The Renault India design team is busy preparing its final inputs for the company’s first India-specific small car — Pulse, or B 58 as codenamed earlier.
The 11-member team has been working on the project for the past two-and-a-half years. The Pulse, which was showcased during the Formula One event in Delhi recently, is expected to be launched in January.
While Renault is working on building the brand, the design team based in Mumbai is busy making new products.
In phase one of its India strategy, the company will launch five new products, of which Fluence (premium sedan) and Koleos (premium SUV) have already hit the roads.
The sluggishness in the market gave a slow start to the re-entry of Renault in the Indian market post its break-up with Mahindra and Mahindra. The company has managed to sell just over 1,000 vehicles from June onwards when in launched Fluence in May.
“In India, we will first have to establish the brand. That’s why we have launched Fluence and Koleos, which are the ambassadors for Renault as a brand, to be followed by B 58 (Pulse) and two more cars, which will include the Duster (all-terrain vehicle). We are looking to establish the brand in India with these five new cars,” said Jean Philippe Salar, studio chief designer for Renault India.
The company is looking forward to the launch of Pulse, which would be its first offering in the hatchback segment. Pulse, which will be positioned in the Swift category, is based on Nissan’s V platform.
“The work on Pulse was started in 2009. The design came out with the Logan and through the Logan experience, even though it was not a success, we worked on B 58. During these three years, we understood the needs, expectations and taste in terms of colours, shapes and features of Indian customers. Based on our research, we decided to position the car a little differently from Nissan’s Micra. We tried making Pulse more sporty, aggressive and with more character,” said Salar.
Pulse will be positioned slightly above Micra, said Salar.
The Pulse project is being completely handled by Indian designers.
On the fifth product, Salar said it would again be a sedan based on the V platform, positioned below Fluence.
The second phase of the India strategy will start after the launch of these five cars, which is being called the after-revival plan for Renault India. The design studio in Mumbai has already started working on the plan.
“We at the studio begin working on a product at least 3-4 years before the launch. So, we are already working on the next phase,” said Salar.
The company, which is focusing on the top-down strategy to establish the brand in the Indian market, is simultaneously working on plans to enter the core market. It plans to launch a range of vehicles based on a completely new platform in the A segment.
“We are working on the new platform. We cannot give the details at this point of time, but we are working on new platforms as part of global projects and for India. That is planned for the next phase.
It will be on the hatchback side as we want to be in the core market. Indian market is dominated by the A segment. We are still in discussion as to how many vehicles will be part of Renault India’s second-phase strategy,” said Salar.
“The product will be well-priced. It will be a balance between design and price. In India, it is necessary to have a product which is well-balanced, along with good network and brand identity. We will continue with the same strategy, but we will have more cars for the core market,” he said.
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