Renault India planning A-Entry small car and Lodgy based MPV

While the French automaker Renault is basking in the success of the Duster SUV, it doesn't want to be labelled as a one car wonder. Currently, Renault sells five car models in India: the Pulse, Scala, Duster, Fluence and Koleos. While the Duster is by far the biggest success for Renault in India, the car maker's other models continue to be also-rans in the hugely competitive Indian car market. To move beyond the Duster, Renault will need something special. 

Although the Duster has propelled Renault to the top ten (by sales) list of Indian car makers, the competition in the compact SUV space is set to rise in a big way. Naturally, de-risking is the name of the game. Second in command at Renault after Mr Carlos Ghosn, Mr Carlos Tavares, the COO of the French automaker, has hinted at two new products for the Indian car market. By 2018, Renault hopes to have 7 or 8 cars being sold in India.

The new cars include a small car dubbed the A-Entry and an MPV based on the Dacia Lodgy. These cars will take Renault's focus away from a single hot segment (compact SUV) to two other big volume segments (entry level small cars and MPVs). Unofficial product launch timelines for these products have been doing the rounds for quite some time now, even as Renault remains tight lipped about the same. 

Launching into the finer details, the A-Entry small car could use an 800cc petrol engine. The new small car is expected to sit under the Pulse hatchback, Renault's current entry level model. Aimed at the high volume B-segment hatchback space, the A-Entry will have to contend with formidable competition that includes big names such as the Maruti Alto 800 and the Hyundai Eon. A high amount of localization and production at the Renault-Nissan joint manufacturing facility at Oragadam is likely for the A-Entry small car. 

Renault's alliance partner ,Nissan, will join the entry level small car space in 2014, with not one but two car models badged with Datsun plates. The Datsun K2 and I2 small cars will sit below Nissan's least priced product in India, the Micra hatchback.  Renault, for its part is rumoured to have kept June 2015, as the internal deadline for the A-Entry's launch in India. The car is said to be India specific with Renault open to selling the model worldwide in case the car succeeds in India. 

Mr Tavares, speaking to the EconomicTimes, has emphasized on how important it is to deliver value to the Indian car buyer, who is now exposed to the latest trends and features on cars, what with a slew of international brands operating in the country post the economic liberalization. So, the A-Entry small car from Renault could be a contemporary product engineered with frugal principles. This formula is a similar approach that Nissan is said to be using for the Datsun low cost car range. 

Coming to the other major product launch from Renault, the J92 code named Dacia Lodgy based MPV is expected to make an Auto Expo 2014 debut. The MPV, which is already on sale in Europe, uses the second generation Dacia Logan's underpinnings (M0 Platform) and serves as a low cost MPV in many parts of Europe. The MPV is available with petrol and turbo diesel (1.5 Liter K9K) engine options. A five door-7 seat layout is what the J92 Dacia Lodgy based MPV could offer. 

Delving into the M0 platform that underpins the Lodgy, the new platform has been derived from the earlier B0 platform that underpins Dacia cars such as the Logan and the Duster. The M0 platform hosts Dacia's new range of cars such as the Logan II, Sandero II and the Lodgy. Both the B0 and M0 platforms are stretched versions of Renault-Nissan's jointly developed B-platform. As is evident, parts and platform sharing are the overarching philosophies of Renault-Nissan and the allied brands that the car makers operate across the globe.