[SYSTEMIZED]

We booked a CVT RXZ today, the design is beautiful. But I have faced one issue with the demo car, Just want to confirm with others also. The infotainment system was working only when the engine get started, on the battery mode only the speedometer panel was working. Anyone visiting more, please do notice this & confirm.

[ChevyTeddy]

Originally Posted by SYSTEMIZED

We booked a CVT RXZ today, the design is beautiful.

It is a really stylish car, definitely looks good on the road! Congratulations on your booking!

The salesman here was quoting a delivery time of June-July for CVT variants. What's the timeline you've been promised?

[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by SYSTEMIZED

We booked a CVT RXZ today, the design is beautiful. But I have faced one issue with the demo car, Just want to confirm with others also. The infotainment system was working only when the engine get started, on the battery mode only the speedometer panel was working. Anyone visiting more, please do notice this & confirm.

Yes I also noticed this in the Gurgaon Showroom car and it was because the battery was low. The battery indicator was flashing too. The showroom cars have drained batteries and hence the infotainment system won't start. Only after the battery is charged (or car is started) will it work normally. This is normal behaviour.

[ark704]

Originally Posted by ChevyTeddy

2. The moment I reached for the seat belt lock was when I knew it was a no-go for me with the Kiger. The lock is placed deep within the recess between the driver's seat and the armrest console. Had a tough time sticking my fingers in deep enough to put the buckle in its place.

I have noticed this during my TD. I was initially thinking of booking an AMT but didn't proceed. Even the CVT ones lack Cruise Control and other essential features that Magnite has. Interiors wise-Kiger plastics and fitting are better than Magnite.

[SYSTEMIZED]

Originally Posted by ChevyTeddy

It is a really stylish car, definitely looks good on the road! Congratulations on your booking!

The salesman here was quoting a delivery time of June-July for CVT variants. What's the timeline you've been promised?

As I belonged to Tier II city, Amritsar & there was no such excitement in the Punjab region as compared to Haryana. The delivery will be on 1st come 1st serve basis here. The dealer estimated us the delivery time of 1 month (1st or 2nd week of March'21) for the CVT RxZ variant.

They have sent me the accessory list with the pricing but I wonder, there was no wireless charger or its pricing in it.

[Samba]

Originally Posted by Samba

Number of years I used cars from Renault - 1.5 Years

The total number of Kilometers covered by the cars from this brand- - 17,500 km

Pros & cons of the ownership-

Pros-

1) Higher up guys are easily approachable. If a complaint is escalated, they intervene quickly to resolve it.
2) Had pathetic experience with one service center, but the rest two i dealt with was just awesome.
3) Guys at Renault are more or less friendly and flexible in nature.
4) Claiming warranty from Renault is easy.

Cons-

1) Servicing is costly.
2) Spares are not always available off the shelf. One has to wait for it. Finding spares outside is even more difficult!
3) All service centers are not good.
4) Once Renault warranty expires and the extended warranty starts, which is dealt by TVS, claiming warranty will no more be a very smooth process.
5) Showroom experience is not very professional, but they make it up by their friendly attitude.
6) Service centers are less in number. So finding one at a remote place is difficult.
7) FNG mechanics find these cars a bit complicated to repair.

The above was my take on Renault a year back. If you ask me now, my perspectives on their service is still the same.

What I understand is, the models which sells more, for them getting the spares are much easier than the models which are lesser in the market.

For example for Kwid, Triber, Duster 85 ps spares are easily available.
For Duster AWD, Captur it may take a bit longer.

Given the package, Kiger should be a hit in the market, if so then availability of spares should not be a problem.

You can check out this thread for the other owners take on Renault, so you can get a more varied perspective.

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/india...ives-only.html (Pros & cons with different car brands - Owner perspectives only)

Originally Posted by armumbai

1. Attending to calls,
2. Quality of work,
3. Availability of spares
4. Timeliness of job completion

1) Attending calls- 10/10

2) Quality of work - Depends on the particular service center. I will rate from 6/10 to 10/10, based on different service centers.

3) Availability of spares - Solely dependent on the model. My friend is waiting for nearly a months to get a particular part (a rare part) for his Duster AWD.

4) Timeliness of job completion - If spares are available job is done in time. Depends on the model of car and the work needed. For general services there is absolutely no problem.

[raghu13uk]

Visited Renault showroom on Bangalore airport road. They had AMT and Turbo Manual versions. I took the TD of AMT version as I wanted to test the NA engine.

It looked really big in person. But the inside felt bit cramped. Locking the sear belt was difficult as there is hardly any space left between the seat and the central armrest. Also the footwell was not so spacious for the driver.

Otherwise these two observations, the car looked good at this price point.

However, I couldn't overlook the similarity it has with the Triber.
(I was visiting a showroom after 4 years). So, I took the TD of manual Triber. I somehow more convinced with the practicality of the Triber over Kiger. (I know the purpose and the target audience are different for these cars. But, I have no plans of having 2 cars. So, the one suites more to my purpose was Triber). For now, I've let the Home Minister to decide between these 2.

The confirmed quotes from them are attached here.



Additional fun fact:
At that time, there was an old lady taking delivery of a Kwid all alone. The showroom people said she is 70+ and wanted to drive her own car for the first time. (I am not sure if she can get a license at that age. But, she definitely looked that aged). I saw her driving the car away from showroom all by herself (there was no one accompanying her). So, you can love cars at any age and live your dreams.

(I really wanted to take a video of that old lady so that I can show her courage and enthusiasm to others. But, didn't do it as I would be intruding in her privacy by doing that.)

[Turbokick]

Got a chance to test drive the Kiger Turbo MT version and here are my observations :
1. The car has got a personality and not just a 'badi kwid' as it may look in the pictures.

2. Styling is very busy and youthful compared to relatively sedate (yet sharp) looks of Magnite. Both the cousins have got spot on proportions. I loved the rear end treatment of Kiger. Looks very funky. Just like the Magnite, Kiger has got a premium look in the red dual tone Avataar. I didnt like the design of the alloy wheels.

3. Just like the exterior, Kiger has got a very busy looking interior with lots of style bits and materials of different textures. Magnite in comparison is relatively simpler. While the quality and fit / finish on both cars tend more towards budget grade, Renault has tried to cover it up with busier elements. For example the door pads and the central console/arm rest area. The idea is to have the 'perceived' better quality.

4. I liked the seat support. Pretty sorted. What is not : the ergonomics. The seat belt locks are difficult to access. Handbrakes are meant to be operated by the passenger (pun intended). The Speedo console visibility gets hampered by the steering wheel. The position of placing the mobile phone is bit congested. None of these bits are deal breakers but are something that gets your attention.

5. 400 litre boot may look good on paper but the loading lip is lower than that of Magnite. I feel loading lip is very important compared to few litres of advantage.

6. Flimsy bits : The magnetic lock of central hand rest and sliding panel beneath were not working properly in the TD vehicle.

7. Rear seat space = Magnite. Impressive

8. 1.0 Turbo MT. While I am not concluding anything from TD vehicles but Kiger felt slightly better than Magnite in terms of NVH. Idle is smoother (though it gets lumpy with AC on). Engine is reasonably quite at slow and medium speeds. Gets coarse when revved hard. I was not aware of the 'mode selection' thing and drove it in City/normal mode. It has got more than enough pep here. Just that the performance below 1500 rpm is slightly laggy. Sports mode should be even better.

9. Gearshifts were sorted. Nothing much to complain about. Clutch which felt heavy in Magnite, is better in Magnite. (again not to conclude much from TD vehicles which are generally abused)

10. EPS is extremely light at crawling speeds. It weighed up magically as the speed climbed ! Clearly the calibration isnt consistent with Magnite/Kiger as different cars had different steering response.

11. Ride quality is pretty good. It isnt soft but handles bad roads well. Handling is predictable from whatever little experience I had. Yes, the NVH is good till 100 kmph. Post that it gets audible. Road noise/engine sound are prominent.


12. Kiger vs Magnite Value wise : There is no denying from the fact that Magnite is well equipped through its range (Very logically so). Kiger in comparison is not. Auto climate control, Alloy wheels, Rear defogger, Fully digital console only on the top variant is a bummer. Safety kits like ESP, Traction Control and Hill Hold are not there (Magnite has them for every variant in Turbo/CVT version). Only notable additions are 4 airbags and drive modes (hardly matters). That said, Magnite is better priced too. Kiger has more visual appeal (both internally and externally)

[ashvek3141]

Originally Posted by Turbokick

Got a chance to test drive the Kiger Turbo MT version and here are my observations.

Your observations are spot on turbokick!
I too checked out the Kiger yesterday albeit the NA variant & fully concur with your thoughts, especially with regards to the not-so-good ergonomics.

I fail to understand, what is this thing with the Renault / Nissan cars & ergos? Somehow they don’t feel very ergonomically sorted to drive.
Forget the bits that you mentioned, I even had to struggle to find a PROPER driving position. In Maruti’s or Hyundai’s one can feel at home in secs.

However, I felt that the Magnite though has a slight here and feels a bit sorted.

The equipment miss in the Kiger is a bit wierd since the Kiger is priced a tad higher than the Magnite. Probably this is their strategy to bring up the Nissan brand in India, as Renault is doing pretty well in comparison.

Another blunder is that the CVT is stated to arrive in April! That means people looking for a ‘proper’ auto box will clearly give a pass to the Kiger. Again, don’t understand what they were thinking here.

[armumbai]

Great replies Ashvek3141 and Turbokick. Also Samba for the very meaningful insight on the Service quality. I too TD the AMT and Turbo MT and both Turbokick and Ashevik3141 you’ve ticked all the issues to a T. To add my two bits, I just felt that as stylish as the car seems to be, it seems cramped and too cluttered and that takes away from it’s sought after Premium Feel that the design seems to be aiming at

[Omkar]

Renault Kiger 1.0L Turbo-petrol Driving Report

With the Kiger, Renault has a genuine shot at shooting past Toyota & Honda and doing 13,000 - 15,000 sales / month. The Kwid & very intelligent Triber already bring in a couple of thousand sales each month, while the Kiger will only add to that tally further. The Kiger is the Nissan Magnite's close sibling and the two are almost the same under the skin.

The Kiger is offered with two engine options – a 1.0L, 71 BHP naturally aspirated petrol and a 1.0L, 99 BHP turbo-petrol. Both are offered with a 5-speed manual transmission as standard and get the option of an AMT for the naturally aspirated version or a smooth CVT for the turbo-petrol. Ex-showroom prices start at Rs. 5.45 lakh for the base variant and go up to Rs. 9.55 lakh for the top-end 1.0 turbo-petrol CVT (related news).

I got to drive the Renault Kiger 1.0L turbo-petrol with the 5-speed manual transmission at the media drive in Goa. Here are my quick and brief observations:

• If you found the Nissan Magnite a little quirky in its appearance (I personally did), then the Kiger is probably good news for you. Looks are of course subjective, but I will say that the Kiger is the more handsome one to my eyes. And it does look modern.











• Renault has gone for a coupe-SUVish look with a sloping roofline and a rising window line which make it look more like a beefed-up hatchback.



• While the overall build quality is satisfactory, you can tell that the car is built on a budget. The doors are not heavy and there is some flex in the body panels. But at this price point, it is acceptable.



• All variants get 16-inch wheels with only the top-end RXZ variant wearing alloys. They are shod with 195/60 R16 Ceat SecuraDrive tyres. The spare is a 15-inch steel rim with a 185/65 tyre.



• Step inside and you're greeted by a pleasant cabin design with subtle modern touches. You will also notice the Renault diamond logo theme across the cabin (seat covers, door pads, etc).







• Plastics are hard as you would expect at this price point, but they don't scratch that easily. Yes, it feels budget-friendly, yet not cheap.

• A/C control switches and buttons on the center console are backlit, which is a very nice touch. You also have a switch on the center console for ambient lights!



• Getting in and out of the car is more like in a raised hatchback - easy. You will need to watch out for the edge of the roof while getting out though. Once inside, the cabin width is adequate and it does feel reasonably spacious. There's decent headroom in the front as well as rear. Even with the seat all the way back, there's enough legroom for the rear passenger.

• The front seats are draped in black fabric and the top-end variants get side airbags in them, so don't use seat covers. The seats look great and overall support is satisfactory. Not the best out there, but comfortable for the most part.



• The steering is adjustable for height. The driver's seat is adjustable for height too and has a good range. Finding your perfect driving position in this car isn't difficult.



• Ergonomics are good (unlike some of the old Renaults with their French quirks). Everything is easy to reach in the cabin, and you'll feel right at home as soon as you get in the driver's seat.

• The big 7-inch instrument cluster is easy to read and very detailed. A unique feature here is that the screen displays different information in different drive modes. Sport mode includes HP and Nm meters along with a G-Force meter.



• Frontal visibility is good, but if you like being seated low, the A-pillar and ORVM will form a sizeable blind spot. The IRVM is small and thick C-pillars further restrict the rearward visibility.

• Space utilisation & practicality in the Kiger are just excellent. For starters, all 4 doors can hold a 1L bottle with some space left over for other knick-knacks.

• You have 2 glove boxes on the dashboard with a total volume of 14.9 liters. The center console has about 7.5 liters of storage space in it. Note, the cupholder tray is removable.







• One of the most noteworthy features is the wireless smartphone integration (Android Auto and Apple CarPlay).

• Another interesting feature is that the air-conditioning gets an inbuilt PM 2.5 air filter. There's also a proper air filter available as an accessory.

• The RXT and RXZ variants get an 8-inch touchscreen. The touchscreen has a simple layout. It's not cluttered with unnecessary functions and settings, so finding something you actually need is quite easy.

• The screen has a sort of matte finish on it which doesn't leave a lot of fingerprints. One gripe with the screen however, is that the buttons on the side are screen-integrated and not physical buttons which are so much better for basic operations (i.e. you don't have to take your eyes off the road to operate them).



• Rear view camera display on the screen is good. You can also adjust the brightness, contrast and saturation of the display.

• The sound quality from the (4 speaker + 4 tweeters) Arkamys system is fair for the price. One strange behaviour I noticed with my phone was, while playing songs through Bluetooth (not wireless CarPlay), the volume level was half. Had to crank it up to full for the song to be audible. Worked well in all other scenarios (radio and CarPlay). Weird.

• The rear seats are placed at a comfortable height, so even elderly folk will find it easy to get in and out of the car. While the seats themselves are comfortable, I found the backrest angle to be too upright for my liking.



• On the rear seat, I felt I would be comfortable with a little more under-thigh support (I'm 5'10" tall). That said, shorter & medium-height folk would be quite comfortable.

• There's a good amount of headroom and knee room. Behind my own driving position, I had a few inches of knee room. Even with the front seat pushed back all the way, it wasn't too bad (similar experience to an economy flight seat). That's saying a lot for a compact car!



• Seating three people abreast will be a task. The floor hump is small and not intrusive.

• You get a nice and wide armrest with two cupholders and a phone holder. You also get rear A/C vents and a 12V charging socket.





• Adding to the excellent space utilisation, the Renault Kiger has the biggest boot in the segment at 405 liters. The rear seats are split in a 60:40 ratio. Folding the backrests down expands the boot space to 879 liters. The loading lip, however, is high, so you will have to lift your luggage while loading. You'll find baggage hooks on the side and the spare wheel has been placed beneath the boot floor. No boot lamp provided, which is a very obvious and sad omission.





• The Kiger is powered by a 999cc, 3-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine. Called the HRA0, this engine produces 99 BHP and 160 Nm, which is healthy, although there are rivals that offer more power. The car's light kerb weight makes it agile on its feet and there is enough grunt in this motor to keep most drivers happy.



• If you want to know how the CVT drives, click here (same engine & CVT in the Magnite) and read the second half of that post.

• On startup, being a 3-cylinder, there is slight body shake and a few vibrations do come into the cabin. Faint vibes are felt on the steering, pedals and the driver's seat.

• The turbo-petrol has a fair low-end and yes, the car clears the 2nd gear speed breaker test; it's certainly not dead off-boost. Some lag is there of course, yet it's well-controlled. That said, you have to be a little patient when pulling from low rpms in 2nd gear.

• Mid-range is punchy. So, keep the engine on the boil and you can have some fun with this car.

• The engine revvs till 6,500 rpm, but not happily as it groans & moans at the redline in a very crude manner. By this point, power has started tapering off and you will have already shifted up.

• Driveability is good and you won't find the need to downshift often, although there is some lag in the higher gears.

• In 5th gear, the car can cruise at 100 km/h & 120 km/h @ ~2,300 rpm & ~2,900 rpm respectively.

• Unlike the Magnite 1.0 MT, the Kiger gets 3 driving modes - Normal, Eco and Sport. These modes alter the throttle response and steering weight. There's not much difference in the Eco and Normal mode, where the steering is light and throttle response is slightly dulled down. In Sport mode, the steering is noticeably firmer and throttle response is quick as well.



• 5-speed gearbox offers a poor shifting experience. I found the shift action to be quite clunky and it requires some effort to use. My suggestion = go for the smooth CVT automatic.



• The clutch pedal too has some weight...more weight than you'd expect in such a small car. Also, the travel is long and the bite point is high. Moreover, off standstill, it's not that smooth.



• Coming to NVH levels, the Kiger does well at slow speeds and around town. Upon revving, you can hear that familiar 3-cylinder thrum. Yet, this noise is not excessive. Even while cruising on the highway, the engine is audible, but not irritatingly so. It's above 5,000 rpm that the motor gets loud.

• In such a cheap car, I would have expected wind & road noise to be excessive, but no. The cabin is acceptably insulated.

• The ride quality of the Kiger appears to be better than the Magnite. Where the Magnite was very firm, the Kiger is more absorbent. While there is a hint of underlying firmness to the suspension at low speeds, it's not excessively so.

• On a rough patch of road, I found myself doing good speeds without any issues. You can hear the suspension working, but little is transmitted into the cabin.

• On the open road, straight-line stability at high speeds is satisfactory. The car doesn’t feel twitchy over bumps & undulations.

• Coming to handling, the Kiger behaves like a normal family crossover. While there is some body roll, it's not excessive. You can even hustle the car through a series of twisty roads confidently.

• Grip from the 195/60 Ceat SecuraDrive tyres is acceptable for the average Mahesh. Push hard and the tyres start chirping.

• The electric power steering is light and smooth in Normal / Eco modes at parking & city speeds. Along with the small size, this makes the Kiger a very easy car to drive in urban conditions.

• While Sport mode adds weight to the steering, it feels artificial. There's vagueness in the center and you don't feel very connected if you're driving hard in the ghats. Good for highways & high speed though.

• The Kiger comes with an unladen ground clearance rating of 205 mm, which is second only to the Tata Nexon (209 mm). This is more than enough to take on the worst of Indian roads.

• The Kiger is equipped with disc brakes at the front and drums at the rear, with ABS + EBD. The brakes perform as expected. Do note that the second half of the brake pedal travel is quite sensitive, this will take a couple of km to get used to.

• The list of safety features in the Kiger isn't as long as the Magnite. Major misses from the Nissan include ESP, traction control and hill-start assist. Even the Datsun Go and Go+ get ESP. This is a disappointing omission on Renault's part!

• On the flip side, the Kiger gets 4 airbags (Magnite gets only 2) and front parking sensors (as an added accessory). The Kiger hasn't been crash-tested yet, but the Nissan Magnite scored a 4-star rating in the ASEAN NCAP crash tests. We expect the Renault to perform similarly.

[firstdrive]

Originally Posted by Omkar

Renault Kiger 1.0L Turbo-petrol Driving Report

I happened to see one of the reviews on YouTube and it mentioned that once we take U-Turn the steering does not get back to it's original position on it's own and we literally have to roll it over again.

Did you get to experience this? Not sure if Magnite also has same thing?

[saikarthik]

Renault's interior looks more matured and premium than it's cousin Magnite. They definitely put some effort in understanding the Indian buyer's mindset. When Magnite was launched, I was almost sold even with the inferior interior quality, the deal breaker was the bland interior, over edgy exterior and mainly the gamified look display. Renault has made it more classy and elegant with European language. I daresay that it is the most VFM vehicle in the country now (assuming the Magnite's 4 star Asean NCAP ratings will be same on Kiger).

P.S: I love the climate control knobs of Magnite & Kiger.

[DriverNo.420]

I'd get it over Magnite just because of the classy Skoda-esque interior. I find both Kiger and Magnite to be equally desirable from the exterior looks.
But I doubt if the Kiger can be rated 4 stars without Traction control, ESP and Hill hold assist. On the flip side, it gets 4 airbags with which it can secure those 4 stars. I guess it is a 'you get some, you lose some' kind of situation here with the Kiger and Magnite.

[wilful]

If one was thinking of cross-shopping, the Kiger AMT top end versus the Triber AMT top end presents a nice dilemma.
If one takes the Bangalore OTR prices quoted above, the Kiger AMT is around 31000 higher than the Triber AMT. For the extra bucks you get climate control, electrically foldable ORVMs, LED headlamps, drive modes and higher ground clearance (have I missed anything?). The Triber offers projector headlamps, space & flexibility. Other features remain the same.
Nice little problem for potential shoppers.