Who says you have to break the bank to own a stylish, European branded coupe SUV?
The coupe SUV segment in Australia has gotten a little more interesting with the arrival of the new Renault Arkana. While the French automaker may not be in the same league as the mighty German trio, a low starting price of AUD33,900 (RM103,430) renders the Arkana as a cut-price competitor to the Q3 Sportback, X4 and GLC Coupe.
In terms of price, however, the French coupe SUV rivals the likes of the Volkswagen T-Roc, Mazda CX-30, Subaru XV and other similarly priced compact crossovers.
The Australian-market Arkana will be offered in three variants. The range starts with the Zen, which comes with a rather extensive list of equipment that includes LED headlights and two-tone 17-inch alloy wheels. Inside, there’s a seven-inch multimedia screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Arkamys sound system, a 4.2-inch digital instrument cluster, a heated leather-wrapped steering wheel, and a black leatherette upholstery, to name a few.
Prospective buyers who prioritise safety will be glad to hear that even the base spec is equipped with advanced driver-assistance systems such as Autonomous Emergency Braking (with pedestrian and cyclist detection), Lane-Keep Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control with Stop & Go, Traffic Sign Recognition, High-Beam Assist, Blind-Spot Monitoring and Park Assist.
Moving up the range, the AUD37,490 (RM114,384) Intens gains a bigger 9.3-inch Easy Link touch display with satellite navigation, a seven-inch driver digital display, Renault’s Multi-Sense technology with three driving modes and up to eight ambience lighting options, leather/suede combo, as well as heating, ventilation and electric adjustment for the driver’s seat. The exterior is spruced up a little with two-tone 18-inch alloy wheels.
Leading the Arkana range will be the R.S. Line variant, which is expected to arrive in showrooms early next year at AUD40,990 (RM125,062). For the exterior, it adds red-accented 18-inch two-tone alloy wheels, F1-inspired blade on the front bumper, front and rear skid plates in Gunmetal, lower door protection and gloss black trim on the door mirrors, air reflectors and window trim.
Inside, you’ll find a black leather and suede upholstery with red stitching, heated and perforated leather steering wheel, gloss carbon-look trim, a sunroof and a rear privacy glass. The equipment has also been upgraded in the form of a wireless smartphone charger and a frameless auto-dimming rearview mirror.
In addition, both the Intens and R.S. Line gains Rear-Cross Traffic Alert, Over-Speed Prevention and electric parking brake with Auto Hold function. Eight airbags are equipped as standard across the range.
Regardless of variant, the Arkana is powered by a retuned 1.3-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine that makes a healthy 156 PS at 5,500 rpm and 262 Nm of torque at 2,250 rpm, 3 PS higher but 6 Nm less than what the Captur has on tap. With a seven-speed automatic driving the front wheels, Renault claims the Arkana is capable of delivering a combined fuel economy of 6 l/100 km, which is slightly better than the Captur.
Will it be launched in Malaysia?
So far, there hasn’t been the slightest hint from TC Euro Cars regarding the arrival of the Arkana on local shores. That being said, the company should really consider bringing the slope-roofed crossover here as we feel that it has the looks and the right technology to attract Malaysian car buyers away from the Proton X50. As for the pricing, local assembly (which is what TCEC is already doing with the Captur) could help bring the price down to below the RM110,000 mark. This will definitely shake things up in the compact crossover segment.
