The Renault Kwid has been one of the best cars in the entry-level segment. Launched in India back in 2015 the Kwid gave the segment leader, the Suzuki Alto a run for its ‘affordable car’ title by gathering 25,000 bookings in just 2 weeks and 50,000 in just 5 weeks and then 70,000 in just 2 months, getting 10% of effective market shares in its segment. And eventually, when Renault launched the Kwid in Nepal, the car did just the same, garnering all the attention from consumers who are looking for an affordable car that provided a good sense of value for money.

Half a decade later, we have the new Kwid that has been improved upon and has received major and minor tweaks here and there. It comes with a price tag that is again lighter on the pocket and promises to bring the same value for money quotient of the model it replaces. And we have taken the 2020 Renault Kwid for a drive to find out if it has.

Exterior

The most prominent change in the entire car is the front. The 2020 Kwid receives a complete makeover on the front fascia for the better. The old Kwid’s front was bland and generic even while Renault claimed that it was a rugged SUV inspired design. This new Kwid however, inserts some much-needed truth into that claim.

The front is bold and tactile with lots of bits added on to make it look muscular. The first thing you notice is the slim-lined LED DRLs that meet each other in the central Renault logo placed on the large three split grill via a thin chrome band. While they look stylish they certainly could have been much brighter. The LEDs sit above large headlights that are housed in chunky enclosures that emphasize the SUV claim. The car also gets faux skid plates, new bumpers, blacked-out B-pillar, and contrast colored ORVMs.

The rest of the car is unchanged, the side profile still looks the same and only gets a different wheel cap and the rear too looks more or less like the outgoing model except for LED detailings on the tail lights on the newer model. The 2020 Kwid is the best-looking Kwid Renault has ever made and it is all thanks to the redesigned front, but because of that the rest of the car, the sides, and the rear feel under-designed and boring as they crave for similar in your face design of the front.

Interior and features

The interior of the new Kwid does little in terms of a makeover when compared to the outgoing Kwid. But, the new model does come with a feature that has become a 2020 requisite. These features are a bigger 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system that comes with Apple Car Play and Android Auto, although the speakers are only passable in terms of sound quality.

Let’s talk seats, the driver seat comes with adequate padding and bolstering. The perfect driving position can be found surprisingly quickly. You get a sporty steering wheel further made sportier thanks to the digital driver’s display. The rear bench is also surprisingly great for three adults, it is comforting and provides good back and thigh support. Although, the lack of headrest for the middle passenger means they’ll have to rest their head on their co-passengers shoulder.

The all-new Kwid features a dual-tone dashboard and chrome interior accents to match the dual-tone exterior of the car. On top of that, the all-new Kwid is also loaded with a first-in-class reverse parking camera with guidelines. It also comes equipped with front and rear 12V power sockets.

The compact hatchback offers best-in-class cabin storage spaces of more than 24 liters. This offers space for storing a mobile, wallet, etc. in the front console, a new glove box, a parcel shelf, and bottle holders. It also offers a best-in-class boot space of 279 liters, which is expandable up to 620 liters making the new Kwid a road trip-friendly little car.

Performance

The Renault Kwid is powered by the same 1.0-liter petrol engine but now it has been updated to BS6 emission standards. The new engine is smoother and less harmful for the environment which should certainly get some tree hugger’s attention.

The 1.0-liter petrol engine comes with 3 cylinders and pairs either to a five-speed manual transmission or an AMT. The engine delivers 67 bhp of power at 5500 rpm and a peak torque of 91 Nm at 4250 rpm. City driving is best suited for the new Renault Kwid. The compact dimensions with a reversing camera and a 184 mm ground clearance make it a joy to navigate through the dense urban jungle.

The suspension soaks up the pots and bumps giving you a cushy office run. Another advantage is the compact engine that gives you more kilometer to the liter making it one of the most efficient cars around. The highway is a different story, you will need to plan early if you need to overtake. While the Kwid does feel planted, sudden bursts of speed will leave the car breathless and wanting to go back to the city. Also while the disc brakes on the front are good, you would want to still be on your toes when you are doing highway speeds.

Cornering on the Kwid is okay, the car tags along easily without flinging the driver or itself around, the thin 165/70 R14 tires can accommodate up to 45 kph turns but anything beyond that will make the Kwid struggle. Uphill is where the Kwid is most impressive, with a small engine momentum is greatly at play but the Kwid took some of the heaviest car reviewers in the business up the Ghyampe danda without any difficulty, only asking for a handbrake start just once.

The new Kwid also comes with the most needed safety features on four-wheelers of today with items like ABS & EBD with Brake Assist, rear parking sensor with reverse camera, driver, and co-driver airbag, driver & co-driver seat belt reminder, and speed alert, standard across all variants.

Verdict

Need and want are often confused amongst one another but are really completely different things. You may want the latest smartphone that costs as much as a motorcycle, but you only need something that will let you say hello and handle all your social media and gaming with ease. You may want a pair of sneakers that costs 20 thousand which mind you, is not going to increase your horsepower and make you run faster. Instead what you really need is a pair of outfits from top to bottom that the said 20 grand can easily pay for.

Similarly, you may want a car that comes with 16 cylinders and does four-digit speeds and has doors that can open themselves or knives coming out from the titanium wheels, but in reality what all of us really need, is a car that looks great and drives well, a car that is cheap and easy to run and maintain, and more importantly, comes with all the important safety and convenience features that you will always need from a four-wheeler

And the Renault Kwid does just that. For a price tag that doesn’t make you bite your tongue, the Renault Kwid provides all the essentials.