[RahulNagaraj]

Renault has announced they will limit the top speed of all their upcoming models to 180 km/h.

The speed limit will be implemented on all future Renault and Dacia models. The speed limiter is said to debut on the upcoming Renault Megane-E, slated to be unveiled in 2022.



The French carmaker will also introduce a new feature, called 'Safety Coach'. This new safety feature is said to automatically adjust the vehicle's speed as per the local speed limits. It will also take into account other factors such as weather, driver's attention and road conditions while limiting the speed of the vehicle.

Renault is the second carmaker after Volvo to limit the top speed of their vehicles. The Swedish brand had also announced a 180 km/h top speed limit on all its models, back in 2020.

Link to Team-BHP news

[fhdowntheline]

Here is a question. If the manufacturer will limit the speed of the car by design, will the speed indicator also be re-desgined ? (especially analog). Or will it continue to cater for higher speeds in case of a "runaway" condition.

[NH08]

Thank you very much, Mr. Renault. You have taken a very sensible decision that will save many lives all over the world.

Just joking.

When a cheetah decides to limit its speed, it is a significant decision. But when a camel decides to limit its speed, hmm.. What can I say?

Please don't get offended Mr. Renault. You are not known for speed. You are not Maserati/R8/AMG or a Fortuner/BMW going uncontrollably high and killing people on the footpath.

My Brio has a speed limit of 145, but it is not that Honda has put a speed limit on each of its cars.

[SS80]

I am wondering how many Renault cars today can actually reach that speed. I feel a car needs 1500cc + turbo to reach and stay at those speeds. Most of their sales comes from smaller cars like Kiger, Kwid, Triber which are dead post 120kmph. Even Duster for that matter runs out of steam after 150kmph and not that stable too. May be they should have set the speed limit to a realistic number like 130kmph. Setting a speed limit that most of your current models can't reach is a no brainer.

[Samba]

Originally Posted by NH08

Please don't get offended Mr. Renault. You are not known for speed. You are not Maserati/R8/AMG or a Fortuner/BMW going uncontrollably high and killing people on the footpath.

Commuter cars are more vulnerable at high speeds than sports cars.
So a limit of 180 km/hr seems reasonable.

Regarding high-speed cars, they do have the Megane RS & now the Megane E. They have a history of making quite a few high-speed cars and has a good hold in Formula1 racing too.

Sharing a link for reference-

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/f...icture-special

Originally Posted by SS80

Even Duster for that matter runs out of steam after 150kmph and not that stable too. May be they should have set the speed limit to a realistic number like 130kmph. Setting a speed limit that most of your current models can't reach is a no brainer.

The only Renault available in India which can cross 180 km/hr is the Duster 1.3L turbo petrol.

But this news is not only for India, its for all the global models from Renault/Dacia.

[GTO]

Unless you drive on an unrestricted Auto Bahn, anything over 180 kmph is purely for academic purposes anyway. Heck, even 180 kmph will get you arrested in many countries, and kill you in others. I feel this is a fair move - Volvo did the same last year. A 180 kmph cap makes no difference to 99.99% of car owners; that said, it does have a psychological impact, as well as a bit of a marketing disadvantage. To give you an example, few 911 owners ever see 300 kmph, but that on paper spec is still good to know + offers marketing benefits.

Have some thoughts:

- No chance that Audi / BMW / Mercedes will follow Volvo or Renault. There are German roads where higher speeds are possible. Plus, it's an "image" thing.

- Would it allow the manufacturer to have a more suitable 6th / top gear ratio, since 180+ speeds are no longer needed?

- Would the OEM save money by choosing tyres rated for 200 kmph (just an example) versus 250 kmph?

- The rare people who need higher speeds for track driving / Auto Bahns can remove the electronic speed limiter.

- Volvo smartly didn't restrict the top speed of its performance cars (Polestar). Renault will surely do the same.

Originally Posted by fhdowntheline

If the manufacturer will limit the speed of the car by design, will the speed indicator also be re-desgined ? (especially analog).

Guess not. This is the speedometer of our 180-kmph S60 media car:

[Hayek]

Have driven at just above 200 kmph on the Autobahn - albeit in an E Class AMG. The fact is that driving on German roads with German drivers around you at that speed was perfectly safe - as I have mentioned in my travelogue thread (which referred to an earlier trip where we used a V70), in almost 2000 km of driving, there was only one occasion where I had to brake in an unplanned manner.

Have not seen German standard lane discipline anywhere else in the world. Autobahn speeds are best reserved for Autobahns. Driving at 120 kmph in India is more dangerous than 200 on the autobahn.

[fhdowntheline]

Originally Posted by Hayek

Driving at 120 kmph in India is more dangerous than 200 on the autobahn.

You can say that about most countries vis-a-vis India, including some not-so-developed ones. Its one thing to build multi-lane highways in grandiose fashion. Its quite another to instill highway discipline amongst Indian drivers. The Mumbai-Pune expressway is over 20 years old. Still has its fair share of aggressive or reckless drivers.

[Indian2003]

Originally Posted by Hayek

Have not seen German standard lane discipline anywhere else in the world. Autobahn speeds are best reserved for Autobahns. Driving at 120 kmph in India is more dangerous than 200 on the autobahn.

It all come down to the quality of the driving lessons and test. I knew an Indian lady in Sweden who had a drivers licence but could not drive. She did not know how to clutch or change gears. She told me she bought her licence through friends
Here is an Indian guy in Norway who takes you through a driving test in Norway.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoyHBjiteKg

[AirbusCapt]

With ever increasing speed checks, stiffer fines and increasing public awareness, doing high speeds on public roads is increasingly frowned upon. Doing 120kmph on Indian highways is by itself so risky with stray cattle, wrong side driving, jaywalkers, unmarked humps, potholes and what not. The mental energy required to maintain an average of 100kmph is huge when compared with maintaining an average of say 80kmph. I think it's a great idea for all car makers to restrict their top speeds to anything which allows the cars to come to a dead stop within 10/15 seconds on application of full braking. If your car has great brakes, may be the top speed could be 200kmph, if it has average brakes, may be only 140kmph.

[Fiestaboy]

Though i sat in Autobahn in a BMW & witnessed high speeds, i never drove to experience it in person. So i will restrict my thoughts to India.

i think for countries like ours, its a very good starting point.
In India, i believe 120kmph is still good considering the road infrastructure currently we have. Assuming roads will improve in near future, i would still say 140/150kph speed limiting is still ok.

There will be <2% population, who will hit these top speeds & considering the safety improvement we achieve in this step, the 2% population can take a compromise & still enjoy the triple digit speeds for the benefit of the society.

Note:
Once i used the speed limiter on an Endeavour, i became a great fan of these speed limiter. i extracted around 13kmpl in the car (3.2L) & my friend was surprised to see the FE value in the cluster when i gave him the car back.

[starke]

Originally Posted by SS80

I am wondering how many Renault cars today can actually reach that speed. I feel a car needs 1500cc + turbo to reach and stay at those speeds. Most of their sales comes from smaller cars like Kiger, Kwid, Triber which are dead post 120kmph. Even Duster for that matter runs out of steam after 150kmph and not that stable too. May be they should have set the speed limit to a realistic number like 130kmph. Setting a speed limit that most of your current models can't reach is a no brainer.

This update is not specifically for India, but for the global range (seems like you are not aware about their global portfolio)

They have RS versions of Clio & Megane which is famous for performance and in India their 1.3T Duster can do 180 kmph.

Anyway it will be interesting if they applies the same rule to their Alpine brand

[mbhalara]

It seems they have been silently doing it already.

I am having 2020 Duster in UAE (4x4, 2.0 L). It usually cruises at 140 kmph @ 3550rpm and does not feel strained at all.

There is no red line in RPM meter and it goes all the way to 6700rpm quickly.

However, the top speed mentioned in technical specification is 178kmph.

[InControl]

Originally Posted by AirbusCapt

With ever increasing speed checks, stiffer fines and increasing public awareness, doing high speeds on public roads is increasingly frowned upon. Doing 120kmph on Indian highways is by itself so risky with stray cattle, wrong side driving, jaywalkers, unmarked humps, potholes and what not. The mental energy required to maintain an average of 100kmph is huge when compared with maintaining an average of say 80kmph. I think it's a great idea for all car makers to restrict their top speeds to anything which allows the cars to come to a dead stop within 10/15 seconds on application of full braking. If your car has great brakes, may be the top speed could be 200kmph, if it has average brakes, may be only 140kmph.

But what if we are being chased by goons or it is an emergency situation and I discover that my vehicle speed is electronically limited. Limited to 140 kmph is fine though in a country with average road infra.

We already have the irritating 80 kmph and 120 kmph speed alarms

[Apex1815]

When a manufacturer takes such move they should do this inline with Road conditions/Trafffic behaviour of the specific country where the model is intended. I dont think 180 km/hr speed limit makes sense any where on the public road in the world (Why Renault is announcing this ??)

Considering Indian regulatory Scenario on the speed limits:

CMVR Requirement w.r.t Speed Limit on Indian (Public) Roads:
As per Rule 118 (Speed Governor) of Central Motor Vehicle Rules following are the speed limits which have to be achieved in a vehicle by virtue of its design or implementing Speed Governor. This will be verified by the Test Agency during Vehicle Evaluation phase (when a manufacturer submits the vehicle for homogation/CMVR certification):

Transport Vehicles ( If it is 2W, 3W, Quadricycles, Fire Tenders, Ambulance, Police Vehicles) - 80 Km/hr.

Transport Vehicles (If it is Dumper, Tanker, School Bus, Hazardous goods carrier) - 60 Km/hr

Airport Bus (30 Km/hr)

For Passenger cars (manufactured after 1 Apr 2020) there is a requirement of only Two stage Speed Limit warning in the cabin : First at 80 Km/hr and second at 120 Km/hr.
I think in passenger cars also the CMVR Requirement should come to design the cars with 100 Km/hr as maximum speed as the Indian roads are not safe for anything more than 80-90 Km/hr. This is mainly because of Road behaviour of the majority of people (Eg A Splendour coming out from bushes and crossing the NH right in front of a high speed moving vehicle).