IMOTO: RENAULT KIGER
Renault South Africa has fulfilled its promise to bring it to market with the upgraded Kiger turbo engine that was first introduced at the end of last year.
When the Kiger was launched in November, the CEO of Renault, Shumani Tshifuralo, revealed that they chose not to wait for it to be launched all at once but decided to start with one without a turbo.
This is because the Kiger is one of their most popular cars as nearly 30,000 have been purchased since it went on sale in 2021.
The engine is the same as the previous one as it is a 1.0 liter turbo petrol. It has a power of 74 kW and a torque of 160Nm. If I may remind you, the turbocharger has a power of 52kW.
It might be what they put in the Triber as they have revealed that they are in the process of introducing a turbo as it is now sluggish.
You get this engine with a 5-speed manual or X-Tronic CVT gearbox.
I have an automatic transmission that I got to drive for a while in Cape Town and I immediately felt its ‘liveliness’ because the power increases quickly.
Although I don’t have a problem with Kiger without turbo especially in Durban which is an area along the sea but if you are in the middle of the province or if you are a person who travels to places with turbo you can look towards it.
You don’t need to think carefully before passing other cars because the power is there for them.
They have made a big difference in the way it looks from the outside and inside, if you compare it to the old Kiger.
Outside, it has LED headlights, turbo engraving on the front fender, 16 inch rims, roof rails that carry 50kg of weight and a rear spoiler.
If you want to know, go get it with a dark color on the skull that doesn’t match the body.
The interior is upscale with leather seats that can be heated up front, a wireless charging port and a 7-inch digital instrument cluster.
It also has an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto wireless connectivity.
It also features a rear camera that helps you avoid collisions when parking.
This is one of the safety features.
It also has ABS brakes, EBD, it tells when the air is low in the tires, six airbags and more.
The arrival of Kiger turbo enables it to compete well with competitors including Nissan Magnite, Mahindra 3XO, Chery Tiggo 4 Pro, Hyundai Venue and others.
Price:
Kiger 1.0L TURBO TECHNO – R 278 999.00
Kiger 1.0L TURBO ICONIC – R298 999.00
Kiger 1.0L TURBO ICONIC CVT – R 329 999.00
All come with a five-year or 150,000km warranty and a two-year or 30,000km service plan.