[ampere]

Originally Posted by deehunk

Hi ampere, the mechanicals are a copy paste from the 2015 110PS Duster, so service cost will be higher. Renault may have tweaked certain parameters to reduce smoke levels which can be the cause of lesser power.

I just heard that from the service person. He gave an example in terms of air filter which he said would be about 40-50% costlier! For the same mechanicals, it did not make sense to me. But I would not take his statement on face value. I will get some more details before making an opinion.

[octane_100]

Mods, when can we expect our official review of the Captur? I am holding off my test drive and subsequently purchase decision till I read the Team BHP review.

[iceman7]

The Kaptur is a hatchback, or a premium hatchback at best. How is Renault branding and selling this as a SUV?

[PrideRed]

Originally Posted by iceman7

The Kaptur is a hatchback, or a premium hatchback at best. How is Renault branding and selling this as a SUV?

I don't know if to call it a SUV or crossover, In person it did not appear like a hatchback to me. Stands tall, long , wide and has good road presence. From the outside appears a lot more premium than the aging Duster as well.

[motorworks]

Originally Posted by iceman7

The Kaptur is a hatchback, or a premium hatchback at best. How is Renault branding and selling this as a SUV?

Really? In terms of Dimensions the Kaptur is bigger than the Creta and even the Duster. And it is based on the Duster, so why would Renault not market it as an SUV?

Sure it does not have the traditional SUV look, But calling it a hatch is pure ignorance.

[The Rationalist]

Just saw the Captur on road, it looks like a big hatch to me. If not for the DRL it has zilch road presence, forget about menacing look of Duster. I would be surprised if Renault manages to sell more than a 1000 units/month. Renault can go around town calling it anything but for the average buyer, this won't cut the mustard.

[nikipedia87]

Originally Posted by motorworks

Really? In terms of Dimensions the Kaptur is bigger than the Creta and even the Duster. And it is based on the Duster, so why would Renault not market it as an SUV?

Sure it does not have the traditional SUV look, But calling it a hatch is pure ignorance.

It's more to do with the design, than the actual dimensions .

Kwid looks more SUVish from the front, though its dimensions are comparable to that of the Alto.

[xjosephjacob]

Originally Posted by octane_100

Mods, when can we expect our official review of the Captur? I am holding off my test drive and subsequently purchase decision till I read the Team BHP review.

I suggest you to take the test drive (TD) and feel for yourself how well the car suits your requirements irrespective of when the team-bhp review will come out. You could probably TD it again/ take a call on the purchase decision once the review is out. Our official reviews are definitely the best among all the auto-journalist reviews, but then it is likely that the reviews may influence our opinion on the car, as happened with me when I bought my Duster 85 more than 4 years ago.

In our official review the Duster 85 (first gen) was praised for its in-city drivability and low-end grunt. When I took the TD, I felt the low-end to be average at the best, but then since it was a well abused TD car, I thought it could be a problem with the TD car. (Please note that the other car in my garage was previous generation Innova which had an outstanding low end grunt). I anyways went ahead with the purchase and eventually realized that the low end grunt is indeed very weak. Probably the low-end was better than some of the other diesel cars in the market, however to for someone who is used to an Innova, Duster 85 had no low-end grunt to speak off.

I still own the Duster 85 which is running like a dream at 80,000km, and a couple of years after the Duster 85 purchase, a Duster AWD joined the family, that pleasantly surprised us with its drivability.

The point that I wanted to put across is, what works for others may not always work for you

[Moto$apien]

Adding my point to the SUV/Non-SUV debate, Speaking aesthetically, Renault need to literally look "behind its back" to improve on the rear look of their cars. Looks a bit too curvy IMHO and doesn't gel well with their burly front-ends.

Most buying decisions are made by curious buyers (and their better halves) who see a flashing image of a new car overtake them!

here's the k(W)id with the 2 big brothers.



I think, It would do well for Captur to borrow the Duster's roof rails to add some straight lines to the curves.

[ACM]

Originally Posted by iceman7

The Kaptur is a hatchback, or a premium hatchback at best. How is Renault branding and selling this as a SUV?

If the KUV with the Puny tyres can be marketed as an SUV then anything goes.

The Captur is sufficiently like an SUV. It definitely is not a small hatchback. It is something between a Duster and an EcoSport and Roof Rails would do the trick.

[C300]

Originally Posted by Moto$apien

I think, It would do well for Captur to borrow the Duster's roof rails to add some straight lines to the curves.

Thanks. That's a nice camparo. Personally I prefer the looks of Captur in the current form. The car has that understated elegance and looks stylish.
As for the size goes, it definitely looks bigger than a hatchback.

[iceman7]

Originally Posted by ACM

If the KUV with the Puny tyres can be marketed as an SUV then anything goes.

The Captur is sufficiently like an SUV. It definitely is not a small hatchback. It is something between a Duster and an EcoSport and Roof Rails would do the trick.

And this is exactly my point. Like an SUV and being an actual SUV is different. I have my grouse with all car makers who position crossovers/large hatchbacks as SUV's. To call KUV a SUV is sacrilege.

Originally Posted by motorworks

Really? In terms of Dimensions the Kaptur is bigger than the Creta and even the Duster. And it is based on the Duster, so why would Renault not market it as an SUV?

Sure it does not have the traditional SUV look, But calling it a hatch is pure ignorance.

Fair point but I make my comment based on the fact that I have been seeing and riding in a Captur here in Europe for the past 6 months and it is clearly not a SUV. The trick which all of us are missing is that car makers are increasingly positioning buffed up hatchbacks/crossovers as SUV's. And this is where I have an issue.

[maven]

Had done a test drive few weeks ago. The ride is very sorted. Expansion joints on the fly over were dealt with impressively.
Oddly, Just couldn't find the right driving position.

Size wise it's just adequate. It appears somewhat like a hatch on stilts. Duster has better presence.

[vishnurp99]

Finally had a test drive of the Captur.

The car rides and handles very well. There is some turbo lag but it's not too bad. I had no problem getting into a good driving position and I can reaffirm that the ergonomic issues in Duster/Terrano are addressed to a large extent. I am 173 cms tall and the seat position was good for me.

The car pulls very cleanly and the NVH is good. better than the Terrano that we use currently.

In my last visit, I had felt that the leather seat was too hard but didn't find any such issues this visit. This could be because multiple people had used the seats. Felt that the seats were supple and were supportive.

Took a picture of the Duster & Captur together. I prefer the Captur's classy looks but Duster does look loud and menacing with all that chrome.



I have a question for the experts on the forum.

From a safety perspective, which is a safer car? A jeep compass with 2 airbags or a Renault Captur with 4 airbags. I have no plans to get a 4X4.

Originally Posted by iceman7

Fair point but I make my comment based on the fact that I have been seeing and riding in a Captur here in Europe for the past 6 months and it is clearly not a SUV.

Question for you - Have you seen the Captur in India? If not, i would suggest that you take a look. The stance, the height and the size of the Indian Captur is different from what you have in Europe.

[motorworks]

Originally Posted by vishnurp99

Finally had a test drive of the Captur.

I have a question for the experts on the forum.

From a safety perspective, which is a safer car? A jeep compass with 2 airbags or a Renault Captur with 4 airbags. I have no plans to get a 4X4.

If you remember, there were a lot of concerns with regard to the quality of airbags in the Duster. They are branded as SRP as against the conventional SRS. I do not know the exact differences between the 2, but there were reports that the ones used in the Duster were smaller than the normal ones. I think Renault have carried over the same in the Captur.
Also the India made Duster did not fare all that well in the crash tests, if I'm not wrong.

If you do not care so much about the gimmicks and extra features then even the base Jeep Compass should be a better buy, although it may be slightly more expensive than the top end Captur.