Renault Fluence saloon previewed

Renault will commence its second innings in India with the launch of its Fluence saloon. The French car maker has previewed its Fluence and will officially launch the car on May 23, with sales starting from June 2011.

The Fluence which will go head to head with the VW Jetta and Skoda Laura, and will be significantly cheaper and the pricing will be more in line with the Corolla. We expect the prices to start from Rs 12 lakh for the petrol and Rs 14 lakh for the diesel variant.

Under the hood will be a 2-litre petrol motor and a more powerful version of the Logan's 1.5-litre diesel dCi engine. The petrol motor develops 137bhp while the diesel will churn out 105bhp of max power. As per the company claims, the diesel powered Fluence will have an efficiency figure of 21.84kpl. The suspension will be well tuned for comfort and the ride is expected to be outstanding. Equipment levels will be on par with the competition and the fully loaded Fluence will sport gizmos like Keyless Start, Bluetooth Connectivity, dual zone climate control and four airbags to name a few.

Renault has officially confirmed that the Fluence saloon will be competitively priced "below its Western European rivals", according to Stephen Norman, Sr. Vice-President, Renault. The Fluence saloon is targeted at customers who want "great value in a stylish and innovative package and don't need the snob value of a Volkswagen", he added.

The Renault’s new saloon is far removed from the Logan’s square lines. It looks terrific from almost any angle and in India will certainly stand out from the mundane and generic styling of its rivals.

In India, the Fluence will be assembled from CKD kits shipped in from Renault's Turkey plant, but expect a fair bit of local content which will be essential to keep costs down.

Renault has claimed it will have 14 dealerships in 12 major cities by the time its Fluence is launched. The car manufacturer will expand its network by the end of this year, establishing 40 dealerships by December 2011 and further targeting 100 dealerships in 55 cities by the next year.

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