Renault Rafale Review & Prices

The Renault Rafale is what happens when high-street brands start producing their own takes on designer fashion trends; looks great but it just isn't as posh as the bigger names. Think of it as a Weekday outfit to the Gucci BMW X4 and Hugo Boss Volvo EC40.

Yet for its size and body shape it’s not a direct alternative to either of those cars, sitting somewhere in between the Germans and the cheaper Peugeot 3008 or less stylish - and electric-only - Skoda Enyaq Coupe.

It’s not just in its positioning where the Rafale stands out, but in its styling too. It’s a head-turning car, with a tall, imposing front end, flanked by a pair of arrow-shaped LED running lights. The broad grille, aggressive headlights, sporty silhouette and sleek rear-end all give the Rafale a hint of baby Lamborghini Urus about it, if you squint.

The interior is rather posh at a glance, but once you settle in, it’s not as luxurious as appearances suggest. The two-tier dashboard has a full-width vent detail across the passenger side and a driver-facing, portrait-oriented infotainment system.

It’s mounted in the same wrap-around, driver-facing trim panel as the digital instrument cluster - and while it looks great, the gloss black detailing and air vents feel a bit cheap to the touch. The leatherette and suede on the seats, dashboard and door trims feel lovely though, and most of the high-up plastics are of the soft-touch variety.

Boot space is good, and while the plug-in hybrid model loses out on some boot space, the regular model has more boot capacity than a Peugeot 408 and Cupra Formentor. The parcel shelf feels flimsy, and the seats don’t fold completely flat either, which is annoying.

You can choose from a 200hp self-charging hybrid powertrain or a more powerful, 300hp plug-in hybrid (PHEV), both with the same 1.2-litre engine under the bonnet. The more powerful engine suits the car’s character better, and it’s a great choice for company car buyers due to its low benefit-in-kind tax rate.

Driving the Rafale is a mixed bag, because while the optional four-wheel steering and responsive controls make for good progress in town, it’s far too stiff over small bumps - and bouncy over big ones. The same applies to ruts and dips on the motorway, and the road noise is far too intrusive at speed.

Country lanes are better, as the darty steering, lack of body lean and tremendous levels of grip from its huge tyres are all reassuring when hustling down a back road. It’s just a shame that the steering wheel doesn’t give you much sense as to what the front wheels are doing, and the 1.2-litre engine is gruff when accelerating.

As a sporty, alternative choice to the typical German or Scandinavian fare, the Rafale is worth a look, and you can find new Renault Rafale deals on Carwow. There are Renault Rafale lease deals too, as well as used Renault Rafales available through our network of trusted dealers. For something a little smaller, there are other used Renaults for sale, and Carwow can even help you sell your car when it’s time to switch.

There’s a notable difference in price between the entry-level, self-charging hybrid Rafale Techno and top-of-the-line Atelier Alpine trim level; over £11,000 in fact. Granted, Atelier Alpine cars can only be had with the more expensive plug-in engine option, but unless you really fancy the posh 21-inch wheels and clever electrochromic glass roof, it’s probably worth going for a mid-range Techno Esprit Alpine or Iconic Esprit Alpine instead.

An issue for the Rafale is that it’s got some very capable alternatives, even if they’re not all that direct. The Peugeot E-3008 EV starts at around the same price as a mid-level Rafale, and while it’s not as big or spacious it’s far more comfortable. You can get an entry-level Tesla Model Y for a similar price too, or a Kia EV6 for another head-turning choice.

The Rafale has its hybrid credentials going for it though, so if you’re not quite ready to take the full EV plunge then it might be the best bet for you.

It’s quick and reassuringly grippy, but the Rafale just isn’t comfortable enough

In town

There’s no denying that the Rafale is a big old beast, but it doesn’t feel as unwieldy as it looks when you’re pottering around town. This is especially true on the upper trim level cars, which get a swish four-wheel steering system that cuts the turning circle down from 11.6 metres to a very impressive 10.4 metres instead - almost on par with a Renault 5 hatchback.

You get plenty of shove in the plug-in model, even in EV-only mode. The self-charging hybrid isn’t exactly slow, but it doesn’t have quite the same pep in its step as the PHEV.

It’s the suspension that really lets the Rafale down. While broken roads aren’t too bad, sharper potholes and bumps really thud through the cabin, and the big Renault bounces and lumbers over speedbumps.

Visibility isn’t great either. The Rafale is easy to place on the move, but the rear pillars are gargantuan; combined with the small side mirrors and enormous 20-inch and 21-inch wheels, it’s a stressful car to park. Even the optional 360-degree cameras don’t help all that much when trying to get close to a curb.

On the motorway

Getting up to speed is no issue in the Rafale, especially with the extra pace in the PHEV. The 1.2-litre engine does kick up a fuss when you’ve got your foot down, but it’s well insulated and barely noticeable once you’ve reached a cruise.

Unfortunately, it’s not that refined otherwise. There’s enough road noise through the enormous wheel and tyre combos that you’ll actively seek out smoother sections of motorway to quieten it down, though wind noise is much more tolerable.

The stiff, bouncy suspension is exaggerated at speed too. If you hit a bigger dip you can really feel the suspension get unsettled and bounce a few times before finding its groove again.

Speaking of unsettled, the lane-keeping function of the active cruise control is frustrating. Motorway drives feel like you’re bowling with the gutter bumpers up, being bounced from lane to lane. It’s far more anxiety inducing than steering the car yourself, especially with a lorry in the lane next to you.

The Rafale is impressively efficient though, as we achieved an average of 50mpg on a two-way motorway trip along the M1, with some country lanes and a little town driving thrown in the mix; good going for a big SUV.

On a twisty road

This is where the Renault Rafale makes the most sense, because the stiff suspension, quick steering and big tyres come together to make a rather accomplished car on a country lane. There’s no escaping the Rafale’s size and weight, but it feels very stable when being pushed along a winding road at speed.

Sport mode sharpens up the steering and throttle response, and while you don’t have that much sense of what the front wheels are doing through the steering wheel, it makes up for it in directness. The Rafale isn’t a hugely fun or rewarding car to drive quickly, but there’s little in the way of body lean, and supportive seats mean you can carry plenty of speed around turns without hesitation.

Surprisingly spacious for a swoopy coupe-SUV, but there are some odd quirks to the Rafale’s cabin

Don’t let the coupe-SUV roofline fool you, there’s a lot of room in the Rafale. Lots of adjustability in the front seats and steering wheel make it easy to get comfortable, while there’s a good amount of storage space available.

There are a pair of cupholders in the front of the centre console with some shallow space for odds and ends around them, while you can push the airplane-throttle-inspired handle-cum-wireless-charger forward to reveal a hidden, if awkwardly shaped, storage cubby. You can’t open it if you’ve got water bottles in the cupholders though, which is annoying.

Another cubby behind it and deep, if narrow, felt-lined door bins are useful for holding larger items, but you can’t fit litre bottles in them - or the cup holders. There are a pair of USB-C chargers too, which is handy, but the glovebox cover feels cheap and flimsy.

Space in the back seats:

Rear passengers will be almost as comfortable as front seat occupants in the Rafale, with enough legroom to rival bigger, more expensive cars, and as much headroom as in a lot of non-coupe-SUVs. You’ll even fit three adults across with no complaints.

The door cards have long, flat armrests which are comfortable to use, and the door bins are just as deep as the front ones. As far as storage goes, the Rafale’s party piece is its fold-down centre arm rest. It’s enormous, incorporating the rear headrest, meaning there’s room for a pair of cupholders as well as two felt-lined storage compartments.

There are two USB-C ports within, on top of the two low down on the centre console, but there are also a pair of snazzy phone and tablet holders that rotate around the cup holders; perfect for keeping the kids entertained on a long drive.

Boot space

The Rafale’s boot capacity is 530 litres in the PHEV, but you get an additional 117 litres of underfloor storage in the self-charging hybrid - where the PHEV stores its batteries. It’s usefully square, but the loading edge is rather high up and annoying to dump heavy loads into.

The lack of proper underfloor storage in the PHEV means there’s nowhere to store the charging cables out of sight, and the parcel shelf seems flimsy for what is an expensive car. There’s a useful 40:20:40 split for the folding rear bench, but the seats don’t fold totally flat; there’s a large edge to overcome when loading in bulky items. Four useful hooks and a 12-volt socket are handy though.

There’s a degree of poshness in the cabin, but some scratchy plastics and infotainment quirks dull the shine

At first glance, Renault has done a great job with the Rafale’s interior, especially in higher-trim level cars. The dashboard has a stepped design, with a half-width air vent detail across the passenger side trimmed in fabric or suede, and a set-back dash top with a strip of ambient lighting.

The media and driver display screens are part of a gloss black unit that wraps around the driver’s side of the dashboard. It’s a sporty, futuristic-feeling layout, and while the design is slick it does look rather plastic-y in person, especially around the integrated air vents.

The displays themselves are responsive and crisp, but the graphics themselves are overly fussy and not all that clear to navigate. There are also a few too many menus to work through, and there’s simply no need for adjusting the seats to have a pop-up animation which momentarily kicks you out of Apple CarPlay or Android Auto.

It’s a little busy around the steering wheel, as there are three control stalks on the right hand side - all close to one another - as well as the shift levers. It does take a moment to make sure you’re turning on the wipers instead of selecting reverse or changing song.

The gear selector itself isn’t sensitive enough as to whether or not you’ve got the brakes depressed, and it’s easy to find yourself creeping in the opposite direction to the one you want to go in unless you’re properly stamping on the left pedal.

There are plenty of nice surfaces around you, and Renault’s use of fabric and suede trimming to elevate the cabin is very effective. There’s the odd hard plastic, but it's a generally pleasant cabin, and the optional electro-chromatic glass roof is achingly cool.

You’ve got two engine options to choose from with the Rafale, both powered by a 1.2-litre three-cylinder petrol engine. One is a 200hp, front-wheel drive self-charging hybrid, while the other is a 300hp, four-wheel drive plug-in hybrid.

Both promise good fuel efficiency, and in our tests of the plug-in hybrid model we averaged a very respectable 50mpg on a motorway-heavy journey - with the car set to preserve battery at a cruise, too.

The self-charging hybrid ought to be even more efficient on the move, though you don’t have the PHEV’s electric-only range, which comes in handy around town. It can even get up to motorway speeds on electric-only power, but you’ll have to drive like an absolute saint to get anywhere near the claimed 65 miles of battery range. Expect between 30-35 miles in the real world.

The self-charging Rafale emits 105g/km of CO2, while the PHEV claims a weighted figure of 12g/km. That means £130 of first year road tax for the hybrid and £110 for the PHEV, though only the entry level Rafale hybrid escapes the luxury car tax which applies to new cars over £40,000.

Company car drivers will be drawn to the PHEV model, as it sits in the fourth-lowest band of benefit-in-kind tax.

The Renault Rafale is so closely related to the boxier Austral SUV that they share a five-star Euro NCAP result; scoring especially well in the adult and child occupant categories. It comes as standard with a pair of rear ISOFIX child seat anchor points in the rear, with optional points in the front seat.

All Rafales come as standard with lane departure assist, speed limit recognition and auto-adjustment, driver attention warning, emergency brake assist and blind spot warning too. There’s optional adaptive cruise with lane keep assist, and if the warnings are too annoying for you they’re easy to turn off too.

It’s too new for any particular issues to have come to light, but Renault came a lowly 28th out of 32 manufacturers in the 2024 Driver Power owner satisfaction survey. Hardly a confidence inspiring result.

The warranty is nothing to brag about either, with Renault offering the industry-standard three year/60,000-miles cover for the Rafale. Kia offers a seven warranty on the EV6 and the Lexus RX, though more expensive, offers ten years with regular main dealer servicing.

PHEV Rafale batteries are warranted up to 100,000 miles or 8 years if their capacity drops below 75%, whilst self-charging hybrid models have to drop below 63% capacity before being eligible for replacement.