Renault Kwid launch in September, bookings open

The much awaited small car from Renault stables – the Kwid, will be available for sale in September. Though Renault has not officially announced anything on the bookings front yet, dealers have started accepting booking amounts in the range of INR 25000-50000. Customers will be allocated vehicles on first-come-first-serve basis.

We checked with dealers in Pune who have confirmed that the top-end variant of the Kwid will cost around INR 4.0 lakhs (ex-showroom) and will get features such as all 4 power windows, Airbags, ABS, Infotainment system with Navigation and Bluetooth. It is powered by a three-cylinder 800cc petrol engine and as of now only a manual transmission will be available.

Renualt is betting big on the Kwid and it comes in at a time when the company is struggling to sell its products. The sales of its high selling Duster also has dropped by a big margin, owing to recent competition. The Kwid will be positioned in the meat of the Indian passenger car market and will compete with the Maruti Suzuki Alto, Hyundai Eon and Tata Nano. Currently, teaser advertisements of the Kwid are being aired on television.

The Kwid is a global car that will be manufactured in Chennai and is a very important product for Renault. It has achieved 96% localisation in India. This vehicle would be launched in several other markets too but will face its biggest challenge in India. Having crossed 157 sales and service facilities, it aims at reaching 205 facilities by end of 2015. Renault also aims at growing its market share to 5% with the help of Kwid.