The hype surrounding the Renault/Mahindra/Dacia Logan as the low-cost mobility solution for the masses has been alive for at least half a decade, but thanks to the commencement of RHD models in India last year, the robust four-door saloon is now finally available in South Africa.
At R99 500, the Renault Logan 1,6 Exception (to what???) isn’t technically cheap, but its certainly not basic, either. Price wise, the Logan sits comfortably below the contemporary light car saloon segment (where prices start at R125k), yet the “newcomer” offers luxury appointments such as colour-coded bumpers, foglights, electric windows, remote central locking, power steering, aircon, ABS with EBD and a driver’s side airbag.
If you think that Renault South Africa could make a killing with the Logan if it imported models with less built-in specification, forget it… This 1,6 will be the only model available in this market and, following my initial exposure to the Logan at its official product launch at Gerotek this week, I can confidently predict that Indian-built products, as opposed to the glut of offerings imported from mighty China, are the biggest threats to those brands that we currently regard as protagonists of South Africa’s entry-level market.
The Logan’s exterior design shows its age in the squared ends of vehicle’s extremities and its steel wheels look kind of lost in the saloon’s wheelarches. Having said that, in the Logan’s price bracket, styling counts for less than it usually does, and in the right metallic colour, the Indian-built saloon looks almost, well, dapper.
As soon as one enters the cabin, the decidedly vertical dashboard – complete with oversized rectangular switches and black knobs – dominates the view. The imitation wood trim is a trifle passé, but I guess it’s better than el cheapo “aluminium-look” plastic. And as for the beige-coloured interior trim, it has to be a neat freak’s worst nightmare – the Logan is aimed at small families, but its trim will show up sticky finger marks and scuffs with absolute impunity. Logan customers should invest in seat covers post haste!
The rest of the Logan is hard to fault, however. Although I strongly believe that the vehicle’s carpeting trim could be improved in terms of finish (sections of the material felt loose or poorly glued down), overall thickness and texture, there is a pleasing chunkiness to the Logan’s controls. The switchgear appears hard-wearing (the central locking mechanism sounds like a deadlock engaging on a vault door and the electric windows don’t squeak or shudder meekly when in operation). The general fit and finish is reasonable – to good – at the Logan’s price and then consider the ample head- and shoulder- room (courtesy of the wide track and high roof), and 510 dm3 boot capacity.
And if you are expecting a vague to cumbersome driving experience, you’d be mistaken too. The clutch isn’t going to engage and disengage with the meatiness of a sports car’s centre pedal, and there’s a fair bit of roll during cornering as a result of the Logan’s forgiving suspension setup (the car’s built with Indian road conditions in mind, remember), but the steering and gearchange actions are positive, the 1,6-litre engine reasonably torquey (if not particularly powerful) and stopping power is spot on.
Consider the inclusive 3-year/100 000 km warranty and the Logan makes a lot of sense to private buyers (especially those looking to exchange their second-hand vehicles for a well-specced small family saloon) and businesses (fleet operators and rental companies). I’d have liked to have the optional 3-year/45 000 km service plan as standard, but then again running costs should be low thanks to the vehicle’s tried and trusted mechanicals and reasonably simple configuration. It offers great value indeed.
