A Light Steering, Quick Responses From The Accelerator And Top-Of-The-Range Kit Are A Few Outstanding Features Of The Renault Kiger
The Renault Kiger is the latest entrant into the uber-competitive compact SUV phase, sharing a lot of the underpinnings of its siblings. And just like the Nissan Magnite, it’s priced fairly aggressively. So what’s the Kiger like?
Up entrance, the chrome laced winged grille is flanked by LED DRLs with the principle headlamps positioned under. From the perimeters, the Kiger has a SUV-coupe profile with its raked rear windscreen, tapering roofline and distinct spoiler component.
The boot lid has loads of cuts and creases, and the rear bumper contains a distinguished fake skid plate and 3D, C-shaped LED tail-lamps that stand out. Rounding out its SUV appears to be like are the 205mm floor clearance, notable physique cladding, roof rails and sensible 16-inch diamond-cut alloys. Inside, there’s a neat dashboard packing in plenty of screens which might be slick to make use of.
It is straightforward to discover a snug driving place and the seats are supportive and well-bolstered. At the rear, headroom and legroom are each nice and the flat flooring additionally makes life simpler for the center passenger. The 405-litre boot is the largest within the phase, however the excessive loading lip and low boot flooring do make loading heavy luggage tough.
On the tools entrance, this range-topping RXZ packs in equipment like LED headlamps, an Arkamys 3D sound system, computerized local weather management,energy folding mirrors and extra, although it misses out on the all-important sunroof.
Bang for buck
Powering the Kiger are two, 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol engines — a naturally aspirated unit that makes 72hp and 96Nm, and the brand new HR10 turbo-petrol that pumps out 100hp and 160Nm. A 5-speed guide gearbox is customary, with every engine getting its personal computerized gearbox (a 5-speed AMT for the naturally aspirated unit and a CVT for the turbo-petrol). We sampled the Kiger turbo-petrol guide.
Thumb the starter button and the engine involves life, settling right into a silent idle. While the unit is comparatively quiet, you do really feel among the three-pot motor’s vibrations within the cabin, particularly on the steering wheel and kit lever. The vibrations smoothen out when you set off and the engine builds velocity with confidence even off-boost. The increase is available in at round 1,700rpm, but it surely does so with none of that distinguished surge or spike related to turbocharged engines. Performance stays sturdy till previous 5,000rpm, after which it tapers off.
The turbo-petrol Kiger responds keenly to fast faucets on the accelerator. There is respectable low-range grunt too, however one needs to be aware to be in the correct gear on inclines. The 5-speed guide gearbox has lengthy throws and takes a little bit of effort to fit however, it’s exact sufficient. The clutch pedal is gentle and straightforward to work. The three drive modes make a noticeable distinction to the Kiger’s efficiency, with the automobile feeling most responsive in Sports mode.
The Kiger has good physique management and there’s a good quantity of grip on supply too.The steering is gentle at low speeds, but it surely requires one too many twirls lock-to-lock. That being stated, the Kiger is a simple automobile to put and feels at dwelling in tight metropolis confines. The brakes lack an preliminary chew after which the Kiger decelerates in a linear and progressive method. Where the Kiger feels fairly common is in refinement — there may be loads of street, tyre and wind noise at excessive speeds.
Priced from ₹5.45 lakh (ex-showroom, India), the Kiger is essentially the most inexpensive compact SUV. Not solely does it undercut the whole compact SUV phase, the Kiger on this top-spec kind is extra inexpensive than some premium hatchbacks. If the demand for the Magnite is something to go by, the Renault Kiger may simply turn out to be the following huge factor within the compact SUV phase.
