Renault Kiger was supposed to hit the dealerships by end of this year but now the launch of this upcoming sub-4 meter SUV has been pushed to early 2021 due to disruption in the supply chain.
The Managing Director of Renault India, Venkatram Mamillapalle stated that they are facing disturbances in both demand and supply chain. He said,
My product is ready; if not for disruptions in both demand and supply, we would have caught this festive season. I have been in touch with my vendor partners for the last 20 days and we are trying to sort out the issues. The recovery has been faster than expected and hence we expect the Triber and Kwid to help us in reviving our lost volumes.
The restrictions during the COVID-19 lockdown have disturbed their demand and supply chains. Hence, the French automaker has decided to delay the launch of the Kiger sub-4m SUV until they straighten out the requirements/issues of their dealer networks. However, Renault can unveil the car by end of this year.
About Renault Kiger
The Renault Kiger is based on the CMF-A+ platform. The same platform also underpins the Renault Triber. Its testing model has been spotted many times and from the spy shots, we can confirm that the upcoming SUV will feature a 3-pod split headlamp setup, bold grille flanked by LED DRLs, tall-boy stance, and ‘C’-shaped LED tail lamps.
Inside, its dashboard styling will be quite similar to the Triber MPV but with some minor tweaks on the center console. It will get an all-black cabin theme with an 8-inch floating touchscreen infotainment system instead of an integrated unit and repositioned center AC vents. The other notable features include a digital instrument cluster, dual glove box, automatic climate control, push engine start/stop button, multi-function 3-spoke steering wheel with leather wrapping, etc.
The Renault Kiger is expected to get two engine options – 1.0-litre, 3-cylinder, naturally aspirated engine (72PS/96Nm) from the Triber, and 1.0-liter turbocharged petrol engine (100PS). Both engines are expected to be mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox whereas the turbo-petrol engine is likely to get the option of a CVT automatic transmission as well.
As far as the pricing of the SUV is concerned, its ex-showroom rate could start around Rs Rs 6 lakh. The Renault Kiger will take on the likes of Kia Sonet, Hyundai Venue, Toyota Urban Cruiser, Maruti Vitara Brezza, Ford Ecosport, Tata Nexon, Mahindra XUV300, and the upcoming Nissan Magnite.