Following in the footsteps of sister company Nissan, Renault is contemplating launching a small urban crossover.
Please enable JavaScript to access this content.
What is the Renault Captur?
Renault unveiled the Captur crossover concept at the Geneva Motor Show
You’ve probably seen the Nissan Juke - the small crossover car that looks more like a lunar landing buggy than a road-going vehicle. Well, now Renault has decided it wants a piece of the action, and this concept car – named Captur – indicates how the French carmaker’s crossover could look.
Renault says the ‘flowing, atheletic body language’ is a sign of things to come from its future models, and although it initially looks far out, we warmed to it after a few minutes.
Why buy one?
It’s still a concept, so buying one is not an option at present. But Nissan went from showing us the Qazana concept car at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show to debuting the production Juke in 2010. So it’s possible Renault could show us a real compact crossover in early 2012…
The Captur's scissor doors and painted tyres won't make full production
It won’t look quite like this though – some of the more outlandish elements will fall by the wayside of course – the scissor doors, huge wheels and bizarre interior (made largely of elastic ropes on the Captur concept!).
And we’d expect Renault to redesign the rear end so that the driver might be able to actually see something out the back of the car too…
What are the engine options?
Renault says the Captur concept is powered by a new Energy dCi 160 diesel engine – an all-new 1.6-litre unit which produces 160bhp while returning low CO2 emissions of 99g/km. Apparently this will replace the ageing 1.9 dCi currently used in several Renault models, and would probably be an ideal partner for a small crossover vehicle.
Take a look at our guide to greener motoring
How much will it cost?
If Renault decides to put the Captur into production, we’d expect prices to start around £14,000.
When is it out?
Renault is being tight-lipped at present, but we would expect to see something in the first half of 2012.
More cars coming soon
-
Nissan Invitation concept
Class: Superminis
One of the more believable concept cars at the 2012 Geneva Motor Show is the Nissan Invitation – a compact MPV that could be the replacement for the Nissan Note.
-
Peugeot 208
Class: Superminis
The 2012 Peugeot 208, described as ‘lighter, roomier and more efficient’ than the 207 it replaces, has a lot to live up to. So, on first impressions, how does the 208 measure up?
-
Skoda Citigo
Class: Superminis
Skoda is entering uncharted waters with its new Citigo city car – a sub-Fabia supermini which is mechanically identical to the VW Up.
