Renault Fluence to undercut rivals

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 which goes on sale in June this year is targeted at customers who want "great value in a stylish and innovative package and don't need the snob value of a Volkswagen", says Norman.

With the Fluence, Renault will make a fresh start in India. The Fluence which will go head to head with the VW Jetta and Skoda Laura, will be significantly cheaper and the pricing will be more in line with the Corolla. 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. The Fluence is built on the very capable Renault-Nissan C platform which is also the base for the Megane III.

Under the hood will be a more powerful version of the Logan's 1.5-litre diesel dCi engine developing 105bhp of max power. 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 will include gizmos like Keyless Start, refrigerated glove box and Bluetooth Connectivity to name a few.

The Fluence is expected to hit Indian shores by June 2011 and will carry a price tag of Rs 12-13lakh.