The Avantime represents a time when Renault was into making bold styling statements. It’s a four-seat coupe based on the third-generation Renault Espace. Its tall design with imposing angles and intricate detailing found a few friends in the UK, but numbers never reached the 1500 a year originally predicted by Renault, and the model faced similar problems with demand elsewhere in Europe, with slow sales eventually sealing the fate of the Matra company that built it for Renault.

Only petrol models were brought to the UK, and equipment levels are good, but the Avantime is more about making an entrance than the journey itself.