SA Roadtests
South Africa
ctjag8
This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. I drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under real-world South African conditions. Most, but not all, the vehicles driven are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you get where you live.
My most recent drive is on the home page. Archived reviews and opinion pieces are in the active menu down the left side. Hover your cursor over a heading or manufacturer's name and follow the drop-down.
Posted: 9 April 2017
The numbers
Base price: R364 900
Engine: 1197 cc, DOHC, 16-valve, inline four-cylinder, turbopetrol
Power: 96 kW at 5500 rpm
Torque: 205 Nm at 2000 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 10.4 seconds
Maximum speed: 189 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 8.2 l/100 km
Tank: 65 litres
Luggage: 370 – 1478 litres
Ground clearance: 200 mm
Approach and departure angles: 18 / 28 degrees
Warranty: 5 years / 150 000 km
Service plan: 5 years / 90 000 km, at 15 000 km intervals
It’s a deal; for the same price as an entry-level Kadjar Expression, Renault is offering a 100-unit, limited edition Kadjar XP with R40 000-worth of freebies. These consist of 17” alloy wheels, cornering fog lights, a swan-neck tow bar complete with 13-pin Euro adaptor, side steps and a roof rack. The tow bar’s practicality is backed up with a braked towing capacity of 1200 kg – provided you keep your vehicle’s GCM within the specified limit of 3053 kg.
And XP has nothing to do with some legacy version of Microsoft Windows. Renault explains it like this: “(The car) is based on the Kadjar Expression derivative; (simply) taken to the next level. Just as Experience Points, or XP, is a unit of measurement used by gamers to quantify a player progressing through the game, the Kadjar XP Limited Edition encourages its drivers to get out there and experience all the XP action and adventure that life has to offer them.”
Because it’s basically at entry level, Expression/XP forfeits a few toys included on Dynamique models. You get black skid plates rather than grey; untinted windows all around; polyurethane covered steering wheel and shift knob; all-fabric upholstery rather than a cloth and vinyl combination; no front parking beepers; plain halogen headlamps rather than LED; side mirrors that neither fold nor defrost; no light- or rain sensors; a conventional folding key; manual air conditioning; a basic viewing screen without touch functions and no satnav. The alloy wheels and turning fog lamps, added to this version, aren’t usually fitted and the cross-wise, two-part XP roof rack is probably more practical than the longitudinal rails found on other models.
You also surrender some options offered with Dynamique; self-parking with reversing camera, fixed glass roof, heated and electrically adjustable leather seats and 19” wheels. But before you feel deprived, let’s look at what is standard. How about ABS brakes with EBA and EBD, ESC and ASR, six airbags, height adjustment for the driver’s seat, electric windows and mirrors, split rear seatback, automatic locking, ISOFix anchors, one-touch indicators, tyre pressure monitoring, full-size spare, hill start assist, rear pdc, electric parking brake, eco mode, Bluetooth connectivity with audio streaming and voice command, and cruise control with speed limiter.
The TCe 130 (horsepower) version of Renault’s 1200 cc four cylinder engine puts out 96 kilowatts and 205 Newton metres of torque, meaning that it’s decently perky for a compact city car. Zero to 100 km/h comes up in 10.4 seconds and its top speed is 189 km/h. Add in 200 mm of ground clearance with acceptable approach and departure angles and you have the basics for a nice little weekend trailblazer. There’s even a “panic” handle for the front passenger.
Kadjar XP pulls like your mum’s younger-days 1200 never could, is solid and well built, its six-speed manual box (no automatics in the range) shifts smoothly and easily and it turns neatly – 10.72 metres between kerbs. There is lots of people space in the back and basic luggage room, 370 litres, is about average for a small car. It loads at around dining table height, onto a flat floor, and it’s fitted with a light, four lashing rings and a pair of bag hooks. The seat backs can be accessed from behind and ambidextrous lowering handles keep things democratic.
While XP doesn’t offer quite as much flash as its Dynamique sisters, the alloy wheels and practical add-ons turn it into an attractive and versatile working pony. Get one while the offer lasts.
Test car from Renault SA press fleet
Our review of the Dynamique version is here
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This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.
Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.
I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material. If I ever place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with that vehicle at least once already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.
Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. There is no "editorial policy" and no advertising, so there are no masters to please. What you see is what I experienced on the days I drove the vehicles.
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SA Roadtests
South Africa
ctjag8