Renault's flagship "high-end" SUV (Koleos successor) will be revealed in early-2016 - IAB Report

17/06/2015 - 22:43 | ,   | Anjan Ravi

Expected to share engines with the Nissan X-Trail.

Renault revealed its C-segment SUV, the Kadjar, this year but plans are afoot for a new D-segment SUV that will be a spiritual replacement of the slow-selling Koleos. One of the reasons for the Koleos's less-than-expected sales, according to Laurens van den Acker, Senior Vice President, Corporate Design, Renault, is its positioning.

2014 Renault Koleos facelift review front quarter
The new SUV will be much larger than Koleos, according to van den Acker.

Speaking to IndianAutosBlog.com at the Kwid's launch last month, van den Acker said - "I think one of the issues of the Koleos is that its in between segments, it's bigger than a C but smaller than a D."

The forthcoming D-segment SUV will be "completely" different compared to the Koleos owing to its "new platform (the CMF alliance platform) and it's different size"; it will be a "true D-segment crossover", according to the design chief.

Compared to the recently-launched Kadjar, the D-segment crossover "will be much more serious, much more high-end and much more sophisticated." However, the design head refused to comment if it will feature seating for 7 occupants.

Don't forget, Renault as a brand already has the Espace which is a 7-seater and the Scenic 7-seater. We wonder how many 7-seater cars we need. You will find out (more) early next year about the D-crossover.

Renault Kadjar front three quarter at Auto Shanghai 2015
The new SUV will be "more serious" than the Renault Kadjar.

According to web news reports, the D-segment SUV will measure over five meters in length, and will primarily target Asian markets where Renault doesn't sell the Espace. It is expected to inherit engines from the Nissan X-Trail, which is powered by 2.0- and 2.5-liter petrol engines and a 1.6-liter diesel engine.

Also read: Renault planning a hotter Kadjar RS SUV

For the Indian market, Renault India could choose to replace the Koleos with the new D-segment SUV once its available. If launched with 7 seats, the new SUV would have a much better chance in its segment where all its competitors, save for the Honda CR-V, package a third row of seats.

Renault Kadjar - Image Gallery (Unrelated)

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