[georgesraju]

Originally Posted by noopster

The Scala retains both drivetrains that power the Sunny. This is unlike the Pulse hatchback which is sold only with a diesel engine.

Renault had silently launched the petrol version of the Pulse hatchback sometime back, with the same engine as that of the Micra's.

http://www.renault.co.in/cars/pulse/specifications.html

The link however shows the heading as 'New Renault Megane hatchback specifications'.

[drmohitg]

I am still not comfortable with this approach of sharing cars across different car makers. At the end its exactly the same car with very minor differences. Sharing should be limited to engine and the basic design I feel. The interiors specially the dashboard should be given a different treatment since one would be spending most of the time inside the car and that is what matters to me. The sunny's dash looks really plain and sadly Scala is no different and is basically identical. At the end all they achieve is eating into each other's sales.

Nice review Anoop nevertheless. I guess its your first one right? Keep it up.

[naut]

Hey Noop!

Nice review there. Hope to see more such reviews from you.

Do you know the exact differences between Rxl & RxZ variants? Aren't airbags, music system (with steering wheel controls) present in the Rxl? Also I read elsewhere that ABS, ESP & EBD are standard across variants. Is this true?

The Renault site doesn't have the details yet.

If most of these features are present in RXL it might be okay to upgrade the HU in RXL to something which has support for USB & AUX (may be Bluetooth as well). Some of them even support controls through OEM steering wheel controls.

Going OT, nice to see you transition from a BHPian to a mod. Miss your balanced posts though.
Looks like they have reduced or am i looking elsewhere?

Regards,
Abhi

[21Archer84]

Front end of the GT-R appears to be a huge inspiration for this or is it just me?

Sunny is really a good car and hope Renault's strategy works out considering their reliable diesel engines.

Though there are cars sharing different logos, it's actually a good option for the customer to choose as it's not just the product that we buy, it's the A.S.S that's also equally important after the purchase. So, its the network and customer satisfaction that these companies need to improve on to sell their products.

[A M]

Nice review Noopster.

The Scala looks better than the Sunny, however, I would have loved if Renault had brought down the Scala they sell in other countries. That is what I was actually waiting for.
I hate this round theme of the Micra/Sunny/Pulse and now Scala.

http://www.renault.com/en/vehicules/...ges/scala.aspx

C'mon Renault... Give your cars an edge.

[aaggoswami]

Renault has missed an opportunity to upgrade brakes which are as negative in intensity as the positivity of rear legroom. Seriously, with the power and high speed cruising ability of diesel, brakes should be much, much better. Diesel, fully loaded suunys can effortlessly follow my Baleno on E-way at 140-150. Baleno certainly has better brakes than what I have experienced in sunny.

Moreover, the attitude of Renault dealers is pathetic. I visited one of them when we were asked by Toyota dealer to have our steering shaft replaced under Toyota's dictation. The sales person lacked energy to even talk about the car. I mean, dont push for sales, but not even enthusiastic to show the car ?

If this is selling attitude, what would be service attitude is the main question. Next, service infrastructure. Maruti/Hyundai and even Tata/M&M have had a planned expansion of service centers when volumes were raking up. Does Renault have sufficient service network ?

Recently, my uncle went to Renault showroom in A'bad for inquiring about Duster. The dealer was like "Dont even ask for Duster, there is so much waiting list. Not even inquiries are entertained". My uncle went ahead and booked Ertiga VDi on the same day.

Neither is the product a really exciting one, nor is the attitude of dealers/manufacturer. Not for enthusiasts and yet it has to prove itself. Not proven like, lets say Verito ( Logan ). Front end treatment would now give Hyundai some taste of its own medicine, and this is one nice effort by Renault.

[CRtorquefan]

Nice Integration of cousins(Sunny & Scala) road-test reviews.

But more interesting was the mid-RxL version, which comes with highly plush interiors which leaves behind Sunny in having Fabric lined door trims, satin finish door armrest, chrome lined door handles & most importantly Electroluminiscent 'Fine-vision' meter dials & many more tit-bits.
Even if Renault prices this car 20-25k more than Sunny's similar variant, i'll happily pay & opt for Scala for such things.

[StarrySky]

Am I the only one here who prefers the Sunny's looks to the Scala's? Not that I "like" the Sunny's looks.

I really don't see why anyone should buy Scala over Sunny, if the rumoured 90K price difference is true. Even a 50K price difference is a stretch. I think Renault brand is just as good or bad as Nissan and I don't think any premium just for the Renault brand makes sense.

Disappointing the note that the brakes still lack responsiveness. It is my biggest grouse against the Sunny.

I haven't really understood why companies do the re-badging exercise with hardly any differentiators betweeen the cars bar a few cosmetic features. In my opinion, rebadging hasn't really worked wonders for either Vento/Rapid or Micra/Pulse.

[SDP]

Nice review Noopster! Thanks.

This one does look significantly better than the Sunny and I liked the front end design. The front does remind you of the i10 though. Somehow this one does not look rear-heavy visually as Sunny.

The tradition of younger twin trumping the old continues (the earlier one being Vento-Rapid).

On a really lighter note, what's with Renault and the model names?
First the Duster and now its the Scala. When somebody is in the mood of mischief Renault Scala can be pronounced as "saala" or "ra-scala"

[bigron]

Nice Review. The car looks soo much better than the Sunny. However , that is one drab looking interior. But i guess the owner of this car will be at the rear bench most of the time. The product should do well if Renault can get people to acknowledge their presence and their cars.

[noopster]

Thanks very much for the comments, folks!

Originally Posted by vb-san

Are there any differences in safety kit, compared to the Sunny?

I believe not. Renault equips the Scala with ABS with EBD and Brake Assist across the range. The RxL and RxZ we drove were equipped with 2 front airbags- not sure about the RxE. The Sunny XE offers only driver-side airbag.

Originally Posted by satish_appasani

Is the color of TD car Pearl white? My wife was disappointed Sunny doesn't come in pearl white.

I believe it is. The Pulse is also offered in pearl white. The other colours we saw on the Scala were the blue, red, black and silver. Black looks hot, in my opinion. See for yourself:

Originally Posted by DrvSafe

I really do not get the point of Renault launching Pulse against Nissan Micra and then this Scala against Sunny. Can some one please like to explain on this strategy ?

It's a questionable strategy for sure since one of the fallouts may be that it only results in cannibalising the Sunny's sales (refer GTO's comment about waiting for the Scala). But you never know with these things: engine and platform sharing is very commonplace these days and it may well result in higher sales for the Scala-Sunny combine.

Originally Posted by StarScream

Just one question - the Autocar tv show today mentioned ESP as one of the safety features in the car, is that correct? I haven't heard that anywhere else.

No ESP.

Originally Posted by georgesraju

Renault had silently launched the petrol version of the Pulse hatchback sometime back, with the same engine as that of the Micra's.

Thanks very much for this. The Pulse was launched in diesel only unlike the Scala which gets both drivetrains at launch. I think the Pulse petrol, which shares the 3 pot 1.2L engine of the Micra, was launched in May this year. Hasn't made much of a splash as you rightly say.

Originally Posted by abhi.kedlaya

Do you know the exact differences between Rxl & RxZ variants?

• Leather seats
• Leather wrapped steering wheel and some leather touches to the doorpad
• Contoured two-tone gearshift knob
• Chrome "beltline" on the windows running from A to C pillars
• Electrically retractable mirrors (RxL gets electrically adjustable mirrors though)
• True keyless entry & go (see how it works here)

Hope I got them all: will add more if I think of them.

Originally Posted by 21Archer84

Front end of the GT-R appears to be a huge inspiration for this or is it just me?

It's not just you. A couple of guys on the test drive made the exact same comment!

Originally Posted by A M

The Scala looks better than the Sunny, however, I would have loved if Renault had brought down the Scala they sell in other countries. That is what I was actually waiting for.

The Scala that is sold in Egypt, Mexico & Colombia (slightly bigger car with a 1.6L 110 BHP petrol engine) was never supposed to be launched in India. Companies share a name for different cars across markets all the time and I guess this is another example.

Originally Posted by aaggoswami

Renault has missed an opportunity to upgrade brakes which are as negative in intensity as the positivity of rear legroom.

Spot-on! Ditto for the notchy gearshift as well. If Renault had tackled these at the time of the Scala launch they would done themselves a world of good!

Moreover, the attitude of Renault dealers is pathetic. I visited one of them when we were asked by Toyota dealer to have our steering shaft replaced under Toyota's dictation. The sales person lacked energy to even talk about the car. I mean, dont push for sales, but not even enthusiastic to show the car ?
(...)
Recently, my uncle went to Renault showroom in A'bad for inquiring about Duster. The dealer was like "Dont even ask for Duster, there is so much waiting list. Not even inquiries are entertained". My uncle went ahead and booked Ertiga VDi on the same day.

I gave the same feedback to the Renault folks at the launch. This is based on my experience last year at the Pune Renault showroom a day after the Fluence launch.
But the fact is, after the excitement surrounding the Duster launch, Renault cannot afford to have its dealers behave in such a high-handed manner. Your uncle's experience is hopefully an exception. Guess we'll have to wait and see.

[morphique]

Hey noops, a dumb question: do you mean Vento / Rapid are better in the handling department? Or it is the other way around?

Originally Posted by noopster

At higher speeds and around the twisties though, the ride gets increasingly unsettled and the rear tends to swing about a bit. No comparison to the Rapid & Vento in the handling department at all.

[noopster]

^^ The Vento/Rapid are definitely superior in the handling department.

[dot]

Great Review!

I was impressed to see the number of Nissan Sunny cars plying on our roads when I came back to India. It probably shows that the Nissan/Renault brand is getting the visibility it deserves and more customers are going for the value that these cars offers compared to the usual fare from Ms and Hs. The fact that both Pulse and Micra sells also shows that customers are willing to take a chance and get something different for themselves.

While I personally do not fancy the rounded design elements in Sunny's design, no doubt the Scala's design has a few things going for it when compared to the Sunny. Love Renault's front bumper treatment. However I wish they had upgraded the tyres specs of Scala to R16 or something as the tyres look rather disproportionately small when compared to the bulk of the side profile.

[S@ndy]

This looks much better than the disproportionate Sunny. Since the Duster had a great impact on the renault brand in India, I guess this was the correct time for Scala to be launched.

P.S. Noop, how is the sound quality of the speakers of Scala. Are they different or the same?
Do you have any idea how much the Scala would be priced higher than Sunny?

S@ndy