Renault Kiger vs rivals: Price, specifications comparison

The Renault Kiger has been launched at an aggressive starting price. At Rs 5.45 lakh (introductory, ex-showroom, India), Renault’s compact SUV not only undercuts its CMFA+ platform-based cousin, Nissan’s Magnite, but the other seven compact SUVs on sale right now – the Kia Sonet, Hyundai Venue, Mahindra XUV300, Tata Nexon, Ford EcoSport, Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza and the Toyota Urban Cruiser. We have gathered all the technical specifications of the new Renault Kiger and put it up against its rivals' to see how the new compact SUV compares on paper, in terms of dimensions, powertrains and price.

The Kiger is the smallest offering in the segment
It gets 1.0-litre naturally aspirated and turbocharged petrol engines
NA engine and turbo-petrol get AMT and CVT auto gearboxes, respectively
Top-spec Kiger priced higher than Magnite

Renault Kiger vs rivals: Dimensions

Renault Kiger vs rivals: Dimensions
	Renault Kiger	Nissan Magnite	Kia Sonet	Hyundai Venue	Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza	Toyota Urban Cruiser	Mahindra XUV300	Tata Nexon	Ford EcoSport
Length	3991mm	3994mm	3995mm	3995mm	3995mm	3995mm	3995mm	3994mm	3998mm
Width	1750mm	1758mm	1790mm	1770mm	1790mm	1790mm	1821mm	1811mm	1765mm
Height	1600mm	1572mm	1647mm	1590mm	1640mm	1640mm	1617mm	1607mm	1647mm
Wheelbase	2500mm	2500mm	2500mm	2500mm	2500mm	2500mm	2600mm	2498mm	2519mm
Boot Capacity	405 litres	336 litres	392 litres	350 litres	328 litres	328 litres	257 litres	350 litres	352 litres
Fuel Tank	40 litres	40 litres	45 litres	45 litres	48 litres	48 litres	42 litres	44 litres	52 litres
Wheel Size	16-inch	16-inch	16-inch	16-inch	16-inch	16-inch	17-inch	16-inch	16-inch

From the table above, it is quite evident that while all models in the segment have similar dimensions, the Renault Kiger is the smallest offering in terms of both length and width. The Ford EcoSport is the longest model (7mm longer than the Kiger), while the Mahindra XUV300, at 1,821mm, is the widest model in the segment and is 71mm wider than the Kiger.

The Kiger’s height is in the middle of the pack. Comparatively, its cousin the Magnite is the shortest offering in the segment (28mm shorter than the Kiger), while the Kia Sonet and Ford EcoSport, standing 1,647mm tall are the tallest models.

Most of the models in the compact SUV segment feature a 2,500mm wheelbase and the Renault Kiger is no different. The only models to stray from the figure are the Nexon, which has the shortest wheelbase at 2,498mm; the EcoSport, which is 19mm longer (2,519mm); and the XUV300, which is a 100mm longer than the Kiger. This also makes the XUV300 the SUV with the longest wheelbase in this segment.

An area where the Kiger excels is its boot space, which, at 405 litres, is the largest in the segment. To put this into context, the XUV300 – which has the smallest boot in this comparison – is 148 litres smaller. On the flip side, the Kiger and Magnite have the smallest fuel tanks in this company, with the EcoSport’s 52-litre tank being the biggest.

It is also worth mentioning that Renault claims that the Kiger has segment-leading cabin space – with 710mm of space between the front headrests, 220mm of rear legroom and 1,431mm of elbow room at the rear.

Renault Kiger vs rivals: Petrol engines

Renault Kiger vs Rivals: Petrol engines
	Renault Kiger	Nissan Magnite	Kia Sonet	Hyundai Venue	Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza	Toyota Urban Cruiser	Mahindra XUV300	Tata Nexon	Ford EcoSport
Type	3 cyl, NA/3 cyl turbo	3 cyl, NA/3 cyl turbo	4 cyl, NA/3 cyl turbo	4 cyl, NA/3 cyl turbo	4 cyl, NA	4 cyl, NA	3 cyl, turbo	3 cyl, turbo	3 cyl, NA
Displacement	999cc/999cc	999cc/999cc	1197cc/998cc	1197cc/998cc	1462cc	1462cc	1197cc	1198cc	1497cc
Power	72hp/100hp	72hp/100hp	83hp/120hp	83hp/120hp	105hp	105hp	110hp	120hp	123hp
Torque	96Nm/ 160Nm -MT, 152Nm – AT*	96Nm/ 160Nm -MT, 152Nm – AT	115Nm/172Nm	115Nm/172Nm	138Nm	138Nm	200Nm	170Nm	150Nm
Manual Gearbox	5-speed/ 5-speed	5-speed/ 5-speed	5-speed/6-speed iMT	5-speed/6-speed iMT	5-speed	5-speed	6-speed	6-speed	5-speed
Automatic Gearbox	5-speed AMT/CVT	-/CVT	-/7-speed DCT	-/7-speed DCT	4-speed torque convertor	4-speed torque convertor	6-speed AMT	6-speed AMT	6-speed torque convertor
ARAI mileage MT	20kpl	18.75kpl/ 20kpl	18.4kpl/18.2kpl	17.3kpl/18.1kpl	17.03kpl	17.03kpl	17kpl	17kpl	15.9kpl
ARAI mileage AT	NA	-/17.7kpl	18.3kpl	18 kpl	18.76kpl	18.76kpl	-	NA	14.6kpl
Mild Hybrid	No	No	No	No	AT Only	AT Only	No	No	No

If we take a look at the naturally-aspirated petrol engine offerings, we can see that the Kiger and Magnite’s 72hp, 1.0-litre unit has the lowest output in this comparison, while the Ecosport’s 123hp, 1.5-litre unit has the highest output. Although it is worth noting that the engine in the Kiger and Magnite has the lowest displacement in this comparison.

Now, looking at the turbo-petrol models, the Kiger’s 100hp, 1.0-litre unit (the same engine as the Magnite's) is a good 20hp short of the output from the 1.0-litre units fitted in the Korean offerings (Venue and Sonet). Its power figure is even 10hp lower than the XUV300’s 1.2-litre turbo-petrol engine. Though, bear in mind, that the Kiger has a kerb weight of just 1,012kg, which could make it much sprightlier than what the power and torque figures let on.

Coming to the manual gearbox options, all models come with a 5-speed manual, barring the XUV300 and Nexon, which get a 6-speed manual, along with the Venue and Sonet turbo-petrols, which come with the 6-speed iMT 'clutchless manual' gearboxes.

In terms of automatic gearbox options, the Kiger one-ups the Magnite as it comes with a 5-speed AMT with its NA engine and a CVT with its turbo-petrol (the Magnite doesn’t offer an auto with its NA engine). The other offerings in the segment have a mix of automatic gearbox options as the Nexon and XUV300 come with an AMT unit, the Venue and Sonet are available with DCT autos, while the Vitara Brezza, Urban Cruiser and EcoSport all come with torque converter automatics.

It is also worth pointing out that a number of models in the segment including the Mahindra XUV300, Tata Nexon, Kia Sonet, Hyundai Venue, and Ford EcoSport are also sold with diesel engine options.