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Old 4th November 2016, 20:16   #31
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

Autocar India's review is out.

Excerpts:

Quote:
Once you press the accelerator, the clutch engages smoothly and offers you a controlled and progressive start. We began our drive on open roads, and shifting through the gears does take a fraction of a second, but the ‘head-nod’ so typical of AMTs is very minimal. It’s only when you open up the throttle that the nod gets more noticeable, so everyday driving situations with part throttle won't really be a hassle. Renault’s decision to use only one ECM seems to be paying off. The gearbox also does not second-guess that often, and the shifts, in most cases, are exactly what you would expect.

Every AMT requires the use of the handbrake on inclines and so does the Kwid. There is some amount of rollback before the car can move forward, but here too it is far lower than typical. We’ve tested some AMTs that require so much throttle input that it moves straight into wheelspin. With the Kwid, however, there is no such drama.
The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh-20161104055806_kw11.jpg

The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh-20161104055818_kw13.jpg
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Old 4th November 2016, 23:32   #32
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

It looks like an AC control or volume control knob, hope adventurous kids/co passengers does not play with it. In my opinion, its a bad decision not to have manual gear changing to tackle those "rainy day" scenarios. Come on Renault, even the Nano XTA has manual changing plus a sport mode. If you are buying it only for puttering around in city, I would say Nano XTA offers more for less.
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Old 5th November 2016, 11:04   #33
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

Quote:
Originally Posted by shinuak View Post
It looks like an AC control or volume control knob, hope adventurous kids/co passengers does not play with it. In my opinion, its a bad decision not to have manual gear changing to tackle those "rainy day" scenarios. Come on Renault, even the Nano XTA has manual changing plus a sport mode. If you are buying it only for puttering around in city, I would say Nano XTA offers more for less.
Very good point. Even the drivers might inadvertently operate the knob for a AC/Volume control!Hope operating it requires more manual effort and it is not feather light.
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Old 5th November 2016, 12:20   #34
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

Quote:
Originally Posted by Guna View Post
Very good point. Even the drivers might inadvertently operate the knob for a AC/Volume control!Hope operating it requires more manual effort and it is not feather light.
I don't think it will be that simple to execute. From the looks of it, i think one has to press the center part of the knob and then turn the dial. You can clearly see the centre part of the dial and the rotary portion made of 2 different parts. The circular embossing on the face of the dial is not for cosmetic reasons IMHO. Clearly, the gear changes wont be a simple rotate knob action. There will be a secondary safety built in..like a press to change gear .. sort of a thing.

That said, smart kids these days are capable of learning this in no time. So, there will be a third safety that gear changes can only be made with the brake pedal depressed fully.
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Old 5th November 2016, 15:06   #35
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

Quote:
Originally Posted by AYP View Post
However, with that knob, the driver (taller guys especially) will have to stretch everytime he wants to change the modes. I guess this will be quite irritating and tiring.
Quote:
Originally Posted by shinuak View Post
I... adventurous kids/co passengers does not play with it. In my opinion, its a bad decision not to have manual gear changing to tackle those "rainy day" scenarios. .
Quote:
Originally Posted by vsathyap View Post
That said, smart kids these days are capable of learning this in no time. So, there will be a third safety that gear changes can only be made with the brake pedal depressed fully.

The Celerio requires brake pedal to be pressed before shifting between neutral and drive, so it is quite possible that the Kwid may also come with such an arrangement.

However, like many members said before, it is true that a manual mode would have been very much appreciated. And a conventional stick would have been much easier to use in heavy traffic to shift from 'D' to 'N' and vice versa. This knob/ dial requires more driver effort.

An adventurous kid, if not this 'gear dial', can always pull up the handbrake lever, or why not, grab the steering wheel any time. So, that should not be a deterrent for this design.

I agree that kids nowadays are smarter than we old folks. They watch and learn very quickly and would very easily understand what the rotary knob is there for.
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Old 5th November 2016, 15:24   #36
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

More than an adventurous kid turning the knob, I am worried about a water bottle placed in that cubby hole. New owners who shift from a MT, may find a bottle in their hands when all they wanted, was to engage reverse!

The free left leg is one shocker in AT cars (for first time owners), this one seems to be double whammy. Both your left leg and left hand have some unlearning and relearning to do.
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Old 5th November 2016, 16:55   #37
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

Critical analysis of the Kwid AMT, courtesy Carwale.

Quote:
It is only when you get on the gas hard that the lag in shifts – both up and down the gearbox – become more obvious. But, one big shortcoming of the AMT on the Kwid is the lack of creep function. It might make starts on a flat surface less jerky, but even the slightest gradient is bound to cause inconvenience to new drivers as they fight a car rolling off in the exact opposite direction of their intended travel.

The other issue is the lack of manual override. Almost every AMT comes with one wherein the driver can select the gear of his/her choosing. And, it’s there for a reason. It helps with the engine braking especially when negotiating twisties coming downhill. It also allows you to hold a gear around corners for better stability and control. On the Kwid though, you just rely on the mechanical brakes. And pray that the decline isn’t long, steep and relentless; otherwise chances are, not only would one end up overheating the brakes; the wear will be exaggerated too.

Handling wise, the Kwid retains its light and quick turn-in along with some body roll and a steering that’s devoid of feel. And, thanks to its narrow tyres, entering corners too hot only yields understeer. We also found the car's inability to hold on to a gear while applying progressive throttle around a bend, a tad unsettling.
The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh-minigearlever83385.jpg
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Old 5th November 2016, 18:57   #38
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

Very nice development. I guess it was only a matter of time for this to come.
I like the Kwid a lot especially the 1 litre version.
Now with AMT it will make for a fantastic city runabout.

The only thing with this Dial type AMT is that it will be ok for a tall chap if he has long arms, otherwise it can be a pain. Also, from what I am reading, this bottle holder beneath the Dial, could potentially be a pain.

I agree with the view posted here that if one has a wicked little fractious kid sitting about in front, and he/ she twiddles the knob when the vehicle is in motion, then one can have a situation! And one can't rule this out, because most Indian parents are pretty fatuous about their kids and spoil them blind.

I want to check this Dial out personally before making a sort of final judgement from the perspective of someone like myself - 6ft 2 inches tall and large built to boot. I don't like having to lean forwards to reach things located on the fascia and do not find the need to in my Yeti where everything is within very easy reach barring the far side of the passenger seat.

So let me test this aspect in the Kwid and then update!

I would also love it if the Kwid had come with at least dual airbags, ABS and fatter/ larger profile tyres plus nice alloys.

Else, I think this is one heck of a little car!

Last edited by shankar.balan : 5th November 2016 at 19:00.
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Old 5th November 2016, 22:39   #39
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

Quote:
Originally Posted by Guna View Post
Very good point. Even the drivers might inadvertently operate the knob for a AC/Volume control!Hope operating it requires more manual effort and it is not feather light.
Quote:
Originally Posted by vsathyap View Post
I don't think it will be that simple to execute. From the looks of it, i think one has to press the center part of the knob and then turn the dial.
In the NDTV review below, SVP ( reviewer) seems to be rotating the dial without any resistance. Does not look like one needs to press anything within the dial itself.

Having said that once set to D there is no reason to change it until you need to reverse. As this car does not have a creep function, even at signal stops, if you take leg off the brake after stopping in D mode, it is not going to move. So I see no reason for the driver to play around with the dial while driving.


Source: CNB
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Old 5th November 2016, 23:40   #40
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Originally Posted by ToyotaFan View Post
What should be done to use engine braking while descent. In MT 1st and 2nd gears help in that. If we are only depending on brakes am pretty sure brake fade will b very common with these cars. In A star AT even without the manual mode the L mode does the job well.

A-Star has a true toque-converter AT and is not an AMT. Th very fact that it had an expensive full AT pushed its price up. In case of down slopes on an AT , one uses either the 2 or L gear slot depending on the gradient.
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Old 6th November 2016, 19:01   #41
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

Official brochure has been updated with the AMT details.

Should be up on the official Renault website in a day or two.

Fuel economy of the AMT is 24.04 kmpl.

The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh-untitled4.jpg

The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh-untitled3.jpg

The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh-untitled2.jpg

The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh-untitled.jpg
(Click on the above images to *OPEN* in a NEW window)


Updated brochure can be downloaded from here: kwid16pager.PDF

Last edited by RavenAvi : 6th November 2016 at 19:08.
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Old 6th November 2016, 19:43   #42
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

Quote:
Originally Posted by RavenAvi View Post

Fuel economy of the AMT is 24.04 kmpl.

]
That's awesome. Manual Kwid 1.0 delivers lesser fuel efficiency at 23 kmpl.
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Old 7th November 2016, 09:03   #43
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

While I heartily appreciate Renault India for bringing out newer versions of the Kwid (first the 68 PS 1.0 SCe motor, and now the Easy-R AMT), I'm quite flabbergasted at the lack of a manual control option for the gears. It may be a well-executed AMT with a single ECU controlling both the engine and the gearbox automation, but this is an AMT after all!

Even the totally gearless CVTs (without even "steps" a.k.a. gear pretenders) such as the ones on the Micra & Sunny/Scala have got some form of manual control of the belt-and-pulleys transmission system masquerading as a gearbox. That Nissan CVT has an L mode for steep uphill/downhill sections etc. and also a "Sport" mode which can be used in tight situations. Ford did sell a 6-speed DCT on the Fiesta without a manual control option, but they learned their lesson quickly, and provided + and - buttons on the gear lever of the EcoSport with the same gearbox.

An AMT without a manual control option? I don't like the idea, to be frank. However, I think only a personal test drive can answer this question.

The AMT option now makes the Kwid a competitor to all variants of the Alto (which is a claim that cannot be made by even its old rival Eon).
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Old 7th November 2016, 10:00   #44
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

Motorbeams review answers the all important question on the control on the Gear shift dial to prevent inadvertent shifts. It will not respond to inputs unless the brake is pressed.

Quote:
However, the transmission doesn’t respond to the rotary inputs without pressing the brakes. If you do that, the instrument cluster shows up a warning to press the brake
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Old 7th November 2016, 11:37   #45
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re: The Renault Kwid AMT. EDIT: Launched at Rs. 4.25 lakh

Quote:
Originally Posted by shinuak View Post
It looks like an AC control or volume control knob, hope adventurous kids/co passengers does not play with it.
It looks like a AC knob or volume knob, and if you put 5 year olds in the passenger seat, they surely fiddle with it.
The quality of the spare part (the gear knob) would be far lesser than an actual gear box and hence easily breakable in the hands of playful kids.

On the other hand, kids playing with the gear knob when the car is moving will not put the driver at any higher risk than using other types of automatic gear boxes. Kids can play around with the gear boxes (manual / automatic) as well, and even in manual, it is possible to move the gear to neutral when the car is moving without pressing the clutch.
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