Renault India reveals seven-seater Triber

After having seen reasonable success with the Renault Kwid in the entry-level segment in India, the French carmaker is all set to leverage the potential of its Compact Modular Frame (CMF) architecture with the new Triber revealed today in New Delhi.  The French carmaker says this is “a world-first vehicle designed and produced for the Indian market and an entirely new ultra-modular, modern and value-for-money model.”

It may be recollected that it was December 2017 that Autocar Professional first reported about Renault working on more entry level models for India.  

The Triber, which took five years to develop since 2014 has the bigger task at hand of doubling Renault India’s sales and market share by 2022. In FY2019, Renault India sold a total of 79,654 units, down 22 percent year on year. It also exported 11,687 units (+9.5%). The company in FY2019 had a passenger vehicle market share of 2.36 percent, down from the 3.11 percent (102,219 units) it had in FY2018.

India has played a key role right from the conceptualisation stage and Renault India engineers invited customer feedback from 500 extended family households in India to contribute to the Triber's design.

According to Thierry Bolloré, CEO, Groupe Renault, "India is a key market for the global automotive industry and it remains so for Groupe Renault as well with over 500,000 Renault cars on the roads in India."

"The Triber was conceived in India especially for the Indian market, and we will first launch it here before taking it to global markets such as Latin America, where the Kwid has proven successful too," he added.

Renault says that it has worked hard to re-invent space for such a compact size form (sub-4 metres). The car features SUV cues including high ground clearance, roof rails and a bold stance.

Speaking to Autocar Professional, Venkatram Mamillapalle, MD, Renault India, said, "We have a very high volume expectation from the Triber and we will surprise the market with the price."

"It is rightly designed for India and fits the needs of Indian customers perfectly well. Our initial focus will remain on domestic market with exports starting at a later date," he added. 

The inside story

On the inside, the Renault Triber gets a smartly destined dashboard with a touch-screen infotainment system and all focus lies on space and utility. There are smartly designed utility spaces including air-cooled cup holders and the Triber boasts of best-in-segment legroom in the second and third rows.

While the second row seats can slide and fold forward, the third row seats can be dismantled altogether with Renault's 'EasyFix' mechanism to liberate over 625-litres in boot space - a segment benchmark. Dual front airbags and ABS will be standard safety kit across variants.

The Triber will come equipped with a 1.0-litre three-cylinder 'Energy' petrol engine which comes with Dual-VVT technology and will be rated to produce 72bhp. With an optimised platform, Renault says that the Triber offers 20 percent lower total cost of ownership than similar B-segment hatchbacks available in the market.

With the Triber, Renault expands its India vehicle range which currently comprises the Kwid, Duster and Captur. “Our goal with Triber was to design a car that would transform according to the many needs and the many lives of our customers. Whether they are parents, lovers, a friends’ group, a family pack, whatever their tribe, whatever their lifestyle, Renault Triber should adapt. The Triber is true to the Indian values of conviviality and sharing, which are the same in Renault. It offers an attractive, robust and compact design and is re-inventing space for all. We are very proud of our latest breakthrough, which turned a length challenge into a miracle within 4 metres!,” said Laurens van den Acker, executive vice-president, Corporate Design, Groupe Renault.

Laurens van den Acker: "The Triber offers an attractive, robust and compact design and is re-inventing space for all."

Powering the Renault Triber will be an upgraded version of the Kwid’s 1.0-litre (BR10), three-cylinder petrol engine making 72hp and 96Nm of torque. This engine is the same 1.0 SCe petrol motor used in international models like the Renault Clio and Dacia Sandero. The transmission options for the Triber at launch will be a 5-speed manual gearbox and a 5-speed automated manual transmission (AMT). By mid-2020, Renault will add a turbocharged 1.0-litre petrol engine to the Triber line-up.

The Renault Triber's launch in India is set to take place in the coming months, and while there are no direct rivals, the Triber will aim to fight it out with the premium hatchbacks and compact SUVs currently on sale. The French brand claims that the total cost of ownership is 20 percent less than B-segment hatchbacks.

The Triber will be manufactured at the Oragadam, Chennai plant and launched at a competitive price in the Indian market in the second half of 2019. Expect pricing to be around the Rs 530,000 mark. 

Also read: Interview: Laurens van den Acker: ‘The Renault Triber is a completely new vehicle with over 90 percent new parts.’

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