[aravind.anand]

Originally Posted by blackasta

The petrol one in the autocar review looks nice and has quite a few goodies. Whats the expected positioning of this car? Something along the line of Vento / Verna / City?

He he he Boss, you could've shocked Renault India officials now. It is actually a Civic/Cruze segment car and even is sized for this segment only.

[xander]

I saw couple of them today on NH45 near chengalpet. I must say it looks neat and classy.

[blackasta]

Originally Posted by cuboid

Expected in a range above those; around 12 lakh.

Originally Posted by aravind.anand

He he he Boss, you could've shocked Renault India officials now. It is actually a Civic/Cruze segment car and even is sized for this segment only.

Oops - I did some googling around and indeed they are planning to price this around 12 - 13 lakhs and field it to compete with civic / cruze / laura / corolla - which I feel fluence is gonna lose. The diesel model is bare bones for this segment - look at whats the verna is offering a segment below!

[Gooney]

Originally Posted by vb-san

Another case of diesel getting a step-mother treatment v/s the petrol version (feature-wise).

Does the petrol have a MT option, or only the CVT is offered?

Just thinking out loud. Is it because Renault being French, the diesel option is considered junta from their perspective (as in Europe diesel is the primary fuel, unlike North America and India)?

Are they thinking that because in India petrol passenger vehicles are greater in volumes, they'd be better off making the petrol version more plush, thus targeting the volume market, while maintaining a premium image for the brand?

Are they dubious about diesel options selling enough in India?

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by Gooney

Just thinking out loud. Is it because Renault being French, the diesel option is considered junta from their perspective (as in Europe diesel is the primary fuel, unlike North America and India)?

Are they thinking that because in India petrol passenger vehicles are greater in volumes, they'd be better off making the petrol version more plush, thus targeting the volume market, while maintaining a premium image for the brand?

Are they dubious about diesel options selling enough in India?

Thats what indeed surprised me, as its normally the route followed by the Asian giants - to give fully loaded petrol, and strip down diesel versions. Could this be because of the Renault-Nissan association?

By the way, is this car of Korean origin?

[Gooney]

Originally Posted by vb-san

By the way, is this car of Korean origin?

I think the Fluence is based on the Nissan C-platform. No Korean links that I am aware of.

[ashutoshb]

Fluence is based on a notchback version of Renault Megane 3. It was launched as Fluence and Renault Samsung SM 3 in 2009.

Source: Wiki

[drmohitg]

Why the step motherly treatment to the Diesel variant is what I fail to understand. Any survey done in India will say that the Diesel variants also add to a substantial number of vehicles sold specially in the C+ segment where the car will be competing. Doesn't a company like renault do such surveys before putting there money in the market?

I feel they have made a huge mistake by putting in the 1.5 Ltr engine in the Diesel car. Renault is no toyota! And even Altis hardly sells any diesel variants.

Dear Mods is a review of the Fluence coming up?

[pugram]

Specs as below (Lifted from Autocar Renault Fluence, test drive, review Review). The Diesel comes with Manual whereas the Petrol comes with automatic only, as of now.

Saw a TV show which said the Petrol is fitted with all the bells and whistles whereas the Diesel comes "barebones".

But don't know if this car carries over few quirks from the Logan, like the placement of Power window switches . Hope Renault have made those changes. But a good looking car, in the first instance.

Price Range (in lakhs)*
Ex-showroom Price Rs 12-13.7 lakh
ENGINE
Fuel Petrol/Diesel
Installation Front, transverse
Power 105bhp at 4000rpm 135bhp at 6000rpm
Torque 24.5kgm at 2000rpm/ 19.4kgm at 3700rpm
Transmission
Gearbox six-speed manual/ six-speed CVT automatic
Chassis & Body
Length 4618mm
Width 1813mm
Height 1488mm
Wheel Base 2703mm
Ground Clearance 170mm
Tyres 205/60 R16
Brakes
Front Ventilated discs (Front)
Rear Solid discs (rear)
Acceleration (Diesel / Petrol)
0-20 2.20/ 1.83
0-40 4.20/ 4.17
0-60 6.95/ 6.49
0-80 10.55/ 9.54
0-100 14.76/ 13.63
0-120 NA/ 18.97
Acceleration in Gear(Diesel / Petrol)
20-80kph (3rd gear) 14.37/ NA
40-100kph in kickdown 14.95/ NA

[chevelle]

bsmotoring has their review up and running

NEW! Renault Fluence review - French benefit

Looks good, but may not be enough to make a dent in other car's sales. Its an ergonomic disaster as far as interior is concerned.

[ampere]

There was a review on the NDTV CNB as well. As others said, the diesel version has been given much lower equipment list. Though, it seems, Renault says more trims will follow.
They also announced to have about 100 service/dealer network nodes by end of 2012.

But given the equipment list, New Verna/ New Fiesta will out do the Fluence. (Even displacement is lesser. 1.5 dCI vs 1.6 CRDI vs 1.6 TDCI)
But there was no comment on space. (Or did I miss it?)

[sriramv.iyer]

Who in their right minds would pay 13.7L ex-showroom (speculated) for a 1.5L dCI, 105 BHP Diesel Fluence, with an interior like this: ?NEW! Renault Fluence review - French benefit

Compare this with Cruze / Laura / Civic! To top this, Renault doesn't even have a brand established here.

Without an iota of doubt, I'd say that if they launch it at this price, there will be no way to save the Renault brand...

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by sriramv.iyer

Who in their right minds would pay 13.7L ex-showroom (speculated) for a 1.5L dCI, 105 BHP Diesel Fluence, with an interior like this: ?NEW! Renault Fluence review - French benefit

Compare this with Cruze / Laura / Civic! To top this, Renault doesn't even have a brand established here.

Without an iota of doubt, I'd say that if they launch it at this price, there will be no way to save the Renault brand...

I agree, its way overpriced for what its worth. not so good features, underpowered engine, ergonomics not spot on, service network is non-existent, reliability unknown, parts price unknown. i see very less numbers. should have been price around 10 lakhs and it would have been ok.

[Revvmaster]

The diesel will be priced lower than the petrol in the current spec. They want to push the diesel more than the petrol.

The diesel isn't poverty spec btw. It doesn't have leather seats, nor a USB/Aux or a leather-wrapped steering, but it does have 4 airbags, ABS and ESP as standard. Keyless entry and passive entry/exit are also part of the package. The audio unit is good enough for most.

Are they seriously considering a more expensive and better loaded DIESEL Fluence? Yes. This is a CKD operation and they are just starting-off but don't be surprised if the fully-loaded Fluence goes on sale 2-3 months down the line. Their aggression is something we've only seen in VW in the recent years. They seem to be dead-serious this time round.

Revv

[raul]

Honestly I like this car, it will stand out and looks well put together. Renault has a certain quirkiness which is appealing imho. Its difficult to differentiate and they manage quite well.

I just read the review on BS and its seems to be positive on all the important fronts, good handling and safety, lots of space, decent interiors and controls and distinctive looks.

The diesel is a bit interesting, first the choice of the engine and second the fact that it is less featured than the petrol. This is unusual and can only suggest Renault is going to price the diesel very aggressively. They could have got a higher spec diesel, I believe they have a more powerful 1.8/1.9 and 2.0 dci engine. The fact that they didn't get these initially and have decided to go with the 1.5 can only mean interesting pricing. A premium pricing with the 1.5 will clearly not work.

However whether someone looking to buy in this segment will go for 1.5 is a big question, perhaps would have made sense to have a more powerful diesel at launch to compete with the Cruze and Laura and then launch the 1.5 dci spec later to widen the market. Doing it from 1.5 upwards later may create an image problem.