“In my opinion, outside India, you cannot make a car like this, no matter where you go. Even in Brazil, Russia, or China, you cannot build a car to this cost target. With a car like this, you need Indian creativity and frugal engineering with no compromise on cost, which is so specific to the Indian approach”, said Carlos Ghosn, Renault’s CEO and a long-time fan of Indian ingenuity.
To optimise the car even more, Renault used a mix of French, Japanese and Indian engineers, bringing skills from all over the world. Still, this car was born in Chennai and so was the CMF-A platform, which will spawn various derivatives of the Kwid as well as underpin a wide range of Datsun products.
Project-head Gerard Detourbet was based in India and so was most of his team. “The only way to develop a truly Indian car is to lead the development out of India”, said Detourbet who designed and developed the Renault Kwid from a clean sheet of paper. The only components imported are some critical engine components like the connecting rods, knock sensors and fuel injectors.
Renault has invested close to Rs 3,000 crore in the design, development and manufacturing of the Kwid.
NISHANT PAREKH
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