Road Test: Renault Laguna

The third generation Renault Laguna has had a bit of nip and tuck, writes Brian Byrne. Mostly at the front, where the lights and grille have been sexed up to bring it through its current phase.

The reason for driving the Laguna again is partly a refresher, partly because they have produced an 'Irish Edition' as a top of the range version. Essentially it's the Initiale grade as sold across the water to our UK cousins.

This offers larger alloys, Bluetooth phone connection, leather interior in a quite fetching ivory colour set off nicely by a piano black finish in elements of door and dash trimmings in the review car.

There's also a larger diesel engine, a 150hp 2.0 rather than the 115hp 1.5 in the base car. A 6-speed box is standard.

When I first drove the current Laguna some three years ago I was impressed by the improvement in perceived quality. This had been the result of a serious effort by the company to improve on how the buyers thought of their products. It's fair to say that the reputation to that point had been a bit spotty.

Renault emphasised their new ethos by offering a 3-year warranty with the car, a first for a European manufacturer.

I liked the shape too. A smooth-looking liftback with a coupe treatment that looked smart. It did, though, and still does, mitigate against adequate space in the back for anyone over 6' or even lesss. On the other hand, there's a decently roomy luggage space.

Driving the original 1.5 diesel showed the car to be surprisingly peppy, and fun on a good twisting road with ups and downs. I expected the extra horses in this one to give me even more verve, but there wasn't as much as I had hoped for. I think the Irish Edition is set up more as a long distance cruiser, and certainly is fine for our expanded motorway network between the cities.

From a driver's perspective the front of the cabin is good. Straightforward instruments, comfortable steering wheel, fine seats with heating for the cold mornings. The shifter isn't as precise as some, but quite adequate.

Ride is, as usual with French cars, biased towards the softer side. But it doesn't make for any sogginess in the handling, and the Laguna is a fairly precise machine to manage in most conditions.

Getting into a basic diesel Laguna is around the €26,000 mark. With the 'Irish Edition' trimmings, you'll get this one in your driveway for about €32,000.

The Laguna is admittedly getting on a bit. And against the Ford Mondeo, for instance, doesn't quite feel the goods compared with the Titanium equivalent. But it is a bit of a handier size than the Ford for some people.

Three years on, I still like it. But the competition out there is now a lot tougher.