Renault, Master, front, back, parked

With its new diamond and chrome grille, the new Renault Master is a bit of a looker

 

What’s hot

  • We’ve always admired the dashing looks of the Master, with its massive Renault diamond and snazzy chrome grille. It’s amazing now how a few carefully repositioned lines make the new model even better looking.
  • As stated above, the driver’s seat is a dream with plenty of lumbar support.
  • And Renault takes the ‘Witherington Coffee Cup Holder Prize’ too. Regular readers will know how important I deem this little item to be and the Master has no fewer than four. A record we think. How much coffee can a driver drink at one go, though, I wonder?
  • Thanks to a new EU law which makes the fitment of Electronic Stability Control (ESC), which helps alleviate sideways skids, a legal requirement after October, the Master now gets this wonderful gadget as standard. It was always a paid-for option in the past, a point which we’ve railed against on several occasions. Also standard, by the way, are ABS brakes, Grip Xtend, Hill Start Assist and Trailer Swing Assist, which all do exactly what they say on the tin.
  • Despite this van being the highest powered version, it is still reckoned to return over 40mpg on the official combined cycle. That’s 7.3mpg better than the engine it replaces. Mind you we always point out here that once you load several heavy boxes in the back and drive up and down a few hills against a strong wind, you are highly unlikely to replicate this figure as it is calibrated on a rolling road, in a nice warm shed with no wind resistance. We reckon 35mpg is a good figure to aim for – not bad even still for a van of this size.
  • This was only a medium roof variant but six-footers can still stand up in the back. If you or your drivers do lots of drops in the day, that could be an important health and safety point.
renault, master, tom,tom, sat, nav

Renault Master Tom Tom sat-nav system is an expensive option

What’s not

  • When we picked the van up we were glad to see it had air-con as it was a stinking hot day. Perusing the spec sheet, we discovered that this little goody retails at an eye-popping £800. Seeing as you get air-con for free when you buy a Citroen Relay Enterprise model, we reckon that’s a bit rich. To be fair, though, you get it as standard on Business+ models.
  • Talking of Citroen Relays, you also get a free Teletrac sat-nav and stolen tracking device when you buy one. If you want a built-in TomTom unit in the Master, you have to cough up £650. Personally, I’d scoot round to Halfords and pick up one of those “mobile” units for £100!

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