Yet another report of odometer failure in the speedo cluster of a 2003 Scenic. Hopefully Renault will still subsidise a replacement.
13-02-2015:Electric parking brake failure reported on 2007 Scenic. £600 to fix. At least the price hasn't gone up since 2012.
05-05-2015:Electric driver's window failed on 2006 Scenic. Renault dealer agreed it was a "known problem" and offered to fix it for £125 rather than the "normal" price of £800.
05-11-2016:Report that “check fuel injection” warning on 2004/53 Renault Scenic 1.9cdi first deemed to deemed to be a fault in the engine management reporting system rather that an actual injection fault. Eventually told one glow-plug was not operational. Four new glow-plugs were fitted on the 27th September 2016 and the message no longer appears.
19-03-2018:Owner of 2014 Renault Scenic 1.5DCI (3.5 years old) told by Renault dealer that his engine needs a replacement timing belt at 36,000 miles.
13-04-2018:Report of failure of timing belt on 2009/59 Renault Scenic 1.5DCI at 85,000 miles. Belt had been replaced in June 2015 at 51,000 miles but no mention of waterpump also being replaced.
07-01-2019:Report of 2006 Renault Scenic now at 64,500 miles starting to get expensive to run over the last year: Handbrake reading codes faulty £36.00; Brake light switch and labour £87.19; Parking brake etc etc £208.50; Clutch etc etc £881.47; Window switch £183.84; Replace N/S/R brake pipe £114; Rear discs, coil Spring etc etc £292.39: Total £1,803.30.
17-06-2019:Report of failure of three injectors over the years in 2015 Renault Scenic 1.5DCI, now at 35,000 miles. Owner also complained of having to replace rusted rear brake discs.
