The Renault Kwid has been launched for the Indian market in four variants with a starting price of Rs 2.56 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). It is powered by a single petrol engine and will be offered with five colour options. We have already driven the car and you can find links to the first drive review and video at the bottom of this story.
It will be made available in four standard variants – STD, RXE, RXL and RXT and two option packs with the RXE and RXT versions. The colour options include silver, grey, white, bronze and the familiar red that we have been seeing in most of the car’s media releases as well as the first drive.
The engine is an 800c three-cylinder mill that produces 53.3bhp@5678rpm and 72Nm@4386rpm. It has been mated to a five-speed manual with the option of a five-speed AMT expected sometime next year.
Variant wise break-up of the Renault Kwid
RXT / RXT option
The top-of-the-line RXT variant is priced at Rs 3.44 lakh. On the outside, it gets body coloured bumpers, front fog lamps, ORVMs on both sides, black cladding for the B-pillar, black rub rails, tinted glazing and black coloured steel wheels with plastic cover.
The cabin gets a dual tone dashboard with chrome garnish for the instrument cluster and AC knobs, contoured front seats with outer cladding, foldable rear seats and dark red coloured contrast colouring for the seat fabrics.
On the convenience front, the features include power steering, power windows, trip computer, lower glove box, rear parcel tray, cabin light with timer, inner release for the fuel lid and tail gate and a gear shift indicator. The Kwid features a first-in-segment touchscreen infotainment system (MediaNAV as Renault likes to call it) and is available on the RXT variant.
For Rs 9,000 extra, the RXT option variant gets a driver side airbag. In terms of security, central locking is standard on both these variants, while an engine immobiliser features on all except the base model.
RXL
The RXL trim is the second-level variant for the Kwid and is priced at Rs 3.12 lakh. As compared to the RXT variant it loses out on the front fog lamps, chrome garnish for the instrument cluster and leather wrap for the steering wheel. The centre console now gets a silver coloured theme with plain black knobs for the AC unit while the upholstery has been trimmed out in a lighter shade of red as compared to the RXT variant.
This variant also loses out on the power windows, lower glove box, rear parcel tray, timer and fade out function for the cabin light. The touchscreen infotainment system has been replaced by a 1-din unit and there is no keyless entry or auto wash and wipe function for the wipers.
RXE / RXE Opt
The RXE trim level is the one above the entry-level STD variant with a price tag of Rs 2.89 lakh. In terms of features it does not lose out much compared to the RXL variant but what has been deleted seems pretty significant. On the appearance front, the steering wheel accent and satin finish for the air vents have been removed. The upholstery is now a shade of grey with a small plastic cladding around the edges. This is the first variant in the line-up that is offered without power steering, a move we think is rather fruitless when you consider the fact that all of its rivals now offer power steering as a standard feature.
For Rs 6,000 extra, Renault offers the car with a music system in the RXE Opt. However, even this variant does not have power steering.
STD
This is the most basic variant of the Renault Kwid with a sticker price of Rs 2.56 lakh. The features list is very similar to that of the RXE variant but loses out even on the AC and only gets a heater function.
Summary:
Everything starting with the RXL variant of the Kwid seems lucrative for the price. There is no point looking at the lower-spec variants since there is no power steering. We will, however, recommend the top-end RXT Opt. For Rs 40,000 over the RXL, it has everything from fog lamps, cosmetic upgrades to touch-screen music system with navigation and a driver-side airbag.