Test drive by Renault Grand Espace 2002 - 2006 Minivan
Family Chilaout
Nerves and so on the limit after the flight at the old Tu -154, in addition, immediately after landing, you will have to go on the vicinity of Rome while driving an unfamiliar car - Renault Espace IV. It seems about one thing: no matter how to get lost and get to the appointed point without adventure ...Sitting in Espace IV, I remain in suspense: everything here seems unusual. There is no ignition lock - the engine is launched by pressing the button, and instead of the key, an electronic radio card. The handbrake is replaced by an electromechanical drive system.
However, the rest of the governing bodies are in ordinary places, large rear-view mirrors provide a wonderful overview, and climate control supports a pleasant coolness in the cabin. Already better.
By pressing the brake pedal and the Start/Stop button, I enjoy the illumination of the instrument panel. Among all kinds of characters, I find the indications of the air pressure sensor in the tires. Front: both left and right - 2.2. Rear: left - 2.2, right - 2.1. Disorder, you need to pump up. And what's that? Throwing one of the covers, I see the monitor of the Carminat navigation system. Excellent! It will serve as a thread of Ariadne in an unfamiliar country.
The first trip is on Espace with a six -cylinder turbodiesel 3.0 DCI. Thanks to excellent soundproofing, the motor is practically not heard only when you are healed by the accelerator, a characteristic diesel rumbling is heard.
If you go sedately, then on a kik doward adaptive automatic transmission thinks a bit, as if asking: do you really want this? But with subsequent accelerations, switching occur faster - the machine adapts to the driving manner. In general, the work of the automatic transmission really liked: switching is smooth and timely.
And if the minivan with a turbodiesel has excellent acceleration, then the version with gasoline six is \u200b\u200bjust a plague! To accelerate up to 100 km/h, it takes only 8.1 seconds there, while 3.0 DCI takes extra 3.4 s. And the sound of the motor cannot be conveyed in words - you have to hear! When with a muffled roar of the Espace supercar, the next flock of fiats bypasses the level of adrenaline in the blood to the maximum much earlier than the LED strip of the tachometer manages to approach the red zone.
A sensitive steering wheel with varying effort and a new adaptive suspension allow you to play the rearrangement and pass the ligaments of steep turns of mountain roads, without even thinking that this is by no means small, weighing about two tons, the car cannot boast of a low center of gravity. In addition, it was not just Espace, but Grand Espace, which is 200 mm longer than usual.
Also on the way, I appreciated the convenience of the location and information content of the climate control control panels. On Espace IV, they are on all four doors. Passengers of the second row can regulate the intensity of blowing, while sitting in front are set the temperature, and only the driver is entitled to distribute air flows.
To my surprise, I find that with my height (186 cm) it is very convenient to sit even in Kamchatka: my knees do not rest on the backs, and a solid supply of space remains above my head. All seats, except for the front ones, are removed and arranged in any order, since the floor is absolutely even. Transformation significantly expands the cargo abilities of the car. The Grand Espace trunk has a volume of 456 liters in a seven -seater version, and with the seats of the second and third rows - 3000 liters.
Saved - means earned. This aphorism is the best suited to future owners of the new Espace. In addition to reducing the repair costs after an accident (for example, with a frontal blow by 15 km/h, the radiator, wings and spaces remain unharmed), it will have to be paid less for maintenance, since the service life of many consumables has doubled.
Under the curtain of dating Espace IV, we take a minivan with a 2.2 DCI turbodiesel with a colleague from Ukraine, without experiencing much enthusiasm. The motor is a four of 150 hp, a mechanical gearbox after a car with V6 this will surely seem weak.
It wasn't there! Perhaps if an automatic machine stood here instead of the manual transmission, the behavior of the car would be different, but with a manual six -a -way the motor worked miracles. Confident picking up from the bottom, rapid acceleration and ... the best sound insulation and balance than the Six 3.0 DCI.
Upon returning to the base, we share impressions with the representative of Renault in Russia Jan Dorizon. Our emotions do not surprise his emotions. Yes, ”says Jan,“ the motor is really very good, and we plan that this modification will have up to 70% of all Espace IV sales. However, diesel versions are not supplied to Russia - there is no fuel of the corresponding quality. Russians will sell six -cylinder gasoline Grand Espace. We believe that most buyers will choose a car in the maximum configuration.
Here it is, reality: V6, the maximum equipment, but they have a family minivan, albeit notable, but accessible to many. No wonder Renault plans to sell 450 thousand such cars by 2009. By the way, a curious fact: Renault marketers deduced the pattern - more than 60% of the buyers of the new Espace were owners of the same previous generation model or simply went on it as passengers. As they say, having tried once, I eat now.
It can be seen that there is something in the car that competitors do not have. At least, I did not look out in it (except that the tuner of the Cabasse audio system is Nevazhnetsky, but maybe such in Rome radio stations!). You don’t go to Espace, but you are relaxing. On it you can brush a few hundred kilometers and flush out of the cabin more vigorous than before the trip. It resembles Chilaout in a good club, where you can restore strength to continue the fun for at least a day long in. Family Chilaout.
Technical characteristics of Renault Grand Espace IV
The body is minivan
Number of places, people. - 7
Equipped mass, kg - 1815
Full mass, kg - 2600
Dimensions (length/width/height), mm - 4861/1965/1746
Base, mm - 2868
Maximum speed, km/h - 225
Acceleration time to 100 km/h, s - 8.1
Fuel control (mixed cycle), l/100 km - 12.4
Engine:
- Type - gasoline, v6
- working volume, cm3 - 3498
- Power, L.S. at MIN -1 - 245/6000
- torque, NM at min -1 - 330/3600
- power supply - distributed injection
Transmission - automatic., 5 -speed
Tire size - 225/55R17
Wheel suspension:
- Front - independent
- rear - semi -dependent
Brakes:
- front - disk, ventilated
- rear - disk
Steering - with an adaptive amplifier
Text: Maxim Fedorov
Source: Magazine 5 wheel [11/2002]