Review: Renault Laguna 3,0 Privilege
It’s so French you’d expect it to have five o’clock stubble and speak strangely.
But it’s as smooth as they come and speaks flawless English. Renault’s Laguna 3,0 Privilege is a sophisticated, powerful car full of unusual features that are normally only available on rivals costing a packet more. On top of that, it’s a fun car to drive.
First on the ”unusual” list is the keyless access feature. The car comes with a credit-card type remote control that locks and unlocks the doors at the click of a button. Once you’ve gained access you slip the card into a slot in the dash and push a start/stop button on the front panel to get the engine churning over. And if the card gets wet or its battery runs down? No problem! Tucked away in it is a removable door key that can be used in a concealed keyhole in the passenger door. Because the ignition circuit in the remote card is powered by the car’s battery the engine will still start once you’ve played the slot- machine game, whether the card has its own power or not.
The card remains locked into position until you push the start/stop button again, at which point the engine dies and the card ”unlocks” itself. In Europe there is a hands-free version that unlocks the car doors as soon as the key gets within 10m or so of the car and locks them again whenever the holder walks out of range. Now that sounds like a really good idea.
Second on the ”unusual” list comes the voice synthesiser — female, of course — that bollocks you out whenever anything’s wrong, whether it’s your doing or not. Left your seatbelt off? You’ll be reminded. Doors not closed properly? She’ll notice. Somehow this harridan would have been more appealing if she spoke like the bird in Je t’aime, but she didn’t, so I turned her off, which was easy enough.
Then there are the built-in tyre pressure monitors that show the individual readings for each tyre in a display on the dashboard every time the car is started — that’s unusual and useful.
As far as merely ”useful” is concerned, the Privilege’s trim level offers a lot. There are rain-sensitive windscreen wipers. Lots of air bags. Parking proximity sensors to stop you reversing into other cars and objects. An onboard computer. Cruise control. Climate control. Retractable side window blinds in the rear doors. Electronically adjustable, heated door mirrors. Xenon headlights with washers. 17” alloy wheels. Hugely adjustable front seats, with storage underneath. Traction control with ESP. ABS and brake assist. And all the other little gizmos we’ve come to expect that are just too numerous to mention.
But all of this is just the icing on top. What’s the big Laguna like as a car? Pretty good, actually. The 24 valve three litre V6 mill produces 152kW at 6 000rpm and 285Nm torque at 3750rpm, which is good enough for a top speed of 235kph and acceleration to 100kph in a shade over eight seconds. The five-speed auto gearbox works a treat, thanks to well-chosen ratios and a willing engine, and the sequential shift function is as good as most of the others around — they all tend to enjoy making decisions for themselves, even when in manual mode. Stopping is not something you have to really plan too far in advance in this Flying Frog. The 308mm ventilated disc brakes (274mm at the rear) are outstanding. Roadholding and handling can’t be faulted and sound levels are very satisfactorily restrained.
We found the Renault to be a hugely satisfying car, with enough toys on board to keep the small boy or girl in each of us happy, and enough steam to keep ahead of the pack. Not everybody has R300 000 to spend on a car, but for those who do we think the Renault Laguna 3 litre is different and classy enough to make it very appealing.