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Renault Kwid To be Made in India and Exported To South Africa, Bangladesh and Bhutan
In a major success story for the ‘Make in India‘ campaign, French carmaker Renault has declared that the Kwid, its popular hatchback, is to be made in India and sold to major car markets like South Africa, Bangladesh and Bhutan among others. The Kwid had a 98 percent manufacturing localisation in 2015 and has already started exporting the hatchback to Sri Lanka, Nepal and Mauritius. The Kwid has been very successful, selling more than one lakh units till November 2016 in India alone. It sells in India in a price range between Rs 2.85 to 4.51 lakhs.
Renault India Operations Country CEO and Managing Director Sumit Sawhney said,”We started exports of Kwid with Sri Lanka, followed by Nepal and now we are going to Bhutan and Bangladesh. Shipments to Bhutan would begin during the second half of next year while exports to Bangladesh would also begin towards the middle of next year.We are also working on South Africa currently and shipments are expected to be sent in the first quarter of next year” as quoted in this report.
Renault Kwid in Brief
The Renault Kwid is a strong small-car segment performer, delivering 68 BHP from a 1000cc engine with two engine options- a 0.8-litre and a 1.0-litre – with the latter getting an automated manual transmission (AMT) as well. With a superb mileage of 24 km/l, power steering, central locking system and safety features like brake assist, it has managed to garner a solid customer base. The Kwid is inspired by its bigger SUV cousins and competes against the likes of the Maruti Suzuki Alto 800 and K10, the Hyundai Eon and the Datsun redi-GO. The Kwid is available at easy EMI options and has a much-vaunted aftersales support system. Renault Kwid’s top model, the RXT (O) recently got a two-pedal option called the ‘Easy-R’.
The move is also being seen as a boost to the ‘Make in India’ campaign as more jobs will be created with optimal resource maximisation as the car starts exports. The French giant’s manufacturing plant in Brazil will work in tandem with its Indian operations, making local industry more competitive. To celebrate the first anniversary of Kwid, Renault recently embarked on a drive with the Kwid from India to France. The car passed through 13 countries covering 18,996 km before reaching Paris. The Franco-Japanese auto alliance of Renault-Nissan has a manufacturing plant in Chennai with an annual capacity of 4.8 lakh units.
