Renault Kwid Facelift To Launch In India In 2019

The updated Kwid is likely to borrow design updates from the just-revealed Renault City K-ZE electric car

The Renault Kwid is set to get a mid-life update in 2019, about four years after it was launched in India. The updated model will go on sale in the second half of this year.

The updated Kwid will primarily feature cosmetic changes on the outside, likely to be inspired by the Kwid-based electric car City K-ZE. The City K-ZE has been revealed in China and it features a heavily updated front bumper which also houses the main headlamps, unlike the Kwid which gets its headlamps in the conventional position. With the main lamps on the bumper, the City K-ZE’s upper lamps have been made sleeker and get DRLs. While much of the Kwid facelift’s frontal design could be inspired by the City K-ZE, we do expect a different grille. The one on the City K-ZE is designed to house a charging port.

Park the City K-ZE and the current Kwid side by side and it’s hard to notice any difference, apart from the bigger 14-inch wheels shod with 165/70-section tyres. The City K-ZE gets alloy wheels, which are not on offer on any variant of the Kwid in India.

As far as the rear design is concerned, the City K-ZE features a reshaped bumper and the tail lamps also get different internals. If Renault transforms the Kwid in the exact same way, don’t expect a major rework here.

Inside the cabin, both the City K-ZE and Kwid feature a grey theme, and it’s likely to remain this way going forward for the hatchback. That said, one of the City K-ZE show cars did get a white-black cabin as well, but it’s highly unlikely that this theme goes into production for the India-spec Kwid. Renault might change the dashboard design a little to accommodate a passenger-side airbag. So the dashboard layout might be similar to the City K-ZE’s, which doesn’t get a recess on the passenger side to keep knick-knacks.

The Kwid is priced in the range of Rs 2.71 lakh to Rs 4.66 lakh (both ex-showroom) and the updated model is likely to be slightly more expensive on account of some new features and updates. The Kwid facelift will be launched in 2019, most probably around the festive season.