Renault began producing the Renault Master, an upper medium-size van, in 1980. It came as a direct successor to Saviem SG3, a van manufactured by Saviem but sold by Renault. The Master van remains in production to this day, currently selling its third generation. It entered some European markets rebranded as Opel Movano and Vauxhall Movano, but regardless of the seller, it is Renault that manufactures all Master vans. The three generations of the Renault Master have seen multiple changes over time, including varying body styles and sizes.
Brief History
Before the Renault Master, it was the Renault Super Goelette that fulfilled the commercial van market from 1965 until 1982. The Saviem-made Super Goelette, which came in both petrol and diesel variants, sold alongside the Master for a couple more years before retiring and fully turning over the market to the Renault van.
First Generation (1980-1997)
The first version of the Renault Master came out in 1980 as a mid-engined, front-wheel-drive van powered by with a 2.5L S8U inline-four diesel engine manufactured by Fiat and Sofim. In 1984, Renault-manufactured engines joined the range, including a 2.1L J8S inline-four diesel engine and a 2.0L J5R and 2.2L J7T inline-four petrol engines. The diesel power plants received an upgrade in 1990. All engines transmit power through a 5-speed manual gearbox.
The Renault Master came into the market as a competitor to many of the company's car variants, including the Dodge 50 series of cars manufactured in the UK facilities of Dodge after Renault acquired it. Some of the distinctive features of the Master were the sliding doors and door handles that were round in shape.
The Renault Trucks also launched heavy-duty variants of the van called the B series, which came under the light truck category and had the body of the first-generation Renault Master with a separate chassis and a rear-wheel drive.
In 1982, Renault incorporated the B series in the Renault Trucks division when sales of its Super Goelette small commercial vehicles had started to decline in the market. The series also improved its power characteristics, introducing turbochargers as well as intercooling features. The series was eventually renamed as the Messenger in 1993.
Second Generation (1997-2010)
In the second generation of the Renault Master, the company remade the exterior look of the van to give it a more conventional appeal. Initially, Nissan sold it as the Interstar and Opel and Vauxhall as the Movano. This intercompany collaboration was not the first of its kind, as Renault had also entered into a similar agreement with Fiat, Peugeot, Volkswagen, and Mercedes for its Trafic model.
The second-generation Master also shared many of its components and panels with the third-generation Iveco Daily, as the two resulted from a collaborative agreement between the two companies. The engines that Renault used for this car variant were called the S-Type, G-Type, and the YD (Nissan).
The van received a significant facelift towards the end of 2003, including a complete revamp of the headlights, rear lights and the dashboard, among other changes. Due to its unique structure and spacious interior, it became the perfect choice as an ambulance. This facelift also brought upgrades to the van's engine, replacing the 2.8L Sofim 8140 inline-four diesel engine with the 3.0L Nissan ZD3 inline-four engine.
The second generation had its engine transversely-mounted at the front and available in both FWD and RWD layout.
In Australia, the Renault Master was first available in 2004. It was powered by a 2.5L Sofim 8140 turbocharged inline-four diesel engine that pushed power of up to 84 kW and 290 Nm of torque through a 6-speed manual gearbox. Renault offered six trims initially, which were base trims for SWB, MWB, and SWB and higher trims called Integral SWB, MWB, and SWB. 56. 122
The same engines served until late in the generation, with the transmission system changed to 6-speed automatic.
The second generation also introduced the Renault Mascott, which was a 3.0L diesel variant of the Master launched under the Renault Trucks division.
Third Generation (2010-present)
Currently, the Renault Master is in its third generation of production, having started in 2010. The Renault Master includes a rebadged version of Opel and Vauxhall's Movano and also Nissan’s NV400.
The layout for this generation varied from transverse front-engine front-wheel or all-wheel drive to longitudinal front-engine rear-wheel drive. From 2011 to the present, a 2.3L M-type inline-four turbocharged diesel engine (107-110 kW, 350 Nm) has been powering it. This is the same engine that generates power for the Australian-released Master van paired with either a 6-speed auto transmission or 6-speed manual.
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