Eight is enough! The brand that’s saying no to more SUVs

[Pelican Press 0]

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Eight is enough! The brand that’s saying no to more SUVs

Renault’s head of design says the company has “more than enough” SUVs, with a total of eight in its ********* lineup alone following the reveal of the new 4.

“You have to imagine that what you see today is the fruits of Luca’s anxiety, in a way”, Laurens van den Acker told

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, referring to Renault CEO Luca de Meo and his goals to make the brand more competitive in key segments.

While he conceded the brand didn’t need to roll out any more, Mr van den Acker argued criticism of SUVs from the public is overblown.

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Camera IconSymbioz Credit: CarExpertdata:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconAustral Credit: CarExpert

“When people complain about SUVs, they pretend they are these big *********, body-on-frame trucks that are heavy and do 20 or 10mpg [23.5 or 11.7L/100km],” said Mr van den Acker.

“When you drive an SUV today – I drive an Austral and it does [4.7L/100km] – they’re light, they’re not so heavy, they’re spacious… I’m wondering if it’s the same ‘SUVs’ we’re talking about.”

As for criticisms of carmakers for dropping passenger cars in favour of SUVs, Mr van den Acker said, “Let the people that make the comments put their money where their mouth is.”

In France at least, Renault still offers a range of passenger cars in the Twingo and

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, as well as the newer 5 and

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data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconScenic E-Tech Credit: CarExpertdata:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconEspace Credit: CarExpert

While it dropped its Scenic and Espace people movers, it replaced them with slightly higher-riding, more SUV-styled vehicles wearing the same names.

Its long-running Captur SUV has in recent years been complemented by the Symbioz, Arkana, Austral and Rafale, with the 4 being the latest addition to the *********-market Renault SUV range.

Mr van den Acker’s remarks on SUVs hold water given how some of these purported SUVs don’t look especially SUV-like.

Additionally, while Autocar labels the Megane E-Tech a car, the 4.2m-long EV has also been referred to – including by Renault locally – as an SUV.

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconArkana Credit: CarExpertdata:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconCaptur Credit: CarExpertdata:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconRenault 4 Credit: CarExpertdata:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconRafale Credit: CarExpert

Here’s a guide to Renault’s ********* SUV lineup:

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: Retro-styled SUV entering production in 2025, measures 4.16m long

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: Small (4.2m long) SUV, also sold in Australia

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: Captur-derived 4.4m long SUV launched in 2024

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: 4.4m-long electric-only SUV launched in 2024, related to Megane E-Tech

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: 4.5m-long coupe SUV related to the Captur

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: 4.5m-long Nissan Qashqai platform-mate, replaced the Kadjar in 2022

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: 4.7m-long version of Austral with up to seven seats, launched in 2023

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: 4.7m-long, two-row hybrid and plug-in hybrid coupe SUV flagship, launched in 2024

There appears to be notable overlap between some of these, such as the Symbioz and Arkana.

There are other Renault SUVs outside of Europe, too.

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconKiger Credit: CarExpertdata:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconKardian Credit: CarExpertdata:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconKoleos Credit: CarExpertdata:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconGrand Koleos Credit: CarExpert

The ageing

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is Renault’s Korean-built rival for the

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, and is sold in Australia.

Renault recently revealed a new, larger SUV based on the Geely Xingyue L called the

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, designed for ****** markets. It has yet to be confirmed for Australia.

The

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from the Renault Group’s budget Dacia brand is sold as a Renault in some markets like ****** America, where the Brazilian-built 4.1m-long Kardian – which entered production last year – is also sold.

In markets like ****** America and India, Renault also has the high-riding 3.7m-long Kwid city car, as well as the 4m-long Kiger.

Despite selling eight different SUVs in Europe, more than even Toyota offers in that market, Renault has just four here: the Captur, Arkana, Koleos, and Megane E-Tech.

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#brand #SUVs

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