[Omkar]

Thanks to Shreas Rajadhyaksha for sending in the details. Heartfelt gratitude for sharing it with other enthusiasts via this Team-BHP share page!

We purchased a Renault Kiger dual-tone RXZ top-end variant in August 2022 from Renault Fatimanagar, Unnati Vehicles, Pune. The car broke down in the first fortnight of purchase and below is point by point detail of the events that occurred:

• The car broke down as there was an oil leakage near the gearbox side. They mentioned this was due to a pipe sliding out and therefore the leakage.

• This happened at a distance less than 5 km from the service centre, but Renault RSA was so horrible that the towing van took four hours to reach the spot.

• We took it up with Renault management and insisted that we wanted our money back or a car replacement to the vehicle since the car had broken down in such a short span of taking the vehicle.

• Renault after sales team pitched in and along with senior technical members from Chennai, they assured that the car was perfectly ok and that the oil leakage was a one-off incident.

• Renault management offered us an extended warranty and extended service and unlimited accessories.

• While we were completely adamant to accept this, they insisted we take it as goodwill and trust their word that the car was perfectly ok and there would be no further instances of the car breaking down.

• After much strenuous discussion, we agreed and decided to trust their word. We took the car home that day since our toddler son was at home alone and we had to rush back.

• Next day, we received an email from the Renault service centre stating extended warranty and extended service would be given. However, accessories worth only Rs 15,000 would be given. This was a blatant lie from their executive Mr Kunal Muni who was very arrogant and denied making any such commitments (we have all on record these discussions).

• After much ado, their service centre head agreed on accessories worth Rs 50,000 and extended warranty service.

• The vehicle ran well for a couple of months but kept giving heating issues, AC cooling problems etc. on the go.

• When we approached Renault, they said that since the vehicle is turbocharged, these problems will always exist.

• Cut to April 2023, we had gone to a nearby resort in Pune. While on our way back, the car refused to start.

• We called the service centre guys who arranged for an alternate vehicle and towing van.

• After keeping the vehicle for 4 days, they found the fuel pump was damaged. Imagine the pump getting damaged in six months of car
manufacture.

• They replaced the fuel pump as a part of the car warranty and drove the car for 50 km approximately (that is what they mentioned to us at least).

• After using our fuel to test the car, they never compensated the cost of this fuel. Nevertheless, they found the car to be in top condition for usage once again.

• 8 days later, my family and I were returning from a friend's place at midnight and the car broke down on the highway at 1 AM.

• Upon checking by service centre guys, it was found that the fuel pump was again the problem. The couplers this time were loosely fitted and therefore the car stopped working, all this in just 7 days of previous repair!

• The car currently is again giving problems in pickup and AC cooling. If we switch on the AC, the car just refuses to pick up and there is always a fear instilled in us that it may break down at any time.

• We are insisting that Renault give our money back since this car is certainly a terrible product and our life is at stake due to this product.

• Renault however has been using its after-sales team to fool us into believing the car is completely OK and we should not worry. Three breakdowns in eight months, this result speaks for itself.

Vehicle History below:

[bijims]

Oh my God!, I really can't believe that you had to go through all this! such a pathetic response from Renault trying to make you keep a car that is surely faulty.

We had encountered such an issue in our family for a faulty fuel pump in our Ecosport Diesel bought in December 2020, with the issue arising within 6 months and Ford offered to either replace the car or our money back without much hassle, we got our money back and boy were we relieved, Ford announced its exit a couple of months later, but they were extremely customer friendly ad handled the matter professionally. Quite the opposite of your case.

As a previous owner of a Renault, I pity the current state of affairs you had to encounter and hope Renault or the dealership take note of it, and either refund the money you paid for the car or provide a brand new car as replacement.

[GTO]

The Magnite & Kiger are good cars offering a lot for the money (including gizmos, a CVT vs competitor AMTs, and a turbo-petrol). But both cars have gone through very severe cost-cutting exercises to achieve a certain launch price and that does show in the suspect quality & reliability long-term. Even on the Magnite thread, there are loads of complaints about the build & reliability.

[Shreyans_Jain]

Your problems can be traced back to the fuel pump. If it is unable to supply enough fuel to the engine under demanding load conditions, all kinds of things will happen.

Fuel pump related issues are happening dime a dozen these days, all thanks to ethanol blended petrol. Your car is rated for upto E10 petrol only, and all petrol being sold nowadays is beyond that threshold. Problems are happening across models and brands. Be it Honda or Hyundai or Maruti or Renault, talk to the mechanics about the cars coming in and a shocking picture will emerge.

Fuel pump failures and related issues will keep on happening. There is no escaping it for cars that are not E20 rated (which is like 99% of cars). That is the bitter truth. These will be covered under warranty for as long as warranty lasts. But after that, I will strongly recommend that you replace this car with any other. All cars are E20 rated now, which has only happened around/after April 2023.

[svsantosh]

Originally Posted by Omkar

We are insisting that Renault give our money back ...

That is not going to happen. Best that can happen is automobile enthusiasts like me/us will share this across friends and forums and make a small dent in Renaults sales figures.

If you want a refund, only a competent lawyer and a bit of patience and luck (read - 1 to 5+ years & very little luck) can help you get back your money. The car must lie unused and inside the authorized service center for a very long time to prove it is a lemon. 1 CVT hose leak, 1 Fuel Pump replacement is NOT going to get your money back. It needs a lot more breakdowns, lot more repetitions to prove deficiency in service or quality to convince the Honble' Court to order a refund.

Originally Posted by Omkar

since this car is certainly a terrible product

That we can see and discuss about. Yes - the High Pressure Pump seems to be the suspect. Either they plonked in a NA pump components into a Turbo engine car pump or vice versa, or the E10/E20 rule is playing with your pump. Very sad to see a promising product letting you down.

[Aakash118]

There is no point in driving a car with a fear of breakdowns in mind. So I will say that sell this car and move on. Buy something like a 1 or 2 year old Brezza and enjoy your drives without the fear of a breakdown.

[navrddy]

This not correct statement, problem in fuel pump it is not due to E20 fuel, this is purely due to QA issue of a particular component.
The only shocking picture that will emerge is that usage of E20 fuel will result in drop in performance/mileage by 5-7% in E10 vehicles.
But Warranty is though Void going by user manual, unless except mentioned.

Originally Posted by Shreyans_Jain

Your problems can be traced back to the fuel pump. If it is unable to supply enough fuel to the engine under demanding load conditions, all kinds of things will happen.

Fuel pump related issues are happening dime a dozen these days, all thanks to ethanol blended petrol. Your car is rated for upto E10 petrol only, and all petrol being sold nowadays is beyond that threshold. Problems are happening across models and brands. Be it Honda or Hyundai or Maruti or Renault, talk to the mechanics about the cars coming in and a shocking picture will emerge.

Fuel pump failures and related issues will keep on happening. There is no escaping it for cars that are not E20 rated (which is like 99% of cars). That is the bitter truth. These will be covered under warranty for as long as warranty lasts. But after that, I will strongly recommend that you replace this car with any other. All cars are E20 rated now, which has only happened around/after April 2023.

[navrddy]

There is no high pressure pump in NA MPFi and Turbo MPFi engines. Fuel pressure is built by inbuilt FDM(Fuel Delivery Module).
Only GDI engines have High pressure pump driven by camshaft mechanically.
What's also fact is GDI engines are better equipped to handle E20 fuel thermodynamically when compared to MPFi engines.

Originally Posted by svsantosh

That is not going to happen. Best that can happen is automobile enthusiasts like me/us will share this across friends and forums and make a small dent in Renaults sales figures.

If you want a refund, only a competent lawyer and a bit of patience and luck (read - 1 to 5+ years & very little luck) can help you get back your money. The car must lie unused and inside the authorized service center for a very long time to prove it is a lemon. 1 CVT hose leak, 1 Fuel Pump replacement is NOT going to get your money back. It needs a lot more breakdowns, lot more repetitions to prove deficiency in service or quality to convince the Honble' Court to order a refund.



That we can see and discuss about. Yes - the High Pressure Pump seems to be the suspect. Either they plonked in a NA pump components into a Turbo engine car pump or vice versa, or the E10/E20 rule is playing with your pump. Very sad to see a promising product letting you down.

[arunabh2424]

Sad to know about your horrible experience with Renault. IMHO you must escalate this issue to the company Head Office. Spending lakhs of rupees to drive a Car full of uncertainty is a nightmare in itself. I suggest you to be stubborn with the Dealer and the company and threaten them for a consumer court redressal.

[Neil Roy]

Originally Posted by svsantosh

...... Best that can happen is automobile enthusiasts like me/us will share this across friends and forums and make a small dent in Renaults sales figures.......

The way Renault is selling, any dent is a big dent.

My serious advise will be to get the car repaired by any FNG and enjoy the ownership as long as you can. Once depreciation losses are minimized, then contemplate selling it. As of now Magnite and Kiger are selling in good numbers and finding a good FNG shouldn't be a problem. The truth is that you're hurt and angry with Renault but the bottom-line is that it's your hard earned money which is at stake. We all make mistakes and trusting renault is a mistake. Lesson learnt and time to move on.
And BTW, road worthiness of Kiger and magnite is proven by the numbers they sell. So you really don't have to worry too much about reliability.

[k_ajay]

Hi Shreas Rajadhyaksha (if you’re reading the thread),

Sorry to hear about your ordeal with the KIGER. As a part owner of a Kiger CVT, I can only say that it appears you’ve been sold a lemon piece. The dealer is to blame and company be accountable to resolve.

Against my baseless apprehension, the Kiger has performed extremely well and has been super reliable for the 1 year ownership it will complete this month. Including a super performing AC (in Bangalore).

I hope you get proper long term resolution for your Kiger and wish you luck if it goes down to a legal recourse to be taken with dealership/ Renault.

[Mad Max]

Originally Posted by k_ajay

Hi Shreas Rajadhyaksha (if you’re reading the thread),

Sorry to hear about your ordeal with the KIGER. As a part owner of a Kiger CVT, I can only say that it appears you’ve been sold a lemon piece. The dealer is to blame and company be accountable to resolve.

Against my baseless apprehension, the Kiger has performed extremely well and has been super reliable for the 1 year ownership it will complete this month. Including a super performing AC (in Bangalore).

I hope you get proper long term resolution for your Kiger and wish you luck if it goes down to a legal recourse to be taken with dealership/ Renault.

Same here. Our Kiger has been trouble free for 40k kms now with high usage across highways and dusty roads, not to mention small town runabouts. You have been sold a lemon and regardless if it's one breakdown or more, it's imperative that the dealer takes this seriously. As others suggested, definitely talk to a lawyer and check your options.

[100Kmphormore]

Fuel pump related issues are happening dime a dozen these days, all thanks to ethanol blended petrol. Your car is rated for upto E10 petrol only, and all petrol being sold nowadays is beyond that threshold.

Not just cars, bikes too. I’m not sure if its exactly this but the fueling on my Himalayan got so irritating and the lag on acceleration was something unusual, I forced them to replace it. Since it wasn’t due to any modifications or rough riding style, Bingo comes in these issues on teambhp. Checked the owners manual yesterday and there it is - upto 10% ethanol only. I have put off my next bike purchase due to this until the government and the companies take a stand on this.

[K_DR]

Very sad to hear about this. I also own a Kiger RXZ CVT with 12k in the ODO. Although haven't faced any engine related issues, this vehicle is not built to last. Made a major mistake by buying this vehicle.

[sid_sawhney]

Very sad to hear about your ordeal with your Kiger. I'm in a similar situation as yours. My journey with my Kiger RXZ CVT Turbo has seen a lot of ups and downs. The moment I start despising it, it comes thtough like nothing else. Then the moment I start loving it despite its flaws it brings me back to the ground.

Most of the issues I have faced have been (un) surprisingly related to the service centre QC somewhere or the other.

The issues started right after my first free check-up @2500km (don't know why they call it a service at all!)
I had raised the infamous brake noise issue and they said that the technician would need to inspect the issue thoroughly. Being a Sunday they offered to drop the car back on a weekday after it was inspected.
When they did return the car, I found that the front DRL had a stain on it. I first mistook it for fogging (which shouldn't have been there either because the service centres do not wash the car anymore) but let it be anyway assuming it would go away. Thankfully I did take a picture and report it to the concerned Renault rep at the service centre. The service centre here in question is Renault Yelahanka.
The rep told me that this was indeed fogging and it would go away. A day later, the fogging hadnt gone. Upon careful inspection I figured out that this was a stain and not fogging. The brake noise issue also hadn't been resolved and now the lever to spray water on the windshield also wasn't working!! Imagine having sent a car for service and it coming back with more issues!
After I complained again, the service rep arranged for a car pickup from my office for another checkup. The car was sent back again. After an inspection, I got a call stating that some AC fluid must have fallen where I parked the car and that's why there was a stain on the headlight. It took many stern arguments to tell them how it was their negligence of not even inspecting the car before sending it back that caused the issue and not some random reason that they were giving me. Finally they agreed to replace the headlight under warranty. The part was ordered and would take 10 days to come to the service centre.
For the spray and wipe function not working they said that the nozel was blocked vecause I used dirty water to fill the water tank (really!) i was pissed but I let it be.
The brake noise resolution was that the noise was a feature (imagine!) And CVT vehicles suffer from this. A little fixing has been done but that's the best they can do.
Unfortunately I had to shift cities to Hyderabad shortly after and hence couldn't get the headlight replaced in the due time. On one of my trips back, I got the headlight replaced. End of issue 1.


The second issue came when I sent the car for (any guesses?) my second service. This is actually the first real service that happens at 10k km. The car was sent to Renault Gachibowli. Again the car was picked up from my location for service. Upon service, the service centre sent me a bill for approx 8k. Perplexed I called them for an explanation. They had added labour charges and bill of materials for AC Cleaning and Wheel Balancing. Thanks to time spent at team-bhp, I knew that they couldn't bill me for this without my permission. I shouted at them and they eventually figured that they couldn't fool me. They waived off the charges. When the car was returned, I realised that the brakes were very spongy and the braking force had reduced drastically. Frustrated I took the car back to them a couple of days later. For a good 30 min after multiple test drives they just couldn't understand the issues I was telling them. They kept saying that the brakes are fine! Why would somebody take the pain of taking a day off to come point an issue when there isnt any? Upon inspection they found nothing wrong with the front discs and then went ramming around the rear drum brakes. After sometime the braking performance improved marginally. They sent me back saying that technically everything has been sorted and I should drive the car for some days. If I face an issue, I should come back. Unfortunately, again I was to shift cities to Gurgaon in sometime. Although the brakes were definitely better, they started making even more noise. Loud squeaky noises that were borderline embarrassing for a car that cost over 12 lakhs on road.

Once in Gurgaon, the car was doing fine except for the stupid brake noise. We did a Delhi-Manali-Lahaul trip as well with two other people and fully loaded luggage. The car did absolutely fine... Apart from some heating at one point which could be attributed to the steep slope. At this point, i was getting relaxed and falling back in love with it again.

Then came the third and current running issue. Me and my wife noticed a sound after we stopped the car one day. It felt like the radiator was running even after the car was stopped. We stood around for a few minutes waiting for it to stop but it didn't. Concerned we immediately took it Renault Sector 61 Gurgaon service centre which was the closest. The service centre technician first tried to pass it iff as turbo noise. I had to explain to him that I know what a running turbo sounds like and the noise wasn't stopping. He then said that here is some dirt around the radiator that will need to be cleaned. He will have to open the bumper and will need around 5 hours because there was high load due to weekend. The service centre offered to pick up my car a couple of days later and sort out the issue. We left the service centre concerned again. Next day, while taking the car out we noticed that the AC wasn't cooling anymore. So, now one issue became two. I pointed this out to the service centre at the time of pickup. I also told them to fix a noise issue which could be from the suspension or a squeaky panel at the rear right end. After a checkup, I was told that the vacuum pump has gone kaput and will need to be replaced. They've ordered the part but it will take time (no timelines given). For the rear noise, they changed a damper and the issue is fixed.

The car was sent back to me. No document was given for the newly replaced part. On inquiry I was told that job sheet was still open and I will get a complete document of changes once all issues were fixed. Once the car was received, with no AC working, I kept waiting for them to revert with timelines on when the vacuum pump would be made available. A week down, no update. The service centre rep told me that the part was not available. I was annoyed that how come a part of their flagship and high selling product was taking so much time. The response I got was that because it was coming from Chennai it takes time (UGH!!). One more week later (two weeks total) frustrated I called up the manager if the service centre and had to give him a piece of my mind. They came to senses and after a couple days said that the oart has been ordered from anther seevice centre. It will come in another 2 days. The car is now running 2 weeks without AC in Delhi summer and monsoons. Can't keep windows up because of fogging and can't keep windows down because roads full of water.
Finally the vacuum pump was replaced. We had a car with a running AC again!! Until...

Two weeks later, we noticed the same sound coming fron the radiator area while on our way to a movie. On our way back, the AC stopped cooling again. It kept losing the cooling and coming back on. And funnily enough, the squeaky sound which was apparently fixed by a damper change was back again! Oh and also, the wiper washer issue was back too. So basically none of my issues were resolved! Upon taking it back to the service, and this time I went personally to ensure I demonstrated all issues clearly, I sat with the manager in my car. He turns the car on and looks at the temperature. To my sheer disbelief, he says that my temperature was set to 23° so the AC might be cutting off. That's why it wasn't cooling. Can you inagie how stupid they think we are!! The outside temp was 34° and still he has the audacity to say something as stupid as this. Nevertheless, I sat with him, allowed him to keep the AC temp as low as possible until he felt the issue for himself. After all issues were successfully demonstrated I left the service centre.


Now it has been 4 days since the car is in the service centre. After a couple of follow ups just to get a timeline for resolution I have been told that the entire wiring for the AC will be changed. Another 5 days for that. On asking for an update on other issues I'm told that they're smaller issues and will be fixed. They're not even fixing that in the meanwhile!

So, here I am, 1 year- 4 months & 12k km into purchasing what is Renault's current flagship car in the country. The car has come back with an issue everytime it has gone to the service centre. None of my issues have been permanantly resolved yet. Renault is still sitting with my car, showing no urgency and taking their own sweet time with it while the customer has to bear the brunt of having to arrange their own means of transport because they were offered a cheap ass low quality product.

I'm so frustrated that I almost regret not having put more money and going for a more established product from Korean or German OEMs ir even Suzuki fir that matter.

End of rant.