Mahindra Renault-Logan :: Road Test Report

Renault and Dacia’s Logan was built to appeal to customers in emerging economies like ours, the basic appeal of the Logan has proved to be a big hit in other markets. And in India with the Indian stalwart Mahindra as a partner, Renault it seems is batting on a good wicket. :

Design, Engineering and Interiors
Walk around the Logan and you only see flat panels and straight lines, with not a curve or an arch in sight. The only obvious circular lines visible are around the wheel arches. The flat panels help Renault make low-tech production and easy repair possible, and this approach also has a positive effect on the cost.

For India, the nose of the car is all-new. The Logan now sports a more upmarket grille and chin, with other more minor touches added too. They help little.

The body structure is extremely stiff for good ride and handling and the use of a current platform also means crash survivability is of the highest order.

The front suspension uses MacPherson struts and wishbones for better wheel location as well as an anti-roll bar, the Logan also uses a hydraulic power steering system. Suspension at the rear is not independent; that would be expensive. An H-section torsion beam-type unit is used.

The Logan has been designed with additional suspension travel in mind from the very outset. Ground clearance is more than adequate and feels substantially more than the company-quoted figure of 155mm. None of the models for India get ABS as yet, not even as an option, and this is disappointing.

The interiors are quite basic too. The single-piece, square-shaped dashboard is functional at best. The glovebox isn’t as big as it looks but there’s a very useful cubbyhole above it in place of the front passenger airbag. The switchgear and circular air-con vents feel quite solid and operate well but the quality of plastics is questionable. However, Renault has made an attempt to freshen up things, and the light beige colour works wonders here. Renault’s nicely sculpted steering wheel with the chrome Renault logo, wide instrument panel and well designed and finished gear lever also go some way in livening up the interiors.

However, you can’t escape the cost-cutting on the insides. There are no proper door handles and the front seat rails don’t have plastic cladding and are exposed. It doesn’t end there. The absence of an internal boot release is extremely impractical and annoying too. The ergonomics too seem to have been compromised. The side mirrors are too small and the left-side one is partially obstructed by the A-pillar cladding. The low-placed switches on the centre console, which taper away from the driver, are not within easy line of sight. Reconfiguration to right-hand-drive is minimal with the column stalks, hood release and even the wiper pattern still set for left-hand drive. A number of the switches and controls work the wrong way around, which takes some getting used to. Power window switches for the rear passengers are inconveniently placed ahead of the rear middle passengers’ feet and are difficult to reach. We found the gap between the clutch pedal and the wide central tunnel too small and we wished there was a decent footrest.

What the Logan is unbeatable for is space and comfort. This car is easily the widest in its class. It’s wider than a Toyota Corolla and headroom is massive as well. The front seats are wide and seat travel is good, but the seats are a touch flat. This is true of the rear seats as well. The lack of contours here is presumably to help fit three abreast in comfort, which the Logan manages very well indeed. Seat comfort is brilliant even though the back is a touch too reclined. Legroom is superb and you never find yourself feeling cramped.

All three rear passengers also get headrests, to prove the point that three are comfortable at the back but it’s good from a standpoint of safety as well. For such a vast cabin, we wish there was a reading light for the rear section. The massive 510-litre boot can swallow huge amounts of luggage. The seats don’t flip down though and protection against luggage intrusion in case of a collision is taken care of only by a simple metal brace.

Performance, Fuel Economy and Handling
The Logan will be sold in India powered by three motors — two petrols and one common-rail diesel. The petrol motors are 1390cc and 1598cc and put out 75 and 85bhp respectively. Technology is robust but quite basic on the petrol. The motors use only two valves per cylinder, basic shoe-type rocker arms and a simple MPFi system. We tested the 1.6-litre petrol, and found it to be better than expected. It may not quite have the responsiveness or raw acceleration of the 1.6 Fiesta, with 100kph coming up in 13.45sec, but its area of expertise lies elsewhere. Where this motor excels is in everyday driving. Refinement at low speeds is decent, and the torque spread is particularly good. 1500rpm on the tachometer is all it takes to get you moving smartly offline and once you pass 2000rpm there is a step up in pace.

Gearchanges are required less frequently in city driving and as a result you are never left wanting for power. The strong midrange also gives it good passing power on the highway.

The 1.5 DCi is a more modern motor. A second-generation common rail system is used and this system utilises dedicated injector calibration which allows injector timing and flow to be controlled for each injector individually. It also features a pilot injection to help improve refinement levels. The Logan’s motor actually compares quite favorably with other diesels in its class for refinement with only a mild pitter-patter audible at idle. Rev it hard and it sounds a bit gruff but it’s never obtrusive and far quieter than the latest Indigo DiCOR. Again, the Ford diesel beats the Logan in responsiveness and the Indigo DiCOR is quicker in a sprint but once you are past 2000rpm the Logan diesel pulls with great resolve. Mid-range performance is extremely healthy and you have adequate passing power on tap. Driven briskly, the diesel Logan covers ground quite rapidly and feels much faster than its 17.15sec 0-100 time suggests.

The five-speed gearbox fitted contributes to driving pleasure a fair bit. The action is light, it slots into gear easily and it is almost impossible to miss a shift.

On its raised suspension and stiff chassis, the Logan rides over our roads like no other in this class. Low-speed ride is mildly stiff and a few low-speeds jiggles raise their head, but once you are at normal cruising speeds these disappear completely. You can also load up the car with five passengers and fill it up with luggage without fear of the belly scraping speed breakers.

Despite the good ride, the suspension isn’t wallowy. Straight line stability is most likely best in class and the Logan sticks to its line with impressive resolve. Bumps rarely put it off line, body roll around corners is not a worry and the steering is linear as well. It does not deliver anywhere as much feel as the Fiesta though, and the Ford is much more willing to change direction too, still the Logan rides better than cars like the Honda City, Hyundai Verna and Tata’s Indigo.

What you do get is a fair bit of road noise. Insulation is not as good as the competition and this means the threshold of noise is always higher. We also found that braking performance, though adequate, tended to fade when repeated stops were carried out.

We didn’t expect the 1.6-litre Logan to be efficient, but were pleasantly surprised. It traveled 9.9 kilometres a litre in the city and 13.4 kilometres on the highway. The diesel was even more impressive and it travelled an unreal 19.3kpl on the highway and 13.6 in the city.