Renault-Nissan alliance plan new SUVs, Triber-based MPV for India

Renault and Nissan have witnessed a muted affair in the Indian market in the last few years, with a portfolio spanning only a handful of models. Especially the latter, which is only survived by its sub-compact crossover– Magnite. Amid a diminishing presence in the country, the alliance partners have announced new models for the Indian market.

As per their new product plant, both automotive brands will be investing around Rs 4,000 crore ($500 million) in India. Both carmakers haven’t had a new launch for a while now and will work closely on shared models including new SUVs, MPVs and electric vehicles (EVs).

New SUVs on cards, Duster to return?

The compact mid-size SUV segment in India, which is a popular space in the passenger vehicle segment, was kickstarted by Renault when it launched Duster in 2013. The SUV was very popular initially, but the advent of newer models affected its sales, and it was eventually discontinued from the market in 2021.

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During its turbulent stint in India, Duster received only sporadic updates which made it outdated compared to its rivals. In fact, Renault updated the Duster in international markets with the second-generation model in 2018 but failed to reach India.

The affiliate carmakers will be launching new SUVs for the Indian market that is likely to be the third generation model of Duster, according to a statement. The new-gen Duster will be based on a heavily localised CMF-B (Common Module Family) modular platform, which has been developed by Nissan and Renault. This architecture will support petrol engines as well as hybrid powertrains with a diesel mill very much out of the cards.

Moreover, the media document also states that a version of the compact SUV will also have the Nissan logo. For the uninitiated, the Japanese carmaker earlier sold a rebranded first-gen model of Duster under its roof named Terrano, for a brief period in India. It is yet to be seen if the upcoming Nissan derivative of Duster will be called Terrano or something else.

When launched, the upcoming Duster and its Nissan sibling will rival a plethora of SUVs in the compact mid-size segment including Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, Volkswagen Taigun, Skoda Kushaq, Maruti Grand Vitara and Toyota Hyryder.

A-segment EV in development

Other than models powered by internal combustion engines (ICE) and hybrid powertrains, Renault and Nissan are planning to introduce fully-electric battery-powered vehicles too. The carmakers are considering launching an A-segment (smallest category of passenger vehicles) EV in the future that will cater to the entry-level segment in the Indian market.

This upcoming EV will be based on the CMF-AEV platform. In fact, Renault retails a fully-electric version of Kwid in some overseas markets which was showcased in the 2020 edition of Auto Expo and we can expect the same to come to India.

Triber-based MPV from Nissan

The statement also said that Nissan will be developing a new multi purpose vehicle ( MPV) for India based on its CMF-A+ platform which currently underpins Renault Triber. The latter is currently the smallest and the most affordable MPV in India. Nissan has plans to increase footfalls at its showrooms with this low-cost people’s mover.

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X-Trail, Juke, Qashqai: Nissan aims to shake up Indian market with SUV lineup

Meanwhile, Nissan also has other products in the pipeline for India which the company showcased a couple of months ago. The most prominent of those is the X-Trail SUV which is slated to take on premium D-segment SUVs like Toyota Fortuner, MG Gloster and Jeep Meridian. The other models in consideration are Qashqai and Juke.