Renault Kiger: The Best Car for 15 lakh
I test-drove the Kiger1 petrol crossover2 both in the city and on the highway, and evaluated it against my requirements. Based on this, my conclusion is that the Kiger is the best car for 15 lakh.
But you should stretch your budget to 17 lakh and buy an EV like the M. G. Windsor. EVs are here — they’re quiet, fast, stress-free to drive and so much more fun. Buying a fossil-fuel powered clunker today is like buying a Nokia after the iPhone and Android were released.
This car is also available as the Nissan Magnite, sharing the same technology, with only tweaks. I didn’t test drive the facelifted version of the Magnite that was launched in Oct, so you should do so before you buy the Kiger. When I said that the Kiger is the best car for 15 lakh, I meant the Kiger / Magnite.
+ The car is 4 meters long, so it’s easy to park.
- There’s no 360-degree camera
+ Cruise control
- Not adaptive
- When you try to put on the seatbelt, the center console comes in the way.
- When reversing, as you turn the steering wheel, you don’t get curved indicators that move and show you which way the car will go.
+ Hill hold for 3s
Comfort
+ The seating position is high and my stomach isn’t pressed the way it is in some other cars.
+ There’s enough legroom in both the driver and front passenger seat for me to stretch comfortably.
+ The steering wheel doesn’t touch my knees.
- The headroom isn’t great like my Ritz, but it’s not so bad that it’s a dealbreaker.
- The seat isn’t electrically adjustable.
+ The inner rear-view mirror has high magnification
+ The wing mirror is wide-angle (I was able to see two lanes)
+ There’s no leather in the car, which is good since it avoids cruelty to animals
+ The boot is big for a 4-meter car, significantly bigger than that of Ritz, which is also 4 meters.
+ The car has various traction control modes, which are helpful when you know ahead of time the surface you’ll be driving on.
± The interior isn’t as polished as that of the Creta, which is fair since the Kiger is 9 lakhs cheaper.
Driving
- The Kiger comes with a CVT, with no option for a DCT or a torque converter. This makes it unsuitable for spirited driving — the CVT will be damaged if you try. Don’t floor it, whether to accelerate quickly or to max out the speed for a long time on the highway. Instead, drive gently, as if there’s a baby or an old or sick person who’ll complain otherwise.
+ There’s a slight lag in acceleration but it’s not a problem if you drive gently.
- The CVT doesn’t whine, as the Creta’s does. The latter is grating, and the former, pleasant.
- The car takes a long time to accelerate past 100 kph, similar to my Ritz. This is because it has only a 1-liter turbocharged engine.
± The Kiger has a 3- rather than 4-cylinder engine. 3 cylinder engines often sound harsh, but not the Kiger’s.
- At low speed, when I brake, the car rumbles.
+ Absorbs bumps at moderate speed
Digital features
- The screen is only 8 inches in size, and not bright.
- It requires a firm touch.
- No USB-C
- The music quality isn’t amazing like the Creta’s.
- The volume control on my iPhone didn’t work when playing music
Cooling
- No ventilated seats
+ Climate control
- No AC remote start (the car doesn’t have a SIM)
+ Chilled glove box
- No rear window sunshades
+ Can open or close all AC vents (unlike my Ritz, where the center two vents are always open)
Safety
- Seat belt pretensioner but no force limiter
- No side airbag for head or hip
- No lane departure warning
- No blind spot monitoring
- No emergency brake assist
+ ESC
+ TPMS
+ DRLs
- No auto headlamps
+ Unstable at high speed (similar to my Ritz)
+ The rear-view mirror vibrates at high speed, adding to the danger.
- Impact-sensing door unlock
Rear seat
+ Enough legroom for me to stretch comfortably
+ Comfortable
- Windows don’t go down fully
+ AC vents
+ 12V socket
+ High capacity seat pockets
+ Speakers
+ Air purifier
- The window is a little small
The top-end CVT
It’s monocoque / unibody.