Renault Launches New Sportif
THE RENAULT SPORTIF – An Appeal to the Senses
October 5, 2005 – The Kangoo, from the French automaker Renault, the same company that has won the Formula 1 Driver’s Championship with it driver Fernando Alonso just a week ago, is one of the most versatile vehicles that you can find in the world. It is a vehicle that is very popular with the Europeans, being relatively cheap to acquire, and even cheaper to maintain. Its voluminous body construction allows it to be turned into almost anything that you may need it to be, from just a plain passenger carrying MPV, to an ice cream truck, to a postal delivery car, to a florist’s van, to a utility vehicle.
Its versatility is what appeals to the Europeans. I don’t know about its looks though. The people I know who own one sing praises about it, but there are others I also know who cannot get over its shape. I guess it’s a love-hate kind of thingy. You either go ga-ga over it, or you wouldn’t want to touch it with a ten-foot pole. Me? I don’t mind it, but will not walk that extra mile to get one.
However, with more than 1 million Kangoos sold across the globe since its introduction in 1997, it seems that the Kangoo has won many hearts, probably due to its unique ability to hold many “faces” and applications.
Now, the local distributors, TC Euro Cars, has introduced a new variant, an extension to the basic product proposition, the “Sportif Serie Limiteé (SL)”.
Believing that a “sports oriented” model should always begin with the interface between driver and vehicle, and that the sense of touch, feel and sight influences the driving experience, and that the driver is connected to the vehicle in two critical points; the steering wheel and the seat, the Renault people spent time to select the right materials to suit the nature of the car. At the end of the day, leather was decided as the best option. But not just ordinary leather, to fulfill the “Sportif’s” product proposition, it was decided that a special high-grade leather called “Expression” be used. It not only gives a sense of quality through the eyes but its buttery smooth texture is said to excite the senses upon touch. Applied onto the steering wheel and all seats, the leather is further complemented by additional side padding for driver and passenger seats so the occupants will feel more secure while seated.
To give the Sportif a more aggressive stance a bespoke body kit was designed. The design brief for the enhancements was to be just that – an enhancement. It was essential that the design did not overpower the basic look of the vehicle but only add a more dynamic persona that would accentuate the current bodylines. The final product is a 5 piece polyurethane material body kit designed to make the Sportif stand out, in a subtle way. Polyurethane is selected over fiberglass because of the flexibility of PU versus the more brittle fiberglass.
On top of cosmetic enhancements, the Sportif SL adds a level of functionality from the newly developed roof compartments. These compartments utilize the extended roof area above the interior pillars. The idea behind these compartments came from viewing how current Kangoo customers use their vehicles. It became evident earlier on that additional storage place would be a boon for owners. The compartments were designed to ensure that the most widely carried items could be stored – a tissue box and an umbrella!
The Sportif SL currently only comes in Tango Orange; an exciting and vibrant color to suit the vehicle’s new persona. A more basic Sportif is also offered in Lemon Yellow.
The current 1.4 litre power-train has been retained as it still delivers the ideal balance between fuel efficiency and performance.
The Sportif SL pack retails for RM7,900.00 above the OTR price of RM69,888.00 for the basic Kangoo (Auto); the basic Sportif pack will retail for RM4,800. As an introductory offer, the first 50 buyers are given a 50% discount from the price of the Sportif SL or Sportif pack.
