Renault is preparing for a product offensive for 2025, led by the new Duster

Renault South Africa, which has kept a relatively low profile for most of 2024, officially announced its product plans for 2025 at a special media conference held in Magaliesberg on Friday.

Why ‘silence?’

Renault South Africa Vice President of Sales and Marketing Zian van Heerden attributed the quiet 2024 to the difficulties in the exchange rate, as its models are paid in Euros regardless of the country of origin, and said that he wants to remain a key player in this period. It is the sub-R500,000 segments where 75% of local consumers are reported to be shopping for a vehicle.

“As Renault, we are an importer; we do not export, we only import, and the biggest problem for us until before the (local government) elections was the exchange rate,” Van Heerden said.

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“Everything we buy is in Euros and before the election (the exchange rate) was just under R20. It has since dropped to around R19 which is affordable for us.

“We can import all the nice things at R18.50 for the euro, but beyond that it gets difficult. That’s one of the main reasons why we had to make the tough decision last year: “Do we bring Oroch, yes or no?”

Acknowledging that both pre-production prototypes shown at the Nampo Agricultural Fair in Bothaville in the Free State last year have since been destroyed, van Heerden said the Rand’s comparison with the Euro at the time left him no option but to delay production. It would keep the first-generation Duster-based Oroch out indefinitely because it would be too expensive and not a viable product to market.

Problems are getting better

However, van Heerden was positive about the latest forecasts for the local automotive industry, saying that although the Rand was trending downward, “there is no immediate threat to this and our country is quite stable, which should be positive for us.”

“We have seen some very good forecasts from some economists of R18.05 for the Euro by December next year, which will be really good for vehicle imports in South Africa.”

A job well done

Going further, van Heerden said that the brand’s current range of four products (Kwid, Triber, Kiger and Captur) will be significantly increased from March next year, as the brand aims to regain its position among the top five vehicle brands. It was relegated to sixth place by Chery.

“If you look at the top five selling brands, the average number of different offerings that will hit the sweet spot (when it comes to volume) is nine. Below that, you’re going to struggle.

“The disruptor here is Chery with all three and kudos to them. But if you want to sell volume you need to introduce more models,” he said.

“We will go above the R500 000 level and with Kwid, Triber and Kiger doing consistently good business, (we believe there is an opportunity) to get involved (in this part of the market).”

new products

March: Duster

The brand, which was shown as Renault in some European markets earlier this year after being launched under sister brand Dacia last year, will begin its rollout in March with the introduction of the much-delayed new Duster.

Originally expected to go on sale in the last quarter of this year, the Duster will form part of Renault’s transition to electrification and will be powered by a 48-volt mild hybrid powertrain instead of the much-loved but discontinued engine. 1.5 liter turbodiesel.

Initially sourced from Dacia’s Mioveni Plant in Romania, production will move to the Chennai plant in India in the second half of the year as part of a strategic move. Bring on the Bigster To South Africa in 2026 or 2027.

Coinciding with alliance partner Nissan’s upcoming launch of two models produced at the same factory and based on the Duster and Bigster, the South Africa-specific Duster will again be offered with front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive. the latter is again only available with a six-speed manual transmission.

Confirmation of the mild hybrid powertrain shown at the conference in near-production all-wheel drive form indicates that the expected engine will be a turbocharged 1.2-litre TCe petrol producing 96 kW.

The no-no for now is the E-Tech Hybrid, which combines a normally aspirated 1.6-litre petrol with a 1.2 kWh battery pack for a total system output of 103 kW.

Bigster under review

At the other end of the spectrum, the Bigster, which uses the same platform as the Duster, will only be offered as a seven-seater to justify its projected premium.

Although it is offered as a five-seater in Europe, a three-row layout was consciously chosen for South Africa so as not to undermine sales of the five-seat-only Duster.

No details are known about the specifications at this time, but Renault has admitted that it has started talks about a series structure for South Africa.

Q2: Hello Clio with make-up

It will make its debut alongside the Duster in the second quarter of 2024. Clio with make-up it also had its first public screening at the conference.

Unveiled in April last year, the redesigned model will initially come with an unchanged powertrain consisting of a 1.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine and a five-speed manual transmission.

Although an autobox has been spotted on the engine in question, which is not available in Europe, there are rumors that the price premium applied to the self-shifter could mean it won’t be available again in a similar scenario that prevents Renault from producing the all-wheel drive model. Duster is available with two pedals.

For now, Clio’s exact specifications will only be revealed closer to the local launch date.

fourth quarter abundance

More broadly, it appears that not only the updated Captur but also the equally long-delayed Captur will be unveiled in the fourth quarter of the year. Coupe style Arkana.

The delay of a model expected to go on sale in 2024 is actually Renault’s fault. face lift model Launched in Europe last year to the local market.

Arkana, which was previewed alongside the renewed Captur Hybrid at Renault’s hybrid efficiency driving competition at Zwartkops Raceway last year, will again be offered only as a hybrid; This means the same electric power unit as the Captur, albeit with 105 kW.

Rounding out the quarter, the Trafic minibus will be joined by a passenger version targeting the Hyundai Staria, Volkswagen Transporter and the new Ford Tourneo, while the facelifted Kiger and Triber will also make their debuts in response to their worldwide showings. India in April.

beyond 2025

The long-delayed replacement for the Kadjar will finally debut in Europe after 2025. Shape of symbiosis The Koleos’ successor in 2026, the Chinese-made Grand Koleos, remains a no-no for now, as production remains a left-hand drive-only affair.

However, Renault South Africa has announced that feasibility studies have been initiated to produce it with the steering gear on the right and is interested in offering it locally once it is converted.

At the other end of the scale, its newest electric products (the revitalized 4 and 5) will not be available due to challenges in the charging network and a lack of government incentives to encourage electric vehicles.

When asked about the possible price of the 5, van Heerden stated that launching it in the desired specifications would come with a price tag of over R1 million; He described the move as financially pointless.

No Oroch replacement

In addition, although it has attracted great attention, it is thought that Niagara, the successor to Oroch, will be produced exclusively for Latin America for now. It will be released in 2026.

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