French carmaker Renault may lift a page from its Nissan partner when the time comes to replace its Laguna series, which has not been able to establish itself in the European mid-size segment against the likes of the Volkswagen Passat and Opel Insignia.
Because of its poor sales figures, Renault recently took the difficult decision to drop the Laguna sedan and coupe (among other models) from the UK market this February.
Nissan was facing a similar problem with its most of its conventional offerings like the B-Segment Micra and the C-Segment Almera across the pond and elsewhere. The Japanese automaker then decided to introduce two very different models to compete in the popular categories, the Juke and the Qashqai crossovers, both of which proved to be a success.
Speaking with Autocar magazine, Renault UK boss Thierry Sybord, said that he favors a similar solution for the Laguna’s replacement that will arrive in 2015.
“If the next-generation Laguna is the same as the current one, then there’s no way it will be a success in the UK,” Sybord told the magazine. “My view is that, in Europe, there is not enough opportunity to sell this kind of saloon. There are the two German actors in Europe, and the two big fleet operators in the UK, Ford and Vauxhall. We can’t compete.”
Sybord noted that Renault will take a decision on the Laguna’s replacement within the next three months, and that a crossover had been suggested to overcome the sales problem.
“Therefore we are still thinking of a new kind of car, possibly a crossover saloon,” he said. “Look at what the Qashqai has done for that market, it is a success. It would be a new kind of car for the market, but it would be very hard to do. The decision is whether we want to carry on with what we’ve done before; if we build the same car again, the situation will stay the same.”
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