First Drive: New Renault Kwid – Who’s laughing now
Let’s be honest here, if anyone has been following the journey of the Kwid you will know that our local motoring media have been less than complementary towards the diminutive Renault. Ranging from outright contempt to simple disinterest, most if not all of us have simply just made it the butt of many a joke.
The reason is simply that the first generation Kiwd was indeed a very poor vehicle. It was not safe, it was not well made and it had an atrocious drive. Fast forward a few years and it would seem that the joke has turned and the Kwid is changing opinions, as revision after revision have made the entry level hatch better and better and the figures don’t lie.
Related: VIDEO REVIEW: Renault Kwid 1.0 Dynamique
Averaging 770 units a month, the Kwid is now the fourth best-selling passenger vehicle in South Africa and represents an incredible value option for first time buyers and the consumer group that Renault are targeting.
I think it’s safe to say that no one is laughing anymore because this latest incarnation of the Kwid has brought it’s A game and we were there to test it around the wilds of suburbia and beyond.
Full house
Renault has really upped the ante here, they have bundled a host of new tricks into what was already a very comprehensive standard fitment in this segment.
Starting with the interior the Kwid receives a new dash and centre console, new fabric on the seats, new sporty steering wheel and a new digital gauge cluster. There are also now electric windows front and rear and a 12 v Fast Charge USB port as well as the standard 12v power ports front and rear.
As far as tech is concerned, the Kwid gets an upgraded 8” infotainment system with Apple Car Play / Android Auto and interconnected Apps.
The new glove box holds 11l of storage space while the door cards are all able to hold a 1l water bottle and a few extra litres of storage space.
Rear boot storage is down to 279l due to the new full size 14” spare wheel.
On the exterior, the Kwid gets a new front bumper, new headlights, striking new DRL’s that line up with the lip of the bonnet and the chrome strip in the grille. The old 13” steel wheels and hubcaps are gone and in their place 14” mag wheels.
The Kwid also retains its signature SUV styling in the form of front and side cladding as well as the SUV style skid plates and roof rails.
Renault has also introduced a number of new exterior colour variants such as the Outback Bronze or the Zanskar Blue that you see in our images.
Safety
This is the arena that the Kwid probably took the most flak from reviewers. On its first release the Kwid had very little in the way of safety features and scored a ZERO safety rating.
After a number of revisions, the new Kwid comes standard with 2 airbags upfront, ABS, EBD, park distance sensors and a rear-view camera from the Dynamique model upwards as well as an uprated rear axle that has settled down what was a sometimes-jittery drive.
The Drive
The aforementioned new rear axle really has done wonders for the Kwid’s highway manners. It is much more composed at highway speed and does not seem to be affected as much by the traffic around it. Road holding is also a lot better now that there is a few more centimeters of rubber in contact with the road.
The manual gearbox does require some pedaling on steep sections as the 999cc engine is giving it all the beans and despite more frequent cog swapping on the freeway you are still going to manage very respectable fuel consumption.
Models and Pricing
Renault Kwid 1.0 Expression MT - R 144 900
Renault Kwid 1.0 Expression AMT - R 154 900
Renault Kwid 1.0 Dynamique MT - R 154 900
Renault Kwid 1.0 Dynamique AMT - R 164 900
Renault Kwid 1.0 Climber MT - R 164 900
Renault Kwid 1.0 Climber AMT - R 174 900
Verdict
The Kwid has stood and faced its detractors. Renault has seen and acknowledged the concerns of the consumer base and addressed them. Each time bringing a better vehicle to market eventually setting the bar incredibly high for the competitors. The Kwid is hard to match on price, hard to match on standard fitment and even harder to match in sales figures and looks surprisingly good doing it……. So who is laughing now?
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