"Renault poured a staggering 1.4bn francs (€285m) into development of the world’s first MPV coupé following the reveal of the Concept in 1998 at the Paris Salon. Remarkably true to the original design, the 'Avantime', built by Matra, was a genuine mould-breaker that offered a luxurious cabin with ‘Theatre’ seating, pillarless side windows and a full panoramic sliding glass roof. 452 were sold in the UK, half being two litre Turbo ‘Dynamique’ models, the rest were specified with the highly capable three litre V6 engine and called ‘Privilege’.
Our Avantime is a top-of-the-range V6 Privilege with automatic transmission, specified in bright ‘Illiad’ blue with black leather upholstery and satellite navigation. 'Limited Edition' car Number 40 has had one private registered keeper since being sold by Renault UK in 2002. The car is reported to present superbly with performance to match. Automatic gearchanges are described as seamless - there is a recent receipt for a gearbox oil change and the owner has volunteered to have the car MoT tested and serviced ahead of the auction. There are several other service receipts in the history file along with V5, owner’s leather zipper-wallet (containing owner’s manual and supplements) plus both original keys.Historics are very pleased to offer such a well specified, top of the range Avantime which must be one of the finest currently available examples in the UK."