Reportedly, the French car maker Renault is planning to launch a MPV by early 2015 in India. This MPV is going to be known as Lodgy which was scheduled to unveil in recently held 12th Auto Expo. Though, company didn’t showcase it there but now has confirmed its India launch in 2015. Its production work is going to be started soon in coming December at Renault-Nissan’s plant in Chennai. The new Renault MPV will compete directly here with Maruti Ertiga and Chevrolet Enjoy etc.
Note: The mentioned facts here are yet to be confirmed by the company and hence could be changed by the launch.
Price:
Well, the decided price by the company would only be revealed by the launch but we expect it to come within the price bracket of 7-10 lakhs.
Engine details:
The new Lodgy is based on the same platform of Renault’s SUV Duster and is expected to be powered by a 1.5 liter K9K turbo diesel engine with the developing max power of 85bhp and mated to a 5-speed manual transmission gearbox. Contrary, a 1.6 liter petrol mill is likely to be equipped too in new Lodgy like the ongoing Duster. Though, these specs are yet to be confirmed by the company.
Space & Dimension:
Renault’s this MPV is expected to carry the overall length of approx 4.5 metres and probably will be slightly longer as well as spacious than its main rival Maruti Ertiga. The MPV will offer seating capacity for seven adults by having two seats at front, three at middle and two at rear.
Interior & Exterior:
Like the Renault’s other models especially Duster, we expect it to be designed with an all-new refreshed look too which can give a tough fight to its rivals in same segment. As this MPV is already on sale in Europe, a fine sharp lines and clean texture can be seen at its outside profile. While at inside the cabin, it is full of the requisite features needed by Europeans and we expect same concern by company at the time of India launch too.
Verdict:
MPV (multi purpose vehicle) category doesn’t carry much models in its line-up, hence the launch of one new MPV is a welcoming step for Indian automobile industry. But company will still have to work hard to achieve more than satisfactory number of sales in India, coz there are already few appealing models available in market, as mentioned above.
