When in France a month or two back, I saw lots of the new look (well they're new to me anyway) Renaults. Meganes of course and the occasional Scenic or Espace.
... and those with strange names ... is it Avantime and Vel Sartis? Well it's something like that anyway.
The thing is, I've never managed to see an Avantime and Vel Sartis together, side by side. So I've never figured out if they're actually the same car, just with different trim levels and badges, or whether they really are totally different. They certainly look very similar, but is one larger than other?
My curiosity's driving me mad (well almost).
Thanks in advance
Les
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Errrrrr.....
Avantime and Vel Satis are available in the UK, it's just that nobody buys them...
cos they're bizarre and horrible.
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ah, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder (thank God, or there'd be nothing down for me, that's for sure).
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They are not the same. I don't want to seem cheeky, but why not check Car-by-Car Breakdown? I've just been having fun there!
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PS They buy them around here.
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The Avantime is a 2 door Espace (now discontinued - unlike the Scenic, the attempt to produce a new sector was unsuccessfull)
The Vel Satis is more like a Omega sized car in the taller=bigger current mode... Both are rare in the UK!!
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Avantime is still alive and kicking (the coffin lid?) according to Renault UK webiste...
Mind you, they probably stopped manufacturing ages ago...there will only be a couiple of airfields-full left to sell if they have pressed the delete button.
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I'd drive either of the two big Renaults, both are full of innovation and neat design touches.
But as supply is restricted, and demand fairly constant due to some people liking the styling, so prices have been predicted to hold quite well.
If either car had been a similar price to the C5 when I bought it (7mth old), they would have stood a serious chance of being bought.
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Thw Avantime was built by Matra, the plug being pulled back in the spring, IIRC. It simply didn't take off, even in La Belle France, so stockpiled all over the place I suspect.
May be some serious bargains to be had by next year if you don't mind depreciation to beat the 607 and 166.... Not to mention a dubious parts backup.
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That's the scary bit...the words "Renault", "innovation" and "neat design touches" in one sentence.
"Reliability" might not appear in the same sentence...
Also, having recently been into the storage compound of my local Renault main dealer, I am a little suprised that current Renaults aren't fitted with a fire alarm and sprinkler system, given the number of burnt vehicles which had suffered from "electrical reliability issues"...
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Thanks for the clarification, I'm grateful.
Unreliable or not, I've seen some very smart looking Vel Statises (well what would you suggest for a plural?!). I've only seen one in this neck of the woods though.
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