Riding on Kwid’s success, Renault to develop another global car in India
NEWDELHI: Buoyed by the success of its global mini car Kwid, French automaker Renault SA is working on yet another global compact car in India entailing an investment of up to $400 million, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said.
The car, being designed and developed by the Renault-Nissan Technical Centre in Chennai, will be less than four metres in size and is expected to make its debut in the local market in 2019, the person said on condition of anonymity. Sub-4m cars attract less tax—28% GST and 1-3% cess (depending on the fuel)—compared to bigger vehicles.
The company has tried to modify its CMF-A platform, which was developed in India for the Kwid. It also plans to come out with a compact sports utility vehicle (SUV) on the platform later. The move is aimed at consolidating Renault’s position in India and fill gaps in its existing product portfolio.
The two products will be introduced in the premium hatchback and compact SUV segments (sub-4m), said a second person aware of the matter.
“(These) are being developed at the R&D (research and development) facility in Chennai just like its successful small car Kwid,” this person said.
“The company could also showcase them as concept cars in the upcoming Auto Expo. The vendors have also been intimated about the plan. Apart from these two, Renault is also working on different other products but they are at a very nascent stage,” the second person said.
A Renault spokesperson said: “As per company policy, we cannot comment on future products; however, we can assure you that whatever comes from Renault, it will be a game changer, which will redefine the segment, or create a sub-segment.”
Sales of Kwid have started to ease and with the likely introduction of the new Alto by Maruti Suzuki India Ltd in 2018-19, competition is likely to increase. Captur, Renault’s new offering—a compact SUV—has not managed to meet expectations since it was launched in October.
Sales of the Duster have also been on the decline. To be sure, Renault’s and its chief executive officer Carlos Ghosn’s previous attempts to crack the cost-sensitive small car market had little success before they built the Kwid, which was launched in 2015.
While the original Logan caught on unexpectedly in Europe, the Indian version, built through a joint venture with Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd (M&M), failed to attract many customers.