More Modus

Renault's original Modus was unfortunate in losing out in the popularity stakes to the more popular Nissan Note which was actually based on the same concept and made on the same platform.



The longer Note struck a chord with buyers both here and across Europe as it was more visually appealing and offered more luggage space.

Here, I must add that the entry level Modus review car I test drove some years back, ferried three big six-footers as well as myself from a rugby dinner, with absolute ease. And I heard no complaints from the back about room space either. Maybe they were just appreciative of having a designated driver!

The car under review is the 1.2-litre version with five speed manual transmission costing 15,650 euros. The price is Ex-Rosslare and includes VAT and VRT.

Punters can choose from either the Royale or Monaco versions, whichever suits their lifestyle, or go for an ecological 1.2 petrol or a 1.5 dCi diesel engine. The 1.5 dCi 106hp Royale II has a low C02 reading of 124 g/km as has the Monaco similar version.

Now in its mid-life upgrade, the car has undergone drastic changes which should prove more attractive to buyers. Firstly, there is now a Grand Modus. Anyone with even a smattering of French knows that, when translated, Grand means Big, or Large. And in Ireland, this is the only one which is being sold.



The new car has a 93mm longer wheelbase than the standard model, with a bigger amount of metal and glass. Now more than 4 metres long and with a bit over 0.4 cu m of luggage space with all seats in use. As the seats can move backwards or forwards, this space can be varied to suit your requirements.

In the looks department, Modus can now be described as looking 'cute' and quite cheerful. People paused to get a better look and two small children asked if they could sit in it. They loved it, bouncing up and down on the front seats and being able to see out without cushions due to the high seats and low side windows.

That amount of glass helps hugely with visibility as do the good sized side mirrors with blind spot cover. The big glass area also makes the cabin light and airy. The only downside is the amount of dark grey in the cabin only relieved by a smattering of light silver.

A-pillar windows are so big they seem part of the actual windows with just a narrow strip divide between them and so provide great side-view visibility.

Seats are comfy and hold you well. Everything on the dash is nicely placed, with the information screen in a central position, as in the Toyota Yaris. The pod is shielded against glare and gives your speed in big, bright orange digital numbers. All the information is contained in a large semi arc.

But, while the radio buttons are of a decent size, finding alternative radio stations to those already slotted in, is not intuitive. I had to consult the manual and even then it wasn't an easy thing to do. Renault have stuck with that circular control for volume etc for far too long. It's too small by far and means you have to be very precise with where your finger goes.

There are two overhead drop-down boxes situated in the centre of the roof, so they don't affect headroom. Ideal for storing away things like books, tissues or colouring markers to keep the young ones happy in the back and the youngsters will be able to use the pop-up plastic trays on the backs of the front seats.

Other storage areas include a decent glove box, good sized door bins on both front doors, a handy lidded storage area on the driver's side of the dash top, and there's the option of a smallish drawer for under the front seats.



The review car proved surprisingly capable over the course of a very long test drive period. It's a nice, smooth performer. That said, it won't set the world alight as it's not that kind of car. No, it's most likely to be the second family car used for the school run, ferrying the kids around and for shopping, as it performs well in traffic. The ride is good overall and the longer wheelbase helps here over the current version, making it almost into an MPV.

Body coloured bumpers with black protective strips help fend off scratches in the supermarket car park.

This child-friendly car comes with Isofix attachment systems in the two outer rear seats and one in the front passenger seat.

As time went by, I became very fond of the Grand Modus. It's a good transporter for four or five people or for a growing family.

Take a good, long look at it. And then a good, long drive.

Trish Whelan.