Test Drove Renault Kiger Crossover

 Got a chance to test drive the Kiger Turbo MT version and here are my observations :

1. The car has got a personality and not just a 'badi kwid' as it may look in the pictures.

2. Styling is very busy and youthful compared to relatively sedate (yet sharp) looks of Magnite. Both the cousins have got spot on proportions. I loved the rear end treatment of Kiger. Looks very funky. Just like the Magnite, Kiger has got a premium look in the red dual tone Avataar. I didnt like the design of the alloy wheels.

3. Just like the exterior, Kiger has got a very busy looking interior with lots of style bits and materials of different textures. Magnite in comparison is relatively simpler. While the quality and fit / finish on both cars tend more towards budget grade, Renault has tried to cover it up with busier elements. For example the door pads and the central console/arm rest area. The idea is to have the 'perceived' better quality.

4. I liked the seat support. Pretty sorted. What is not : the ergonomics. The seat belt locks are difficult to access. Handbrakes are meant to be operated by the passenger (pun intended). The Speedo console visibility gets hampered by the steering wheel. The position of placing the mobile phone is bit congested. None of these bits are deal breakers but are something that gets your attention.

5. 400 litre boot may look good on paper but the loading lip is lower than that of Magnite. I feel loading lip is very important compared to few litres of advantage.

6. Flimsy bits : The magnetic lock of central hand rest and sliding panel beneath were not working properly in the TD vehicle.

7. Rear seat space = Magnite. Impressive

8. 1.0 Turbo MT. While I am not concluding anything from TD vehicles but Kiger felt slightly better than Magnite in terms of NVH. Idle is smoother (though it gets lumpy with AC on). Engine is reasonably quite at slow and medium speeds. Gets coarse when revved hard. I was not aware of the 'mode selection' thing and drove it in City/normal mode. It has got more than enough pep here. Just that the performance below 1500 rpm is slightly laggy. Sports mode should be even better.

9. Gearshifts were sorted. Nothing much to complain about. Clutch which felt heavy in Magnite, is better in Magnite. (again not to conclude much from TD vehicles which are generally abused)

10. EPS is extremely light at crawling speeds. It weighed up magically as the speed climbed ! Clearly the calibration isnt consistent with Magnite/Kiger as different cars had different steering response.

11. Ride quality is pretty good. It isnt soft but handles bad roads well. Handling is predictable from whatever little experience I had. Yes, the NVH is good till 100 kmph. Post that it gets audible. Road noise/engine sound are prominent.


12. Kiger vs Magnite Value wise : There is no denying from the fact that Magnite is well equipped through its range (Very logically so). Kiger in comparison is not. Auto climate control, Alloy wheels, Rear defogger, Fully digital console only on the top variant is a bummer. Safety kits like ESP, Traction Control and Hill Hold are not there (Magnite has them for every variant in Turbo/CVT version). Only notable additions are 4 airbags and drive modes (hardly matters). That said, Magnite is better priced too. Kiger has more visual appeal (both internally and externally)