RX4, but no Mazda

"FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem" (fuelstratifiedinjection) 06/02/2016 at 12:05 • Filed to: None

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Renault Scenic RX4. The concept behind it was 15 years ahead of its time, believe it or not.

E90M3 > FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem 06/02/2016 at 12:07

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It would be YEARS before BMW was making crossovers that ugly.

Seat Safety Switch > FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem 06/02/2016 at 12:15

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Renault routinely comes up with genius ideas that everyone else later screws up by attempting to make palatable to the sane.

FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem > Seat Safety Switch 06/02/2016 at 12:22

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Like the use of turbochargers on road cars for increased fuel economy (1981!). I’ve never really care too much about Renault but I kinda like them.

Ash78, voting early and often > FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem 06/02/2016 at 12:24

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This looks kind of familiar in a Rondobout way...

MultiplaOrgasms > FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem 06/02/2016 at 12:26

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Actually the RX4 was closer to cars like the AMC Eagle or the Subaru Outback than the modern crossovers, because you know, Renault actually bothered to give it AWD (a Steyr-Puch system too, like a Mercedes G) and completely reengineered suspension to cope with actual, light off-roading. In many ways those early crossovers were far superior to what we have nowadays.

Seat Safety Switch > FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem 06/02/2016 at 12:26

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Turbochargers are great for fuel economy.

They stimulate the demand side.

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem 06/02/2016 at 12:44

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I remember my dad had the normal version of that gen Scenic, and the dealer had some kind of raffle in which they sent every existing customer a spare key, which you could then try on the RX4 in the showroom. The person who had the fitting key would get the RX4, and the other people who came to try would get a fleece blanket embroidered with the Renault logo. Since that day we could call ourselfs the lucky owners of a fleece blanket, which to this day is still located within a Renault, mine to be precise. Though I guess the RX4 would have been nicer...

I know it was just a way to get people into the showroom, but you don’t really see that kind of thing here in Europe anymore, nowadays it is just free car washes and such.

RT > FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem 06/02/2016 at 12:57

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Lol, I remember these.

When they were new, they weren’t seen as anything exciting or special.

Looking back at it now though, I guess we really took them for granted. In many ways these things actually match or beat modern crossovers.

FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 06/02/2016 at 13:34

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I wish our dealers would do stuff like this. The only thing we ever get are ads fot dumb accesoires and service offers. New car buyers are usually pampered, my grandpa for example got a one year suscription of the BMW magazine.

FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem > MultiplaOrgasms 06/02/2016 at 13:36

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Not bad, I dididn’t know that it had a real awd system and not some wannabe 4x4 button. Tbh, I think I want one just like I want an AMC Eagle.

FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem > RT 06/02/2016 at 13:39

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Like MultiplaOrgasm said, it had a real awd system. I am confident that the RX4 would wet any puny crossover in light terrain. The mother of my friend had one, I kinda liked the high seating position as a kid.

RT > FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem 06/02/2016 at 13:42

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Jup, exactly.

It’s a crossover which pleases both the off-road and family crowd, and that’s not an easy task.

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem 06/02/2016 at 13:53

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We used to get a full subscription to the Renault magazine for as long as the magazine was around, I think we even still got it when my dad bought a Toyota, for which we got a magazine subscription too. But then both Renault killed their magazine around 2010-ish, followed by Toyota in 2012. But the Toyota was already sold by then, and my dad was driving a Ford, which yielded us yet another magazine subscription, though that one also stopped in 2012-ish when we had the car less than a year. All of those moved to an online platform. I don’t think any carmaker is doing real off-line magazines anymore.

FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 06/02/2016 at 14:08

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Too bad imo. I like physical magazines and the BMW magazine my grandpa got looked really upscale and was actually not that cheap (10 DM ~ 5€).

BvdV - The Dutch Engineer > FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem 06/02/2016 at 14:12

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Yeah, I miss them too, the Renault ones were always filled with the background stories on wacky Renault concepts, which I absolutely loved as a kid. No wonder I drive a Renault nowadays, I was indoctrinated from a very young age, haha

MultiplaOrgasms > FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem 06/02/2016 at 14:23

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Tbh I’d take an Espace Quadra over it, because a) the first gen Espace looks a lot better b) it is quite a bit lighter even with 4WD, c) the J-Type Douvrin engine is pretty indestructible and d) One could easily swap in a Turbo PRV from an R25/Alpine or the Lotus Type 918 V8 from the late Esprit due to all of them using derivatives of the same transmission.

FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem > MultiplaOrgasms 06/02/2016 at 14:52

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I love first gen Espaces! There’s a rather abused white Phase I in my neighborhood that has fascinated me ever since. It actually was almost offered in the US in the 80s.

FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem > BvdV - The Dutch Engineer 06/02/2016 at 14:54

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Oh yeah, childhood influences definitely work.

MultiplaOrgasms > FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem 06/02/2016 at 15:02

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So was the equally glorious GTA