RENAULT KOLEOS
An X-trail in French couture, or something more?
THE Renault Koleos is like a delinquent student who’s decided to quit hanging behind the bike shed and start sitting up the front of the class. The firstgen Koleos was a dud, but the allnew model’s improvement over its dated predecessor is massive, so much so that the Koleos has gone from being an utter dunce to having a shot at becoming dux.
The old car was a backmarker in the increasingly competitive medium SUV segment, with frumpy styling, antiquated infotainment and below-par rear seat space. The last time we put a Koleos through the Wheels wringer we complimented its tidy handling and off-road nous, but lamented virtually everything else. Thankfully, the second- generation Koleos addresses the bulk of our criticisms.
Sharing its platform and powertrain with its corporate cousin, the Nissan X-trail, the new Koleos is longer, has more cabin between the axles and is substantially bigger on the inside than the superseded model.
There’s no seven-seat configuration offered – nor will there ever be, according to Renault Australia – but as a rival to the likes of the Mazda CX-5, Hyundai Tucson and new VW Tiguan, the five-seat Koleos can finally boast competitive dimensions both inside and out.
And it’s inside where the Koleos makes its most convincing play. Roomy and well thought-out, the Koleos has a distinct whiff of premium-ness compared to the X-trail on which it’s based.
All Koleos models get a 7.0-inch colour TFT instrument panel instead of traditional analogue dials. It’s not only easy to read, but you can customise its graphics and colour scheme if you feel like a change of scenery. The on-demand AWD system may be front-biased most of the time, but when the going gets truly slippery it can be locked in a 50:50 front-to-rear split as long as you’re driving slowly. Handy for trips to the snow. New Koleos’s 126kw 2.5-litre engine was not only used by the previous model, it can trace its lineage back to 1999 when it was introduced in a Japanese-market Nissan MPV. That said, for all its grey hairs, it gets the job done.
All models get a customisable TFT screen in place of traditional analogue instruments, mid-grade and high-grade variants score leather (though it’s synthetic on the Zen) while the top-shelf Koleos Intens offers a choice of upholstery colours, an 8.7-inch touchscreen display, heated and cooled front seats, power tailgate and LED headlamps.
The front seats are spacious and offer a great view of the road ahead, while the back seat has enough leg, knee and headroom for full-size adults. Intens grade provides a pair of USB charging ports for back-seat passengers, but fans of smartphone mirroring may be disappointed that no Koleos model offers Apple Carplay or Android Auto integration. At least sat-nav is standard.
The new Koleos offers plenty of cargo space, whether for a brace of boogie boards or a pram ( or two) for your brood. Luggage capacity measures a reasonable 458 litres with the seats up and 1690 litres with the 60/40 splitfold second row dropped.
Among the few black marks is a lack of under-thigh support in the seat bases, cheap-looking window switch blocks shared with the X-trail, and squeaky boot plastics.
Renault also doggedly refuses to put the cruise control/speedlimiter toggle switch where it’s easily visible, instead hiding it low on the centre console behind the shift lever, forcing drivers to divert their eyes to find it.
And Nissan’s ageing 2.5-litre petrol four makes yet another appearance here. Considering Mazda manages to squeeze an extra 12kw and 24Nm out of a similar displacement, it’s a pity Koleos’s engine outputs remain unchanged, leaving it behind the eight-ball when it comes to performance and driveability.
It’s also solely offered with a CVT transmission. On the hilly and twisty launch route, the Renault’s CVT was forever hunting for the right ‘ratio’ while the engine droned away, struggling to deliver the pace required. Need to overtake? Allow plenty of space for a run-up.
On highways the Koleos was more amenable, quickly settling into a stable ratio and a low rpm that promotes efficiency. Our tripcomputer average of 11.1L/100km in an Awd-equipped Intens was well above the claim, but we’ll blame the hills for that. Anyway, if economy is vital for you, a turbo-diesel auto will be added to the line-up in mid-2017.
Koleos irons out truly lumpy surfaces with ease, but minor, low-amplitude bumps and corrugations reveal a slightly fussy and fidgety suspension tune. There’s plenty of bodyroll in corners (as you’d expect of an SUV), yet Koleos keeps its body movements in check on all but the most diabolical of surfaces. Its steering, however, is dull and overly assisted.
What really sets Koleos apart, though, is its price. The $ 29,990 Life may be slightly dearer than other base-model medium SUVS, but in higher grades (where the bulk of buyers tend to shop) Koleos convincingly undercuts its chief rivals. The range-topping Intens costs just $ 43,490, which is cheaper than its underwhelming predecessor – as well as the X-trail Ti petrol on which the Intens is based – and a hell of a sharp deal considering the equipment on offer.