Not a lot goes on here. To the west of Stockholm, a vast scatter of islands populate huge straits fed by the Baltic Sea. It’s an incredibly peaceful spot where the speed limits are low. And scrupulously observed.

A fairly soporific environment, then, for the launch of a new Renault that is central to the French giant’s fortunes. The new Scénic replaces an icon that created a whole new genre.

The Scénic was the first compact MPV and since its launch in 1996 more than 2m have been sold, 200,000 in Britain. At first no other car maker had anything to compete with its compact dimensions, high driving position and flexible interior with foldable and removable seats.

But today the new Scénic faces a much tougher fight. Sniffing the huge market potential, most of the big players have pitched up with talented compact MPVs of their own: the Citroën Xsara Picasso, Vauxhall Zafira and, more recently, the Volkswagen Touran and Ford Focus C-Max.

So this new Scénic needs to work very hard and its first line of attack is style. As Renault acidly observes, compact MPVs can tend to look a bit like “vans with windows”. To make the Scénic stand out, designers have funked up the looks with bold wheelarches, sharp metal creases, very short overhangs front and rear and a wider stance. And although a good deal of the Scénic’s styling is derived from Renault’s Avantime (now deceased) and the Vel Satis (not selling well at all), it makes competitors such as the staid VW look like frumpy old men.

For the record, Renault went to Stockholm to launch Scénic because of the designery blonde-wood, nice-furniture vibe. The real compact MPV battlefield is the interior, and Renault has gone to town.

Climb in and your first impression is of an incredibly airy and spacious cabin, thanks to a hugely panoramic windscreen, narrow A-pillars and colossal dual sunroofs — a £600 option on lower-line models, but I wouldn’t have this car without them.

The second impression is of a slightly more reclined and car-like driving position, due in part to a steering wheel that tilts to a less bus-like angle. The dashboard, unique to the Scénic, is an attractive piece of sculpture like a sand dune. It looks — and feels — better quality than the old Scénic, but the digital instruments are harder to read than analogue ones and very much an acquired taste. Which I haven’t.

The location of the controls for the sat nav system is appalling, requiring even the long-armed to reach forward awkwardly to the top ledge of the instrument panel. Passengers will practically have to sit in the driver’s lap to manipulate them.

Other attention-seeking innovations include the very useful electric handbrake, standard on all but entry-level Scénics. It is operated by a pull-tab on the dashboard, freeing up floorspace between the front seats. It works really well, making hill starts easier: you just drive away as normal and the brake releases when it feels the car move off.

Thanks to the extra floorspace, Renault has added a whizzy centre-mounted dual-storage console that slides fore and aft on rails. When it is all the way forward there is more legroom for the second-row seats; all the way back gives access to the storage bins from the back seats. It can be moved and locked in place by the tiniest increment with an electric latch system. It works quite well even if there is a slight “Why?” attached to the concept. Time and lots of family use will tell, I suppose.

If storage is your gig, the Scénic is a treasure trove. Lidded bins in the doors, the biggest glovebox I’ve ever seen, drawers under the seats and underfloor lidded cubbies. I swear, I wouldn’t have been surprised to find Saddam Hussein in this thing.

In the back, three individual seats do all the usual MPV stuff; they fold, come out altogether or reconfigure so you’ve got just two with more elbow room. Another neat trick is the front passenger seat that folds forward to create a tabletop.

The Scénic won’t be the best MPV to drive. While it offers a very comfortable ride, the inherently soft set-up leads to looser body control and the steering has a pendulum-like overeagerness to centre and a real lack of feedback. The engine line-up is strong, though, with a 1.4, 1.6 and 2 litre petrol and 1.5 and 1.9 litre common rail turbo-diesel engines. The smooth and torquey 1.9 litre diesel suits the new Scénic’s relaxed approach best, I reckon.

On sale from September, the new Scénic will cost from £12,850 for the entry-level 1.4 litre model, and up to £18,050 for the vastly well-equipped 2 litre automatic version. Unless driving dynamics are a priority, it should be on your shopping list.

VITAL STATISTICS
Model Renault Scénic 1.9dCi Expression
Engine type Four cylinders, 1870cc
Power/Torque Power 120bhp @ 4000rpm / 221 lb ft @ 2000rpm
Transmission Six-speed manual
Suspension (front) MacPherson struts, coil springs, anti-roll bar (rear) Torsion beam, coil springs
Tyres 205/55 R16
Fuel/CO2 48.7mpg combined, 154g/km
Acceleration 0 to 62mph: 10.8sec
Price £16,350
Verdict Original compact MPV gets more space, style and clever detailing, but driving experience is way down the priority list.