RENAULT'S Megane Scenic has won the prestigious 1997 pan-European Car of the Year award ahead of 29 other new cars.

The mini-MPV was judged to have been the most imaginative and practical new launch of the year, ahead of the Ford Ka, Volkswagen Passat, Skoda Octavia and Audi A3. Of the five shortlisted contenders, the Scenic polled 405 points and almost 30% of the votes by the jury of 55 motoring writers drawn from 21 European countries.

Other cars under consideration were the BMW 5-series, Jaguar XK8, Nissan Primera, Rover 200 and Volvo S40/V40.