CAR has learned that Renault South Africa is no longer importing its Logan affordable saloon. The Logan has been in South Africa since 2008 and initially caused a stir in the budget-car market when it was introduced for just under R100 000. Since then the segment has grown dramatically, most recently with the addition of the Toyota Etios saloon. We suspect that a new Logan will be introduced overseas later this year or early in 2013.
There are various renderings of what the second-generation Logan could look like floating about the Internet. The consensus is that it will be bigger than the current Logan and that the styling will be influenced by the Fluence. It’s said to be slightly more upmarket than the first Logan, with features such as daytime-running lights and climate control.
Reports suggest that it will feature the same engines, but reworked to be Euro 5-compliant with improved emissions and fuel consumption.
The new Logan will be based on a design study car, codenamed X52. Laurens van den Acker, the head of design at Renault, said "The new car (the X52) is seen as somewhere between Renault Fluence, Skoda Octavia, VW Passat, Ford Focus and Chevrolet Cruze. At least from a visual standpoint. In other words, the Logan 2 will be low-cost with a ‘human face’. I do not want people to feel ashamed that they are driving a Logan."
Renault SA has confirmed that is currently planning its product offerings for the next few years. Keep your eyes on CARmag.co.za for further updates.