Instead, the Megane Sport Tourer is now, hands-down, the most elegant family estate car on the market and the Scenic is an equally clear stand-out winner for design originality among compact MPVs. If their driving dynamics were fully a match for their looks and if the cloud of suspicion that has hung around Renault’s reliability for decades were to be blown away, these cars would be almost irresistible.

We’re not going to dwell for long on the Megane in this review because, of the two cars, the Scenic is by far the more innovative and interesting.

Even so, the Megane Sport Tourer deserves proper notice as a serious contender for anybody in the market for a family estate. Its carrying capacity may not be so cavernous nor so adaptable as a Skoda Octavia’s; its handling may not be so needle-sharp as a Ford Focus estate; the six-speed manual gearbox may not be so precise and slick as the Seat Leon’s, but the Renault is more comfortable, better equipped in standard forms and cheaper than most rivals. It is also better looking to about the same extent as Louise Redknapp is easier on the eye than Jamie. Anybody who can close their eyes to the findings of J.D. Power surveys or the listings for warranty claims on Warranty Direct might feel that they’ve picked up a genuine original in the Megane Sport Tourer.

The same can be said, with knobs on, for the new Scenic. This is not just the best-looking MPV that has come our way this year: it’s one of the best-looking cars of any type.

It’s difficult to write about the Scenic because the fingers traversing the keyboard keep automatically trying to type the word “Espace”. This Scenic is 20mm wider, 40mm longer and with a wheelbase 32mm longer than the last Scenic. It is also so much longer than the original 1996 compact MPV that set the trend for that kind of vehicle even exceeding the measurements of the original 1984 Espace which, similarly, set the mould for large MPVs. While Mars bars keep getting more expensive at the same time as the content of the wrapper reduces, new cars keep getting more and more expensive in order to justify their expanded dimensions. Recently I reviewed a glorious BMW 5 Series Touring that was closer to the size of a 7 Series, just ten years ago, and also cost more than that 7 Series. The new Scenic is an Espace in all but name.

Terrific it is, too. Just as the Megane Sport Tourer knocks all other contemporary mid-size states into a cocked hat for styling, so the Scenic makes all (so-called) compact MPVs look about as exciting as your uncle’s Christmas pullover. Here is a piece of work with the confidence to stand out from the crowd and the composure to carry off the performance.