Renault Master Review

But while the Master name is pretty old, the engineering of the latest fourth-generation version most certainly isn’t. The fact is that vans have a far longer shelf life than passenger cars: while cars are replaced every five to eight years, vans usually have to last ten, twelve, and maybe longer. This means that most of the Master’s rivals have already been knocking around for a good few years, while the fourth-generation of the big Renault was all-new for 2024, and is much fresher as a result.

This means that most of the latest driver assistance tech is offered in the Master, and the infotainment tech is pretty cutting-edge, too. A variety of shapes and sizes are offered, as well as a variety of diesel engines, plus an all-electric version known as the E-Tech.

It’s a very good all-rounder, the Renault Master. It doesn’t deliver game-changing figures for load capacity or payload, etc, but it is competitive in those areas, and it’s a comfortable and relatively easy large van to drive. It has a decent slice of standard equipment to give your working day a little extra dose of civility, and while it’s not the cheapest van of its type, it still looks like decent value for money.

Looking for a used van for sale? We've got 100s of Renault Approved Used Cars for Sale for you to choose from, including a wide range of Renault Master vans for sale. 

If you want your van to feel up-to-date and modern, then yes, absolutely. While passenger car models are usually replaced every five to eight years, van models have to last much longer, usually double that. As a result, most of the big Renault’s rivals have been around for a good old while already. This latest fourth-generation Renault Master, however, was only introduced in late 2024, so it’s the freshest van of its type, along with its sister van, the Nissan Interstar.

If your work is concentrated in the local area, then you could save quite a chunk in running costs by choosing the all-electric Master E-Tech. Just make sure you have the right charging solution, and that the limited range will suit your business. It's a lot better than the old one in terms of how far it'll go on a charge, though.

If your work takes you further afield, you’ll want one of the diesels. So far, we’ve only tried the weakest 130PS version, which we found entirely adequate, so we can’t see much point in spending more to upgrade to the more powerful units.

Again, Extra trim doesn't get much more in the way of kit than the base-level Advance, so we don’t see much point in upgrading.

If you’re considering the E-Tech all-electric version, then brand new prices range between £47,000 and £51,000, and that's despite the £5,000 Plug-in Van Grant (PiVG) from the Government to help even up costs.

Overall, these prices are a bit more than you’ll pay for large vans from Citroen, Fiat, Peugeot and Vauxhall, but a bit less than you’ll pay for a Ford, Mercedes or Volkswagen.

As ever, buying a pre-owned example can save you a heap of cash, with prices starting under £30,000. Such vans still have super-low double-digit mileages, so are probably vehicles pre-registered by dealers in order to meet monthly sales targets, and will be in as-new condition.

We can go one better than 'similar' – the Nissan Interstar is entirely the same as the Master, other than branding differences. Previously, the Vauxhall Movano was based on the Master, but from 2021 onwards, it was replaced by a 'new' model based on the Fiat Ducato owing to Vauxhall becoming part of the huge Stellantis group of manufacturers. We say 'new' because the Ducato is now ancient, older even than the previous-generation Master. 

The Master should feel fresher than the Movano, Ducato and its relatives, including the Citroen Relay, Peugeot Boxer, and Toyota Proace Max. The Ford Transit isn't quite so long in the tooth, having arrived in 2014, and a recent update has helped keep it competitive. Two more similarly-sized options are the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter and Volkswagen Crafter. 

As slightly more budget alternatives, you can also choose from the Iveco Daily and the Maxus eDeliver9.

The driving position has a good amount of adjustment: you crank your seat up and down and slide it backwards and forwards, and there’s a decent amount of travel in both directions. There’s a decent amount of travel in the sterling adjustment, too.

The high-set seats mean your view of the road ahead is tremendous, allowing you to look out over the top of most other traffic. That does mean, however, that you climb up into the van rather than dropping down into it like you do in a car, and that takes a little bit of muscle.

The dashboard design is simple and intuitive, and the controls are chunky and well-marked, making them easy to use. The centre console is angled towards the driver, putting the main controls within easy reach.

The Renault Master is available in two lengths and two heights, resulting in a variety of configurations. The shorter van measures 5,680mm long, while the longer one measures 6,315mm. Most of the extra length goes into the wheelbase, but a little of it sits in the rear overhang. The load length in the former (at floor level) measures 3,225mm, while the equivalent figure in the latter is 3,855mm. In both, the width between the wheel arches measures 1,380mm.

The shorter van is only available with the standard roof height, giving you a loadspace height of 1,885mm, and an overall loading volume of 10.8 cubic metres. Go for the long wheelbase van, and you can have either the standard roof height or the high roof: the former has an overall load volume of 13.0 cubic metres, while the latter ups that to 14.8 cubic metres thanks to the extra load height that totals 2,138mm.

As standard, you get a single sliding rear door on the left-hand side of the vehicle, and it opens up a loading aperture that measures 1,312mm wide and 1,753mm high. You also get twin rear doors that open up a load-through space of 1,537mm wide and 1,755mm tall. They open up to 90 degrees at first, but as standard, you can unhook the stoppers, allowing them to open at up to 180 degrees. As an optional extra, you can also specify doors that open to 270 degrees, meaning that they basically fold backwards down the sides of the van.

Most versions have a gross vehicle weight (GVW) of 3,500kg, but a couple of variants - both electric ones - have a GVW of 4,000kg. Depending on the version, payload figures range between 941kg and 1,482kg, and towing weights for a braked trailer range between 1,000kg and 2,500kg (it’s 750kg across the board for an unbraked trailer).

Compared with the competition, some rivals do better on maximum payload, maximum load volume and maximum towing capacity, but the Master’s figures are nonetheless competitive by and large.

The cab of the Renault Master contains three seats side-by-side, with enough shoulder room so that three burly colleagues can travel without having to get too cosy with each other. The two passenger seats flip up to reveal a large 66-litre storage area underneath, which is very handy, especially in the E-Tech as it’s a good way of keeping your charging cable out of the main loadbay. That area contributes to an overall figure of 135 litres of cabin storage, with cubbies, shelves, pockets and recesses dotted around absolutely everywhere.

All versions of the Master come with a slick-looking 10.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system mounted in the middle of the dashboard. The system has the functionality you’ll demand in a modern vehicle, including DAB, Bluetooth and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Go for the higher-spec Extra trim level, and the system is upgraded to incorporate Google Built-In, which gives you navigation powered by Google Maps, voice control powered by Google Assistant, and access to a wide variety of apps on the Google Play Store.

Either way, the system is reasonably easy to use thanks to the fact that it’s not too complicated, and there’s a decent amount of logic to how the various menus are arranged. It also helps that you get separate physical controls for the air-conditioning system (which look nice and work really well thanks to small digital displays incorporated into the dials themselves), so you don’t have to root around in countless touchscreen menus just to knock the cabin temperature up a degree or two.

The diesels come with a pair of analogue dials behind the steering wheel, set either side of a small 3.5-inch black and white TFT display. In the E-Tech, this arrangement is replaced by a 7.0-inch digital driver information display. Either way, these are easy to use and understand.

You wouldn’t expect any van to be the last word in opulence and swankiness, so it’s entirely forgivable that the Master’s interior is fashioned from functional, hard-wearing plastics. These plastics look and feel durable, and don’t seem to mark up too easily, so the cabin feels like it’ll stand up well to the rigours of hard use. 

That said, there are a couple of swanky touches that dial up the feel of sophistication a bit. The large, colourful touchscreen display looks good, and so do the air-con dials, which incorporate small digital displays within them: these look smart and work well.

The Master is offered with a choice of traditional diesel engines and as an all-electric E-Tech version. The diesel choices are all 2.0-litre four-cylinder units that deliver either 130PS, 150PS or 170PS to the front wheels. The 130PS version comes exclusively with a six-speed manual gearbox, the 170PS comes exclusively with a nine-speed automatic gearbox, while the 150PS engine can be had with a choice of either transmission. E-Tech electric version, meanwhile, has a 140PS motor on the front axle, fed by an 87kWh battery.

Manufacturers don’t tend to publish 0-62mph acceleration figures on commercial vehicles: after all, they’re fairly meaningless where passenger cars are concerned, and they’re even more irrelevant for a large van like the Master. What’s important here is that your progress is easy and flexible, and happily, in the versions we’ve tried - those being the entry-level 130PS diesel and the E-Tech - it is.

The diesel’s lower gears are quite short, so you’ll be stirring the manual gearbox a bit when getting up to speed, but it’ll get there reasonably comfortably, even with a heavy load in the back. It won’t get there particularly quickly, mind, but there’s enough briskness to keep pace with normal traffic conditions. And when the entry-level diesel engine delivers thoroughly adequate performance, we can’t see the more powerful units struggling in this area, either.

The E-Tech feels a lot brisker away from the mark, as EVs so often do thanks to the thumping great slice of torque that’s delivered as soon as the electric motor starts turning. OK, so you won’t be out-dragging Ferraris, but the electric Master feels brisker off the mark than you might be expecting. Once you’re up to around 30- to 40mph, the level of acceleration becomes more moderate, and it tails off more and more the faster you go, another common EV trait. It always feels pokey enough for any everyday driving situation, though, and the absence of gear changes makes your progress even more seamless and easy.

All versions of the Master E-Tech electric get the same 87kWh battery pack. Depending on the size and weight of your van, that’s good for between 255 miles and 285 miles  of range, according to official WLTP combined figures. 

As always, though, don’t take these figures as gospel when it comes to real-world returns. Even in optimal conditions, these figures tend to be optimistic, so factor in a loss of at least 50 miles on average. Cold-weather and/or prolonged high-speed motorway running will see your returns drop, but by contrast, your returns will improve if your van is used exclusively at low urban speeds.

Still, that's a big improvement on the electric version of the last Master, the Z.E, whose real-world range was about 75 miles at best. In our time with an E-Tech, we managed comfortably over 200 miles on a charge despite doing mostly motorway miles, although we did have to keep the speed down to more like 60mph to avoid the range dropping off like a stone. We averaged 2.6 miles per kWh.

With no weight on board, the ride can be a little jumpy, especially at low urban speeds, and you hear a bit of clonking going on beneath you, too. However, it’s still more comfortable than most other rival vans, and certainly nothing that’ll irritate you on a daily basis. Loaded up, the ride does calm down a bit for a more settled time, and again, it’s one of the more comfortable offerings on the market.

Of course, a vehicle of this size is always going to feel rather cumbersome when changing direction, and that’s entirely forgivable. Yes, the tall body leans over a bit in bends, and narrow lanes will have you on your toes, but it’s no worse than in other large vans. It’s a pretty easy van to drive, considering, though. The steering is light and responsive, if rather slow (again, you expect that slowness in this type of vehicle), and the turning circle actually feels tighter than you expect for very decent manoeuvrability.

In the diesel version we tried, however, we found the other controls to be slightly less polished. The manual gearshift is fine, but the throttle pedal needs quite a lot of pressure before any reaction comes, while the brake pedal needs hardly any before the brakes grab on, usually more strongly than you expect. Chuck in a very long-travel clutch pedal, and there isn’t much consistency. This is less of an issue in the EV version - not least because there’s one less pedal - although the brakes are still a wee bit grabby.

With a rudimentary suspension setup beneath you, and a large open space behind you isolated only by a thin steel bulkhead, you hear a fair amount of creaks, clonks and squeaks as you make your way down the road. This is true of all large vans, though, and it’s no worse here than in the competition. Wind- and road noise are also at very average levels.

The diesel engines we’ve tried have the characteristic clatter you expect, but they’re not bothersome in any way, and don’t have to be worked too hard in order to get you around effectively. Obviously, the E-Tech electric versions are quieter, but maybe not by as much as you might expect, because you hear a fair amount of whine from the motors as you accelerate. Again, it’s not bothersome, just noticeable.

We did wonder if a lack of rumbling diesel engine might make wind and road noise in the E-Tech a lot more obvious, but it's not bad at all at cruising speeds. 

As standard, the Master comes with safety measures including driver and passenger airbags and tyre pressure monitoring, along with driver assistance features such as automatic emergency braking, driver attention alert, speed limit assist with traffic sign recognition, and lane keep assist. On top of that, E-Tech versions also get blind spot warning, along with pedestrian and cyclist collision warning. The traffic sign recognition isn't great, though, frequently picking up the wrong limit. It's annoying having the speed limit warning bonging away when you're nowhere near breaking it.

In Euro NCAP commercial vehicle ratings the Renault Master has achieved the full five-star rating. That’s the same as the rating achieved by the Nissan Interstar (not surprising when they’re the same vehicle underneath), and as the Citroen Relay, Fiat Ducato, Peugeot Boxer, Toyota Proace Max, Vauxhall Movano not surprising when these vans are all mechanically identical to one another), Ford Transit and Mercedes Sprinter. The only large-van models that have failed to get the full five-star rating are the Maxus eDeliver9 and Iveco Daily, both of which scored four stars.