Renault India today launched the Pulse and unveiled the Duster at the Auto Expo 2012. The Pulse is essentially a face-lifted Nissan Micra, the difference being that the Pulse will only be launched with a diesel engine. The addition of this car to the Renault line up means that it will now have three models in the Indian automobile market all launched within the last 8 months. The bookings for the upcoming hatchback are already started at dealers in several parts of India, about a couple of months ago. The Pulse finds itself representing Renault in the B+ segment. Demo cars are already available at many Renault dealerships.
Under the skin, Pulse will come with a 1.5-litre dCi engine delivering 64PS at 4000rpm and a peak torque of 160Nm at 2000rpm, which Renault claims will deliver a mileage of 23.08kpl. Two variants, RxL and RxZ have been announced and the list of features for the top of the line RxZ includes passenger and driver air bags, engine start stop button, automatic climate control, 15-inch alloys among others. Also on offer is a unique 2+2 year 80,000km warranty and 24 hour roadside and navigation assistance.
Prices of Renault Pulse (ex-showroom, Delhi) –
- Pulse RXL Rs 5.77 lakh
- Pulse RXZ Rs 6.25 lakh
“We have come a long way to what we had committed two years back to our Indian customers at the previous Auto Expo. The Pulse is a product designed and developed by our Indian design studio at Mumbai, focusing on the Indian customer’s aspirations, tastes and preferences. We are very optimistic about the performance of Renault’s first mass segment product and expect the Pulse to add a new chapter to Renault’s growth story in India,” Mr Marc Nassif, MD Renault India said.
Renault has unveiled the Duster mid-size crossover at the Expo. The Duster will probably be an ‘economy-class’ SUV manufactured by Dacia and is built on the same platform as the Logan (now Mahindra Verito). But it’s not an all-out off-roader and comes only as a two-wheel-drive version.
Speaking of the dimensions, the Duster is similar to the now defunct Hyundai Tucson but the car will be priced significantly lower. ut one can still expect aggressive pricing in the range of Rs 7-11 lakh. The Duster will have high local content which translates into competitive pricing.
The Duster will come with five variants which include a base 1.6-litre petrol at a price of approximately Rs 7 lakh and the 1.5-litre diesel that currently powers the Fluence. The diesel engine will be available in two states of tune — an entry-level 85bhp version and a top-of-the-line 110bhp variant. The 110bhp motor is the ‘Step 4’ version of the K9K engine.
The Duster has improved styling and the front end looks cleaner and sharper thanks to the new grille and clear lens headlamps. Interiors will get a completely revamped since Renault is aware that it cannot get away with dull interiors. For example, the power window switches for the rear passengers will be moved from the front dash to the more conventional location on the door pads.
The Duster would be manufactured with a heavy localisation of parts and so we expect it to be priced competitively to compete with the Mahindra Scorpio and the Tata Safari. Of course now they have the Ford EcoSport to contend with. The Duster will be on sale in the second half of this year.
