The little Renault crossover gets a nip and tuck. Really.
You wouldn’t guess it, but the Renault Captur has been with us for about four years now. The funky compact crossover may not seem long in the tooth, but Renault thought it prudent to revise the styling pre-emptively, before anyone notices.
Good news is, it gets some added kit and revised details. The bad news is, you really have to look for those changes. Blink, and you’ll miss them.
The fascia sees the addition of chrome bars on either side of the Renault lozenge, which are themselves flanked by LED ‘PureVision’ headlights (which are optional), complemented by C-shaped LED daytime running lights on the lower bumper. The C-shape Renault signature is repeated in the new taillights in the LED light guides. There are new skid plates on the nose and rump, and that completes the design changes.
Two new paint shades have been added to the catalogue, with Atacama Orange and Ocean Blue featuring here, as well as a Platinum Grey finish for the 2-tone roof as an option. There are six interior personalisation packs to pick from, in Ivory, Ocean Blue, Caramel, Red, Satin Chrome, and Patina Chrome, while the outside gets personalisation packs in Ivory, Ocean Blue, Cappuccino, Red, and Atacama Orange.
Additional kit comes in the form of a fixed panoramic glass roof on higher trim models, as well as a couple of 17-inch and 18-inch alloy wheel options for selected variants. Renault did not provide interior shots nor did they detail any changes made to the cabin, suggesting that interior revisions are minimal, if any.
There have been no changes to the oily bits either, with the existing three engines on offer (globally) soldiering on. The 0.9-litre 66kW petrol and 1.2-litre 88kW petrol see no changes, and neither does the 68kW 1.5-litre dCi four-pot turbodiesel offered in other markets. Transmission options also remain unchanged, with a five-speed manual and six-speed automated manual (which Renault call ‘Efficient Dual Clutch’) on offer.
At present, there are no official communications from Renault Australia on the arrival of the facelifted Captur, though speculation puts a tentative introduction within the next six to nine months. It’s possible that with these revisions (especially that fetching Atacama Orange), the Captur will finally be able to capture more marketshare, as only 1563 examples of this funky crossover were sold last year.
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