Removal of brand’s only seven-seater follows axing of five-seat Scenic last year and Koleos SUV last week
Renault has removed the Grand Scenic MPV from its UK portfolio, following the five-seat Scenic‘s departure last year.
The departure of the formerly popular people carrier, confirmed to Autocar by a Renault UK spokesperson, also comes after the Koleos large SUV met the same fate last week. The decision to remove the seven-seater was taken prior to that and the Covid-19 pandemic, however.
Both models remain on sale in other European markets, with the French brand’s UK range realigned to “better meet the needs of customers”. Although no UK-specific figures have been released, Renault sold just over 76,000 Scenics and Grand Scenics across Europe in 2019 – less than half the number it sold back in 2011.
The sales decline reflects that of the wider MPV sector in favour of SUVs, with a number of manufacturers including Ford, Toyota and Vauxhall having exited the segment in recent years. All three of those brands are now reliant on larger, van-based models to satisfy the multi-passenger fleet markets.
The original Scenic launched in 1996 and is widely credited with igniting the compact MPV sector. In 2003, the five-seater was joined by a seven-seat Grand Scenic, sitting beneath the Espace (which itself left the UK in 2014). At the MPV market’s peak in 2004, Renault shifted 320,000 Scenics and Grand Scenics in Europe.
READ MORE:
Renault Grand Scenic 2020 review
Renault design boss on axing models, hot EVs and Alpine’s future
The car industry now: the future of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance
Source: Autocar
