January 16th, 2012
We have old folks today who has witnessed the French car market through the 1960s and thru the 1970s, and they become quite nostalgic when they try to recall how the cars looked, sounded, and performed back then. They might have the Citroen DS ruling the road but who can forget about the Renault 16.
The Renault 16 went on production between 1965 and 1980 and was the flagship sedan of the brand during those years. Aside from having a Hemi, the 16 was the a pioneering French car being the first to have the central lock system in the country and also helped the hatchback design to be accessible to the consuming public.
Let’s now go back to the current calendar and you will notice that you cannot tap a vehicle in the Renault garage and call it its flagship sedan. When you look at the list, the last flagship sedan was the Vel Satis which only had a 62,000 unit run and terminated on 2009.
The new general director of the brand, Carlos Tavares, wants to do something and give the brand is new flagship sedan.
The car manufacturing executive recently announced that Renault will be pushing thru with its plan to start production of their flagship sedan come 2014. In order to do this, the carmaker pours in around $534 million of funding to the Douia factory which will need some upgrade and modernization. Aside from the flaghsip sedan, the plant will also be Laguna, a midsize sedan, and the minivan called Espace.
The manufacturer does not want to give out anything about the new flagship sedan but hinted that we can expect a concept version of this vehicle during the motor show in Paris or during the 2013 auto show in Geneva. The Renault executive also hinted that the Alpine brand might be resurrected but a final green light for this project is still being awaited.
October 21st, 2011
The two-seater ride of Renault, the Twizy, will be offered in three trims after the French carmaker released details about the Colour versions of the electric vehicle.
The Twizy Colour has a sticker price of £6950 ($10,858) while the Twizy Urban variant will come in at £6690 ($10,452) and the top of the line Twizy Technic version will set buyers back by £7,400 ($11,561). In addition to the cost of the Renault Twizzy, consumers will also have to cover for the month battery cost of £40. The cost of the battery hire is computed on a 3 year outlook with the user traveling for 4,500 miles each year.
The difference between the Colour and Urban variants of the Renault Twizy will only be the paintwork on the body.
The Renault Twizy Colour comes with a stylized varying bodywork while the Urban will come available only in blue, grey, black, or solid red. The top of the line Renault Twizy Technic will come in pearly white or metallic black with nice features like the white seats, some carbon-fiber graphics, and black alloy rims.
The Renault Twizy will be in showrooms for sale by March 2012. The Renault Twizy is just 7.7 feet in length, weighs 992 pounds, and boasts of good acceleration and torque. The Twizy has a torque of 42 pound-feet and can go as fast as 50 miles per hour. So far the Twizzy has been getting good reviews, and aside from comments of a bit of an under steering, thosse who have tried it were most likely convinced that they can use one.
Charging of the Twizy takes around 3.5 hours for a full charge and about three hours of charging for 80% of capacity. Yes, just like your mobile phone, this electric comes with a charger and a cord.
August 8th, 2010
The chief designer of Renault recently revealed the new bold direction the car manufacturer wants to take as embodied in the upcoming gullwing, mid-engined coupe. The Renault Dezir is set to take the spotlight during the Paris auto show this September. The DeZir is a bit shorter compared to a Megane at 4.2 meters, but 10 centimeters closer to the ground compared to the Audi R8.
The Renault DeZir wil be fitted with an electric motor with lithium ion batteries for back up. This new member of the Renault garage outputs a decent 148bhp and a torque of 167 lb-ft. The car can go from 0 to 62 mph though in a matter of 5 seconds, primarily attributed to its weight of only 830 kilograms. The DeZir designers made use of Kevlar bodywork on tubular frame made of steel to keep the weight of the car down on the scales.
Keep reading →
August 3rd, 2009
Renault revealed some more details about the Estate Wagon which expands the range of their Megane lineup. The Estate Wagon was unveiled during the Geneva Motor Show last March and is set to hit dealerships this June.
The Estate Wagon has a bigger carrying capacity compared to the standard hatch unit of Megane. The wagon also has an extended wheelbase and rear overhang.
The Estate’s front end is identical to the face of the hatchback variant. The designers modified the tail end and side of the wagon so it will look more proportional. The trunk offers a big space of 524L that can be made bigger by as much as 119L when the rear sits are folded down.
Consumers will have a full range of choices when it comes to the engine of the Estate. The wagon is offered both in diesel and petrol variants.
Keep reading →
July 1st, 2009
Renault pours its efforts on developing electric vehicle concepts the recent years. In 2008, the French automaker was proud to show the Ondelios Hybrid and the Z.E. electric vehicle concepts. This year, Renault plans to unveil three of its ongoing electric vehicle projects during the motor show in Frankfurt. One of the cars that will catch the spotlight will be a platform for a production model that will be rolling off by 2012.
The details of the electric vehicles were not revealed. Designers of from Renault though guarantee that their EV will be distinct from the range of EV’s emerging in the market today. They will make sure that consumers will know that it is a Renault EV when they see one on the road.
The car manufacturers seem to show some ingenuity with the designs as the different engine and set up give some freedom for a different look which gives emphasis to the environmental aspect of the vehicle.
The Renault EV is said to be around 13 ft in length and will come as a 5-door hatchback. We can expect more details and specs as the Frankfurt show nears. Aside from the new EV, there will also be an electric variant of the Megane, a Renault sedan. Another version of the Kangoo is also set to debut. Both of these EVs will reach dealerships in Europe in a couple of years.
Keep reading →
June 28th, 2009
China may not be the Mecca of cutting-edge automobile technology; and for several years now, China-made cars have been highly questioned for its safety problems. Thus it is surprising when China made an “about face” and delayed the four 
Renault imports and questioned its “serious safety risks” and “non-compliance with regulations”—an amusing news that raised many eyebrows.
The four Renault models that were questioned for their safety risks are the following: Scenic, Megane, Megane Coupe-Cabriolet, and the Laguna. These alleged automobiles belong to Renault’s crème de la crème. According to Automotive News, the decision to halt the import was made by the General Administration of Quality Supervision Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) of China.
The statement from AQSIQ read as follows: “We have repeatedly found batches of passenger vehicles made by the French Renault … do not conform with our country’s mandatory standards and relevant technical regulations, and there are serious safety risks.”
As far as China’s ill record for automobile safety with its locally made Brilliance BS6, Renault’s banned imports can be quite ironic and amusing. However, it is important to note that China is today’s largest market in automobiles, making the Renault ban a painful stab for the French automaker.
At present, the French company has yet to issue a statement. The spokesman for Renault only revealed that they were “surprised” with China’s decision to ban and question, taking into consideration that the banned models’ quality has been tested and evaluated in terms of press reviews and professional driving tests.
June 4th, 2009
Renault came up with the new gen of Clio last February 
and had a sport variant when they joined the motorshow in Geneva the following month. The car manufacturer recently unveiled the Clio RS in United Kingdom is due for sale by the end of this month.
The new Clio RS receives some upgrades to perform like its bigger sibling the Megane RS. The treatment was just done to fit the compact image of the vehicle. The fuel mileage of the car was measured at 34.5mpg and CO2 emission recorded at 195g/km.
Under the hood of the Clio RS is a 16 valve 2.0L engine that can output 200 horspower or 149KW and maximum torque of 158 lb-ft. The power ratio is a beat peaky but the engine can still bring the car to 62 mph in just around seven seconds. The top speed of the Clio RS was recorded at 141 mph.
Buyers have two options in terms of the tuning of the chassis. One may go for the Cup version which is about 36kg lighter or the standard release which is a bit heavier than its sporty counterpart but a lot more comfortable.
Keep reading →
April 25th, 2009
The team up of Nissan and Renault is forming a link with the California-based San Diego Gas & Electric to promote zero emission transport by developing a network of charging stations for electronic vehicles.
The Japanese car maker will be marketing ZEVs in the US by 2010 and has plans of marketing the ZEVs worldwide by 2012. This plan starts to materialize with the coast to coast promo of the Nissan Electronic Vehicle Prototype.
The Nissan-Renault Alliance will help the SDG&E group in building the foundation for the vital EV charging infrastructure. The collaboration will work with other agencies, companies, and institutions to implement the promotion of EVs around the country and ultimately build the network to charge batteries for these kind of vehicles.
Both companies expressed their excitement for a pioneer endeavor which will make San Diego a plug-in ready region for EVs.
Keep reading →
March 15th, 2009
With the constant threat of global scarcity of gasoline and global warming, big automobile companies have started developing vehicles that run on electricity. While Nissan vowed to be the leader in electric vehicle technology, its parent company, the French automaker Renault, announced its plans to release three electric vehicles in 2012.
According to the scoop in Autocar, the French electric vehicles will include an electric version of the Kangoo MPV, a new electric car patterned after the Megane sedan, and a new smaller 5-seater model.
At present time, Renault has been testing the electric versions of Megane Sedan in Israel, the results of which will serve as the basis for the production of several more electric vehicles by the same company. The electric version of Megane will be released in the market sometime in 2011 while the Kangoo MPV electric car will follow shortly.
Keep reading →
November 2nd, 2008
Renault, the century old French automobile company, has a great track record to carry along with its name. To add to its already huge popularity is the fact that this is the safest car brand in Europe.
As of today, eight of its vehicles in different categories have won the Euro NCAP’s crash test programme. In 2002, Megane II won 5 stars in its segment. In 2003, the Kangoo won 4 stars; Twingo won 3 stars while Escape IV, Laguna II and Scenic II won 5 stars in their segment. Escape IV was named the “safest car on the market”. In 2004, Modus and Megane CC won 5 stars while in 2005, Vel Satis and Clio also won the same titles in their segments. Vel Satis and Megane CC were named “Best in Class”.
Keep reading →
