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The What Van? Road Test: Renault Kangoo (2022)

Date: Friday, February 24, 2023

AdBlue held in an 18.6-litre reservoir helps keep exhaust emissions under control.

Driving

We’re suckers for a smooth manual gear change, and we weren’t disappointed. Kangoo delivers in spades in this department and the quality of the cog-swapping allowed us to get the best out of the engine.

It too delivers, with ample acceleration from rest, good mid-range performance enabling the Renault to sit happily on the M5 at the maximum permitted motorway cruising speed. The van handles well too, with a pleasantly taut feel to the steering that allowed us to push Kangoo through tight bends with some confidence.

Like so many short-wheelbase light commercials its ride is choppy when unladen, but calms down when you freight it up to its maximum gross weight. The engine goes about its business quietly and, while this results in wind and tyre noise being highlighted, neither can be counted as major issues.

Kangoo is incidentally, by far and away, the best-built Renault we have ever encountered, with no squeaks, groans or creaks. Mercedes-Benz has, for some time, marketed Kangoo as the Citan, and we cannot help but suspect that its engineers have played a key role in improving Renault’s build quality.

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