When a maker like Renault goes on a full-blown attack on every SUV segment it can place its hands on, you know that SUVs and crossovers are here to stay for good.
In a span of a couple of years, the French went from having just the Korean-built and for the most part, uncompetitive Koleos, to two new modern products, the sub-compact Captur and the compact Kadjar, not to mention the semi-MPV, semi-crossover, latest-gen Espace. And now, they’re working on two more products, the longer and roomier Grand Captur, and the car you see here, a new mid-size SUV.
We don’t know what they’re going to call it yet, though judging from their recent nomenclature, it will be something that sounds either exotic or strange to the ears, perhaps even both…
What we do know is that it’s based on the same CMF (Common Module Family) CD platform jointly-developed by Renault and Nissan, which is found under the Renault Kadjar and Espace, and the Nissan Qashqai and X-Trail, among others. The French mid-size SUV will be significantly bigger than the 4.47 m long Kadjar, and very likely, longer than the 4.64 m Nissan X-Trail to better compete space-wise against the Kia Sorento and Hyundai Santa Fe.
Under the hood, it’s the oh-so predictable Renault-Nissan alliance we’re talking about, so no surprises here with the French SUV to gain a similar set of powertrain options to the X-Trail, including a 1.6-liter DIG-T turbo’d petrol and a selection of diesel four-pots, with a choice of front-wheel drive or four-wheel drive.
The prototype we spied was wearing a production body, but Renault’s engineers had tricked it out with fake padding on several panels. Nevertheless, the vibe we’re getting from the tester is that of an enlarged and slightly more serious-looking Kadjar, with a less rounded face that edges a bit closer to the Talisman series.
The new D-segment SUV is expected to debut next year, and will be sold in a number of regions around the world, including China.
Photo Credits: CarPix for CarScoops
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