New Renault Captur revealed, Australia still in doubt

Renault has revealed a new Captur crossover at the 2019 Frankfurt Autoshow – though the new generation is yet to be confirmed for Australia. Though Renault claimed 1.5 million sales globally for the first-gen Captur, the small SUV struggled in the Australian market, competing against popular rivals including the Toyota C-HR, Mazda CX-3, Honda HR-V, Mitsubishi ASX, Hyundai Kona, and recently revealed Nissan JUKE.

For the first time, the Captur will be sold globally under one name, previously it was sold as the Samsung QM3 in Korea and the Kaptur in Russia. New Capturs will all be built in China at Renault’s Dongfeng plant on the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance’s new modular platform.

Renault claims to have revolutionised the styling on the new Captur, but from the images we’ve seen it would seem the apple hasn’t fallen far from the tree. The front-end carries Renault’s corporate nose with sleek LED headlights, while the profile looks nearly identical to the outgoing Captur. A refinement more than a revolution for the new Captur, then.

On the inside Renault is touting their new multimedia system including Easy Link with in-car 4G capability. The multimedia system will be driven through a 7-inch touchscreen standard, or optionally a larger 9.3-inch display and features Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, as well as Google and TomTom navigation with automatic updates.

A touchscreen display will be mounted on what Renault describes as a ‘flying console’ surrounded by a completely redesigned interior, though only renderings have been released. The Captur will be available with a plethora of interior colourways, including Saffron Orange and Architect Grey, with 90 unique combinations of exterior colours will be available on the new Captur.

Plenty of safety tech will be available in the Captur with AEB, blind spot monitoring, lane keep assist, and traffic signal recognition all making an appearance. A reverse camera, park assist, rear cross traffic alert, and adaptive cruise with stop and go function will all be available too, though exact model specifications are yet to be revealed.

With a length of 4,228mm Renault have managed to jam an impressive 536L of boot space inside, biggest in class by far. The Nissan Qashqai is longer at 4394mm but manages to pack only 430L of boot space, that’s seriously neat packaging from the Captur. Being french, we can also expect a lot of secret cubby-holes which Renault claim add another 27L to the carrying capacity.

The most exciting engine offered is the plug-in hybrid. Developed across the Renault-Nissa-Mitsubishi alliance it consists of a 1.6-litre petrol engine with a petrol particulate filter mated to two electric motors that Renault claim to give the Captur an electric only range of 45km at speeds up to 135km/h, or up to 65km in urban use. Sadly, it is unlikely Australia will see this engine reach Australia given the issues with our sulphurous fuel and PPFs.

Renault will offer the Captur with several petrol engines. Engines include the TCe 100 75kW/160Nm which is unlikely for Australian shores, the TCe 130 1.3-litre found in previous Captur and other Renaults sold in Australian markets with 96kW/240Nm, and a range-topping 155 TCe making 115kW/270Nm.

Diesel variants will be available too, with a DCi 95 70kW/240Nm and the more likely for Australia DCi 115 with outputs of 85kW/260Nm. All Capturs will be available with either six-speed manual, or seven-speed dual-clutch transmission.

Renault has yet to confirm the Captur for Australia, exact specifications and arrival dates will be revealed closer to the launch.