What is it?

With the Kwid, Renault is targeting the heavily competitive entry hatchback market. Although it has all the makings of a winner, the task of beating Maruti in its own backyard will be extremely difficult if not impossible. Maruti has been ruling this segment for over two decades and even stiff completion from the stylish Hyundai Eon has left the Indian auto giant unflustered. So the Renault Kwid has to be really special to outgun its prime rival.

Renault is aware of this and they seem to have gone to great lengths to make this car a winner. To make it stand out from the crowd, Renault has gone for an SUV stance which will go down well in the SUV crazy Indian market. The French car maker has added loads of rugged looking bits like the matte grey cladding around the car, faux skid plates and optional chunky roof rails up top. The high 180mm ground clearance further establishes its tall stance. The large upright honeycomb grille, high bonnet and chunky headlamps gives it great presence and the recesses for fog lamps looks stylish. In profile, the flared wheel arches with plastic cladding gives it a mini Duster look. At the rear Renault hasn’t gone overboard and the stylish tail lamps and chiselled boot lid looks modern. The only grouse we have is that with the flared wheel arches and high ground clearance the weedy 13-inch wheels look a bit too small.

How is it inside?

Like its exterior, the Kwid impresses on the inside too. Thanks to the wide opening doors and good seat height, ingress and egress is very easy. Once inside you will be convinced you’ve got more than your money’s worth. The quality of plastics is more than decent and the fit and finish is quite impressive for a budget hatch. Yes, there are some visible low-rent bits but that is expected of a budget car. The dashboard though minimalistic is smartly styled, with the large centre console housing the seven-inch touchscreen infotainment system. This touchscreen system is not only a segment first, but it also gets features like a navigation system which is unheard of in this segment. We also liked the large, easy-to-use knobs for the AC controls and also the convenient placement of the Aux/USB ports on the music system. The digital instruments that include a speedometer and fuel gauge (there’s no rev counter) look sporty and are quite easy to read on the move. The instrument cluster also houses a gearshift indicator to help you be in the right gear to aid fuel efficiency. The Kwid’s cabin is quite practical too. It gets two gloveboxes and a scooped out storage cavity to keep toll tickets or other small items.

Drivers will appreciate the good visibility out of the front windscreen and the high bonnet again gives it an SUV’ish feeling. The front seats are surprisingly good with good bolstering and back support. Even the backseat is very usable with good space and the long squab and well-angled backrest make it a nice place to be in. If we had to nit-pick then we found the back seat to be perched a bit too low which compromises on thigh support.

Another highlight of this hatchback is the large 300litre boot it offers. To put things into perspective, the Kwid’s boot is larger than even the Hyundai i20. With the rear seats folded the figure increases to a very impressive 1115 litres.

The Kwid will be sold in four variants. While the base variant does without basics like air conditioning or power steering, the top-spec RXT model we tested featured a music system with USB and Aux capability, front power windows, keyless entry and navigation system. Sadly features like tilt steering, height adjustable driver seat and a CD player would have been welcomed. On the safety front there is further evidence that this is a budget hatchback. You can only get the top RXT model with driver side airbag but that too is optional. The Kwid will also miss out on ABS altogether even as an option. This is a glaring omission and we would have preferred having these safety bits rather than the fancy touchscreen system.

How does it drive?

The Kwid comes powered by an all-new three-cylinder, 799cc petrol engine. With 53.26bhp on tap, the Kwid slots right between the standard 800cc Alto and the Hyundai Eon. On paper, this motor is modern too with four valves per cylinder and twin overhead camshafts for better valve control.

Renault’s three-pot motor was never going to be as smooth as a four-cylinder engine, but refinement levels are more than acceptable at this price point. At idle you can feel vibrations filter through but things do smoothen out when you tap the throttle and once on the move. As soon as you let go of the clutch you realise that the engine doesn’t feel very peppy and there are flat spots when accelerating from very low engine speeds, so this motor needs to be revved a bit to gain momentum. But when not in a hurry, the Kwid has enough verve to satisfy most first-time buyers. The Kwid accelerates smoothly for such a small motor and the slick gearshifts and light clutch makes driving in town an easy affair. Out on the highway thanks to clever gearing the Kwid cruises quite well too but the motor doesn’t feel completely at home. It gets a bit thrummy when worked hard and the engines lack of relative torque means you have to downshift more often than you would like to. But overall for a small 0.8- litre engine Renault has done a good job.

The nicest part about the Kwid is the manner in which it rides and handles. Taking advantage of the long travel suspension and high profile tyres, Renault seems to have found the ideal setup. Ride quality is particularly impressive at low speeds where the Kwid gobbles up the biggest of potholes with ease. The long travel suspension doesn’t bottom out easily and this small Renault shows impressive poise which is rare to find in this segment. At higher speeds the ride does get a bit bouncy over undulating surfaces but even then you don’t get thrown around too much. In terms of handling the main deterrents are the narrow tyres which tend to lose grip quite easily and the numb steering feel. Other than that the Kwid has a reassuring handling and despite the excessive body roll it feels safe and predictable. Although the braking is more than adequate, the pedal feel is not that linear and it takes some time getting used to them.

Should I buy one?

The Renault Kwid is a product that successfully injects a certain degree of appeal to an otherwise staid budget car segment. Its butch crossover looks, will without a doubt be one of the reasons many will buy the car in the first place. What works further in favour of Renault is the spacious cabin, decent quality, good amount of equipment and comfortable ride. Sure the engine could have had more grunt, but for normal urban duties it has adequate power and the light controls make the little Renault easy to punt around in town. Fuel economy claimed at 25kpl is class leading too and the French carmaker also claims to have the cheapest spare part prices in the segment. With 98 per cent localisation, we expect the Kwid to cost between Rs 3-4 lakh. So all Renault has to do now is beef up its sales and after-sales network to back this impressive product.

Where does it fit in?

The Renault Kwid will rival the Maruti Alto, the Datsun Go and the Hyundai Eon. We expect Renault to price the Kwid between Rs 3-4 lakh from the base to the top RXT variant.