Renault is coming for the Nissan Qashqai with its latest presentation: the new Symbioz.
The mid-size crossover becomes the French brand’s eighth SUV, closing the gap between the smaller Captur and the larger Austral.
The five-seater hybrid family car is also aimed at business buyers and is estimated to cost less than £30,000. Order books will open in July.
Order books for the new Renault Symbioz will open in July and the crossover is expected to cost less than £30,000.
It will be built on the same CMF-B platform as the Clio and Captur, but will be expanded to offer more space and practicality.
The Symbioz, a new name for the Renault family, will be built on a stretched version of the brand’s CMF-B platform, which is also used by the Clio supermini and Captur small SUV.
With the rear seats in the normal position, the trunk has a capacity of 492 liters. If you fold them (split 60:40) to create a flat, flush floor, there are 1,582 liters to use.
As in the Captur, the rear seats slide back as a bench, offering a massive 625 liters of boot space. The Nissan Qashqai has 504 liters, the Hyundai Kona 466 liters and even Renault’s largest Austral is just 555 liters.
The cabin offers just 25 liters of storage space, and passenger space is enough to fit a tall family of five without any problems. There is head and legroom for people six feet tall to sit in front or back.
It competes with the Nissan Qashqai, but if you move the rear bench forward you get a larger boot, 625 liters, compared to the Qashqai’s 504 liters.
Passenger space is enough to fit a tall family of five: there’s head and legroom for people six feet tall to sit in front or back, and the sunroof makes the cabin feel larger and airier. .
Aside from practicality, the biggest selling point about this affordable car is how easy it will be on your wallet. Realistically, you won’t buy the Symbioz if you’re looking for an Audi Q8.
Initially, upon launch, the Symbioz will only be available with Renault’s 145 E-Tech fully hybrid powertrain.
It combines a 1.6-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine with two electric motors and a 1.2 kWh battery, producing 145 hp. Renault estimates fuel consumption at 61.4mpg (partly thanks to the Symbioz’s light weight of 1500kg) and claims you can get around town 80 per cent of the time on electricity.
A 0-62 mph statistic hasn’t been released yet, but there’s little point in expecting a sub-10 time considering the car’s powertrain.
The Symbioz combines a 1.6-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine with two electric motors and a 1.2 kWh battery, producing 145 hp.
The design is very similar to the new Captur, but on a larger scale and with some subtle tweaks and a different rear.
The design inspiration behind the new Symbioz comes from the Renault 16, first launched in 1965.
The 16 was a family car, adapted to the changing needs of daily lifestyle, which inspired the Espace and the Scenic, and consolidated the Renault brand’s position as a provider of ‘voitures à vivre’.
The exterior is a mix between the new all-electric Scenic E-Tech and the facelifted Captur (designed at the same time as Symbioz).
The front of the Symbioz is practically a copy and paste of the Captur (angular, chunky, ‘SUV’) with details that reflect the Renault badge, apart from the grille pattern.
The rear, however, is its own, with a large overhanging spoiler and a more sculpted, wider and stronger contour.
The interior once again combines elements from other members of the Renault family, with nods to both the Captur and the Clio.
It’s powered by Google and has the same dashboard as the Captur, with a 10.4-inch touchscreen and a 10.3-inch digital driver display.
The interior is again similar to the Captur and Scenic, with a Google-based setup.
Switches and buttons accompany the screens, keeping drivers who like physical controls happy.
Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard for the latest version of Renault’s OpenR Link infotainment, as are Google Maps and Google Assistant.
You can download 50 apps from the Google Play store, including Waze and Spotify.
There are almost thirty driver assists, including blind spot warning, 360-degree camera and adaptive cruise control and driver attention alert.
There are almost thirty driver assistance options, including blind spot warning, 360-degree camera and adaptive cruise control and driver attention alert.
Trims consist of: Techno, Techno Esprit Alpine and Iconic Esprit Alpine, all of which have both screens as standard and Google built-in.
The interior benefits from the ‘Solarbay’ glass sliding roof with ‘AmpliSky’ technology that can switch between four different lighting effects and opacity settings.
Controlled with a voice command or a switch, you can create the airy, natural light environment you prefer and alter the interior temperature.
Instead of using a mechanical shade, the opacity of the glass can be changed from completely transparent to completely opaque, or even half and half, with the push of a button.
Finishes consist of: Techno, Techno Esprit Alpine and Iconic Esprit Alpine, and there are seven color options, as well as new 18- and 19-inch alloy wheels.
Prices start from under £30,000 and order books open in July.
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