Renault Kwid export to SAARC countries to begin this year

Renault Kwid has been writing success stories in India since its launch in the country and is expected to add new variants in its line-up in the coming months. The French auto-maker, which saw its monthly sales reaching a record high of 12,426 in April 2016, has now confirmed that the export of the Kwid to the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries will commence this year.

Renault India Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Sumit Sawhney told Business Standard exports to the SAARC region would begin this year, and would be followed by the launch of the Kwid in Brazil. He also said Renault was exploring the African markets for the Kwid.

Renault is expected to launch the new 1,000cc and AMT variants in India soon. Although the launch dates of the new variants are yet to be revealed, Sawhney said one of these models would be launched in the first half of the year. The Kwid 1.0-litre would be powered by a 1,000cc petrol unit that is expected to develop over 65bhp mated to five-speed manual transmission. The AMT variant will also get the same engine, but with an AMT box.

The current model of the Kwid carries a 799cc three-cylinder petrol motor under the hood, which is tuned to churn out 53bhp and a peak torque of 72Nm, with a five-speed manual gearbox. Offered in four variants — Standard, RxE, RxL and RxT — the Kwid is the first car to be built on the CMF-A platform and offers the best-in-class mileage of 25.17kmpl.