2015 Renault Lodgy long-term review, final report

The Lodgy gets a touchscreen infotainment system that doubles as a display for the rear camera; you surely need this to pack this massive MPV into tight parking spots. The sound system isn’t bad either, and the automatic speed-sensing volume feature is quite useful. On a related note, I did get quite familiar with the oddly-placed steering column-mounted audio controls that are hidden from view.

While the Lodgy had its list of positives, there were a few weak areas. The front seats were comfortable on short drives, but our  staffers found them to be unsupportive on long journeys. Also, the seat height-adjust system felt cheaply executed and awkward to use. The third row of seats was used minimally, but when we did, it was not easy to access, and because there is no space under the middle row captain seats, legroom for the last row can become an issue. 

During my time with the Lodgy, what I found taxing was driving it in the terrible stop-and-go traffic of Mumbai because of the engine-gearbox combination. This motor, as mentioned earlier, is great on the highway, but the evident turbo lag gets a tad annoying in the city. I had a chance to drive the less-powerful 85PS Lodgy as well, and that motor proved to be more tractable and pulled more eagerly from low revs.

To sum it up, our Lodgy long-termer was on the road longer than any other car in our fleet. With a spacious cabin, consistently good ride quality and a highway-friendly engine, it is with good reason that we hail Renault’s large MPV an ideal workhorse.