[PrideRed]

Brilliant review. Your observations on Engine characteristics were spot on. I have test driven twice and I never felt car to be underpowered until I hit 60-70KM/hr . Beyond this I could notice power tapering off.
The initial acceleration is indeed instantaneous, slot Kwid in 1st and press the A pedal and the car surges forward. Again spot w.r.to gearing ratios. My Wife slotted to fifth at speeds of 40-5, and the car did not stall, though engine was struggling.
One cannot compare it with larger engines, but Kwid definitely fairs better than 800cc competition.

[thatsdileep]

Thanks TBHP for yet another excellent review.

Originally Posted by Vid6639

What lets it down though is the steering feel on the highway. In the city, drivers will love the fact that you can twirl the wheel with one hand easily. It's very light at low speeds. Combine that with the low-end driveability & taller seating position and the Kwid can be a great city car. The problem is once you pick up speeds - it doesn’t weigh-in enough to inspire confidence. The EPS remains light and vague. At speed, you have to make corrections continuously to maintain the intended line. Even with corrections, I ended up missing a few apexes of corners as I just couldn’t get the wheels to be where I wanted them every time. The steering also has a weak return to centre action and you need to re-centre it yourself while making U-turns.

Hmmm...this is interesting to know. I wouldn't have imagined steering being an issue on a Renault. Usually the Renault's steering feedback and driveability are better than most others. May be cost cutting measures or half baked measures from Renault to launch the car!

[i74js]

Great review - as always.

Though I am concerned on the non-visible cost cutting in general, the prime concern remains around extensive use of plastic in engine (Oil sump and otherwise). Since Renault is targeting tier II and III cities, the road conditions are not good and there could be possible cases of sump puncture / break. This should not result in poor word of mouth for the company.

Since the original idea of the car to have a price range of nearly 4 Lac; Renault should look at having dual airbag and ABS along with retractable rear seat belts making it a complete package.

Even 4 Lac ex-showroom is still VFM for the car and I am sure with 98% localizations and availability of design (since they are already providing 2 airbags and ABS for export model) is possible at a smaller cost to the end customer.

[Rajeevraj]

Brilliant review as usual. Thank you.

All in All looks like Renault has done a great job. Clearly picked out what the first time car buyer will be looking for- Space, stylish looks, mileage and above all price and delivered to it. Followed it up by a tremendous marketing campaign. So 90% of the job is well done.

But the remaining 10% is what is critical if Renault wants the Kwid to really threaten the Alto.

• Minimizing waiting period. Already we are hearing wait times of 4-5 months which majority of the first time buyers will not be happy about. 25,000+ bookings is nice to say, but if you cannot clear that within 2-3 months max, customers will look elsewhere.
• Ramp up the dealer/service experience. When 6-7000 units of Kwid get added to the monthly sales, the dealers should be well equipped to handle this. Maruti are masters in this.

Also like the fact that they are targeting Tier 2/3/4 towns and hope to use the Virtual Showroom experience for that. I tried using the Virtual Showroom and it did not work out. Kept giving a login error. Also, the minimal requirements include a 64 bit laptop and a 4Mbps connection. Not something that will be common in Tier2/3/4 towns. So I think they need to rework that concept a little bit.

Disappointed to hear the statement- 'Can be enhanced to meet updated safety norms'. So their concept of safety is limited to what regulations require them to do and not really what would be helpful for an Indian buyer. Respect for Renault would have gone up a few notches if they had taken the initiative of including ABS/ dual airbags in most variants. It was feasible for them to shake the segment with the design and space parameters. Could have done it with the safety parameter also.

[Peterf]

Fantastic review. One of my relatives were looking for Renault Kwid review and were not able to make up their mind after watching online videos and some magazines first drive review. I told them to wait for team bhp review and I must say that all the potential questions of a buyer are fully answered. Hats off to the reviewers.

Going on to the product and I must say it is a brilliant car for the budget. Some shortcomings are there (like less security features etc) but I believe they are common to the price segment it is being offered in. But for an enthusiast if they can offer a bigger engine and ABS , this car can challenge cars from a segment above.

Cheers

[mrbaddy]

Variant wise comparison of Kwid's features.

Kwid is offered in four variants (STD, RXE, RXL, RXT) and two option variants on top of RXE & RXT making it a total of six available options.

1. STD vs RXE

Price Difference: 31,992/-



2. RXE vs RXL

Price Difference: 22,704/-



3. RXL vs RXT

Price Difference: 32,467/-



4. RXE vs RXE (Option)

Price Difference: 6,000/-



5. RXT vs RXT (Option)

Price Difference: 9,000/-




Prices are ex-showroom Delhi. Features from Kwid's official brochure.

[sourav9385]

A stellar review of what is, IMO, a very very good product from Renault!

I do have a few questions for the more informed & technically sound members of Team-Bhp. Considering Renault has used plastic parts inside the engine bay, and all throughout the car, is it safe to say that these parts will be more prone to wear & tear than metal? Also, what about fire-safety? Won't plastic melt at a much lower temperature than metal, when exposed to similar heating? I'm just thinking out loud, as I wonder how much testing has the Kwid undergone to check the durability of said plastic parts in this perpetually hot & humid country of ours.

I just hope Renault has done the necessary homework to ensure that all the plastic parts remain sturdy & reliable over the years to come. Other than that, I wish Renault a great success with the Kwid. I'll be very much looking forward to the AMT being launched soon, with ABS, for another lakh or so.

[grevvity]

Superb review ! Rated well deserved 5 stars. I will reiterate, Kwid has got all the bling factor to give tough competition to the segment leader. Agree, there are cost cuttings by Renault but the way they have done it is brilliant. Most of them are hidden from general view and things which are of more importance (Steering,MID,Navigation etc) for daily drive are of superior quality and are segment first. Now Renault has to sit back and see the the sales chart on fire.

[NiInJa]

Awesome review and great attention to detail as always !
The car is sure a looker and does offer a great value for money.
All the smaller cost cutting and weight reduction measures aside, my major concern is regarding the plastic oil sump. I just hope Renault has tested it extensively against physical shocks, heat and chemical re-activity.

[nmenon]

Rated 5 Stars- a comprehensive review.

Finally the Alto should have some competition, hope Maruti wakes up and comes up with something better.
I prefer my 2007 Alto LX to the new Alto 800 which to my eyes looks and feels worse, but the Kwid does really look good, better than the Eon to my eyes.
The 660kg weight is surprising. Might we see the real effects of cost cutting a bit later (i.e. the plastic oil sump).

[BaluJ]

Fantastic review as usual - TBHP standards ! Rated 5 stars

One major miss would be the tacho. People used to shifting gears based on the RPM level will have to adjust the driving style by quite a bit. I dont think that minuscule shift indicator would help a lot - also that is tuned for FE i believe.

Let the competition with Alto begin!

[Bh.P]

Great review... Promising car... Suspect ASS (based on a earlier post in this thread).

I guess the last part is enough to ruin a great product. Few companies can match Maruti in the kind of service, which is why they are able to outsell others even with inferior products.

It all depends on how well Renault can control the dealers to provide good service and not milk customers.

[chandrda]

Again an excellent official review.

The car promises a lot and has definitely caught my attention to check the car when AMT is available.

Its lighter than Nano, this is something to watch out for when driving on highway as cross wind will sure affect the dynamics.

already there is a lot of interest in my office regarding Kwid and have forwarded this review to the entire group. Everyone is talking about Kwid from morning.

Renault for sure has created some buzz

Regards

[grevvity]

Originally Posted by BaluJ

Fantastic review as usual - TBHP standards ! Rated 5 stars

One major miss would be the tacho. People used to shifting gears based on the RPM level will have to adjust the driving style by quite a bit. I dont think that minuscule shift indicator would help a lot - also that is tuned for FE i believe.

Let the competition with Alto begin!

Not even Kwid, a lot of hatchbacks miss out on a proper tacho meter these days. Few I remember are A-star (Lxi,Vxi), Zen Estilo, Alto 800 and IIRC Etios doesn't have one.

I do not think a tacho would be missed a lot in Kwid as a 3-pot engine note would be high enough to gauge the correct rpm-gear ratio. One can quickly get used to it and adjust their driving style easily.

[hybridpetrol]

Excellent Review! Read it from top to bottom slowly and the attention to detail is great!
A very thorough coverage, as expected from our official review.

The review underlines the fact that, Kwid is better than Alto in terms of exterior styling, interior legroom, boot space, equipment etc., while Eon fares better in terms of interior design. Where Alto & Eon have an edge over Kwid is the After sales support, vast sales network, and a superior brand image.
While the Kwid will not take over Alto overnight, sure it will take over Eon in the first few months of sale. This surprising level of packaging will surely make Maruti to take notice, and we hope the next Alto comes bigger and better!