Renault Lodgy India: Image gallery and first impressions from media drive event

As we type this, our colleague Ayan Ghosh is participating in the official media drive of the Renault Lodgy and reporting live from the event. The new MPV from the French carmaker looks rather promising and may succeed in what the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga and the Honda Mobilio couldn’t quite accomplish – displace the Innova from its throne.

Subtly styled from the outside, but very spacious on the inside, the Renault Lodgy is expected to help Renault India further strengthen its foothold in India after having tasted great success with the Duster. We’re sure you’re interested in knowing a bit more about this fresh new people mover, which Renault is calling an ‘eight-seater’. Here we have some images, first impressions and details about this vehicle.

To start with, here are a few key things you need to know about the new Renault Lodgy

• Renault credits itself for having created the MPV class with the Espace about three decades back, so they definitely know a thing or two about the segment
• Renault also claims that the Lodgy will set new benchmarks as regards performance, fuel efficiency, features and comfort in its segment
• The Lodgy is powered by a 1.5 liter dCi engine with 110PS of peak power at 4000 rpm and 245 Nm of peak torque at 1750 rpm. ARAI fuel efficiency is rated at 19.98 kmpl
• The car is also available with the same engine in a different state of tune with 85PS of power and 200Nm of torque at 1900 nm. The ARAI fuel efficiency for this variant is 21.04 kmpl
• The car is 4498 mm long, 1751mm wide, 1697mm high with a wheelbase of 2810mm – a detailed comparison with the Ertiga, Mobilio, Innova and Enjoy with follow soon
• The Lodgy weighs 1368kg
• Tyre sizes up front and at the rear are 185/65 R15
• The car has a decent boot volume of 207 liters with all 3 rows up, 589 liters with the third row down, 759 liters with third row completely removed and 1861 liters with the second row down after having removed the third row
• Second row can be split 60:40, third row 50:50
• Available in 7 or 8 seat configurations with 7 seater version featuring captain’s seats for the second row
• The headliner on the car has recesses to maximize headroom
• The third row of seats feels airy, but it cannot accommodate three adults in comfort. The knee room isn’t sufficient either – those seats are meant only for short journeys.
• The Lodgy is the first car in the segment to offer Cruise Control with Speed Limiter. The Speed Limiter can be employed post 30km/h
• Driver’s seat is height adjustable and features Lumbar support
• Renault is claiming segment best cooling by the A/C – there are individual vents for all three rows.
• Second row A/C vent has a control for fan speed also
• New ergonomically designed dashboard with a touchscreen infotainment system and sat-nav
• Chrome highlighted front grille makes the Lodgy look rather nice
• The car features Daytime Running Lights (DRLs)
• The car has a two tone bumper and roof rails for a sporty look
• Interior is extremely spacious with plenty of cubbyholes
• First driving impressions of the 110PS variant suggest some turbo log with slightly notchy gearshift.
• The engine feels nice on the highway, its smooth, cruises well and can do some good speeds for a vehicle in its class.
• The ride quality with three on board and some luggage is slightly choppy
• Body roll is very well contained for an MPV – the car has nice road manner, the brakes aren’t too great though
• Steering is light at slow speed, it weighs up with speed, and feels nice for the class
• We will give you the full test drive report in a while
• Fuel tank capacity is 50 liters

Here we have some images of the car with captions

 

Center console comprises a touchscreen unit with satellite navigation, though the A/C is still manual and is controlled by old-style rotary knobs. There is a USB slot in the infotainment system, and two cup-holders beneath it.

Generous use of chrome up front to make the Lodgy look like a premium offering. Big chrome slat over the radiator grille, big Renault logo flanked by a pair of slim trapezoidal shapes on either side. The lower portion of the air dam and the housings for the fog lamps are also lined with chrome. 

The Lodgy looks rather smart in that white shade. The size of the third window should give you an estimate of how spacious the car is from the inside. Check out the body coloured door handles, two-tone ORVMs and contrasting under-cladding for the bumper. We can also see parking sensors installed on the rear bumper. 

Smart looking 15 inch alloys with Renault branding. Tyre size is 185 / 65  and Renault have employed JK Vectra as the brand of choice 

Third row of seats gets two cup-holders on either side and adjustable head-rests along with its own A/C vents. Renault wants us to believe the seat in the picture above can accommodate three adults. We would disagree, though it’s still better than what the others in the segment have to offer.

207 liters of boot size with all three rows up can accommodate a couple of medium sized suitcases along with a few small bags.

Pop open, lidded storage space on the dashboard

Door pockets are quite spacious ad can can hold big bottles along with space for some more stuff

 

Two-tone front seats with height adjustability and lumbar support for the driver. The seats offer good lateral support too

Nicely done-up second row captain’s seats with foldable trays behind the front seats. Those seats get their individual arm-rests too

A view of the cabin from the third row in the seven-seat version

Individual A/C vents for each row of seats

Second row gets a central arm-rest in the eight seater version

Classic black dial-white font set-up for the instrumentation. MID with generous information on the right

Basic looking headlamps with a lot of chrome inside to lift the appeal. 

Here’s the official technical specification document of the car for India

While we are yet to fill you in with an exhaustive test drive report, do let us know your views on the new MPV. Would it be able to shake up the rock-solid Innova? We’d love to hear from you – share your comments with us