As the leading French MPV-maker, Renault didn’t want to throw the towel over the Modus and refreshed it in 2008, improving its design and drivetrains.
There were just a few small-sized MPVs on the European car market in 2008, and the Modus benefited from Renault’s experience in building them. Moreover, Nissan helped a bit with their expertise in the Japanese kei-car segment. But that wasn’t enough to keep the Modus’ engines running for a second generation, but it survived for a facelift and the world financial crisis.

With the introduction of a new Clio, Renault tried to pass on the brand awareness of its small-segment hatchback to the Modus and installed a similar pair of headlights on the front fascia. Yet, the short and steep hood didn’t help too much. The carmaker installed a wide grille in the apron to cool the engine since the small vents above the bumper were not big enough. The car still had the same shape with a flat vertical liftgate at the back.

Inside, the carmaker kept the same clean design from the Modus Phase I (pre-facelift) but with improved quality. The instrument panel featured an LCD with an orange-on-black design for the speedometer, unlike its predecessor, which used a black-on-white display. Since Renault built it on top of a Clio platform, it carried over some of the buttons, gear-stick, and switches from it.

Under the hood, Renault refreshed the engine range and retired the 1.4-liter engine, which wasn’t Euro 5 compliant.