Audi Q3 vs Renault Scenic E-Tech

What's the difference?

Replacing a popular model is fraught with danger. Existing customers will tell you they love it, while focus groups of non-customers will tell you why they hate it and sometimes carmakers get caught trying to appease both groups.

Sometimes they’ll make it too big or change too much in the search for more sales and ultimately end up removing the elements that made it popular in the first place.

Which is why Audi has been extra careful with some subtle evolution for this new-generation Q3 SUV and Sportback. This isn’t just a popular model for Audi Australia, it has been the best-selling model for the German brand for more than five years, so getting it wrong would be a disaster.

What’s 15 years between friends? Well, in this instance quite a lot because this is the all-new, pure-electric Renault Scenic E-Tech small-medium SUV.

The Renault Scenic we knew here until the late noughties was a petrol-powered, five-seat family car or an upright, seven-seat people mover.

But this is an altogether sleeker proposition, priced and specified to compete with other electric SUVs like the BYD Sealion 7, Hyundai Elexio, Kia EV5, Skoda Elroq and Zeekr 7X.

So, could this fresh Euro contender have what it takes to steer you away from such an impressive set of pure-electric competitors?

We attended its local launch to find out.