Renault Pulse Review

Renault India has recently launched its Pulse facelift at an affordable cost of Rs.5.03 Lac with fresh automatic headlamps, steering mounted controls and a height adjustable driver seat which enhances the comfortness. This Pulse competes with its similar other cars such as Maruti Suzuki Swift, Hyundai Elite i20, Fiat Punto Evo, Maruti Ritz and Tata Bolt.

Variants and its Prices

The Renault Pulse is available in both petrol and engine options in which the petrol variants are displayed below.

1) Petrol RXE – Rs.4.5 Lac
2) Petrol RXL – Rs.5.0 Lac
3) Petrol RXZ – Rs.5.8 Lac

On the other hand, the diesel variants of the Pulse are as follows.

1) RXL – Rs.6.2 Lac
2) RXL Optional – Rs.6.3 Lac
3) RXZ – Rs.6.8 Lac

Renault Pulse Color Options

The Renault Pulse comes in various attractive ranges of color shades namely

1) Cosmos Blue
2) Metallic Grey
3) Solid Black
4) Pearl White
5) Metallic Red
6) Metallic Silver

Engine Specification

The facelift Pulse does not have any changes to the engine and it has both K9K for diesel engine and XH5 for petrol engines. The petrol variant of the vehicle is powered by a three cylinder, in line, 12 valve engine with a displacement of 1198cc delivering the maximum power output of 75bhp at 6000rpm along with the maximum torque output of 104Nm at 4000rpm. Similarly, the diesel engine is powered by a 1.5 litre, dCi engine generating the peak power of 63.1bhp at 4000rpm with the peak torque of 160Nm at 2000rpm. The petrol and diesel engine are paired with the five speed manual transmission with a fuel tank capacity of 41 litres.

Acceleration, Pick up and Mileage

The petrol variants of the Renault Pulse can accelerate from 0-100kmph in just 15-16 seconds with the maximum speed of around 140-145kmph. On the other hand, the diesel variants of the car can reach from 0-100kmph in just 14.5 seconds with the maximum speed of 160 kmph. Talking about the mileage, the petrol variants of the Pulse delivers an impressive mileage of 14kmpl in city roads and 18kmpl on highways whereas the diesel variant offers an attractive mileage of 23.08 kmpl on highways and it comes down on city roads.

Dimensions

The dimensions of the Renault Pulse in terms of length, width and height are represented below.

1) Length – 3805mm
2) Width – 1665mm
3) Height – 1530mm

Along with other measurements, the vehicle provides the wheelbase of around 2450mm and the weight of the hatchback is nearly 970kgs.

Exteriors

Actually, the facelift Renault Pulse is a boon in the compact car segment exclusively designed for Indian market. The front appearance of the car looks very much sharper with its excellent stylish dual beam follow me headlights, a hexagonal grille of black color and a typical matte black center section. The company logo and grille is decorated with a chrome lining. The Pulse consists of a large windscreen with a set of intermittent wipers. Moving to the side profile, it has body colored door mirrors, pull type door handles which looks very trendy. Some of the attractive features include smart access key, set of alloy or steel wheels with sturdy tubeless radial tyres on the basis of variants. The side is also incorporated with a thick C-pillar which gives a tall appearance. The rear profile of the Renault Pulse boast a third high mount stop lamp protecting the small rear windshield with a washer and wiper as well as a defogger. In order to enhance the aerodynamics of the car, it is fitted with a spoiler with roof antenna offering a sportive appearance to the vehicle. The boot storage capacity of the Pulse is around 251 litres of luggae and the boot lid sports a badge with Pulse marking at the center of the badge. The vehicle has a D-Shaped tall tail lamps with nice bumpers. The entry level and mid range variants features a set of 14 inch steel wheels wrapped with tubeless radial tyres of size 165/70 R14 whereas the top-end variant sports a set of stylish 15 inch alloy wheels covered with tubeless radial tyres of size 173/60 R15, which provides a superior grip on the road.

Interiors

The interiors of the Renault Pulse have been improved with its revised color combination offering a trendy look to the vehicle. The cockpit section of the car is well incorporated with a refreshed central console with piano black accents. The dashboard comes with a dual color combination along with metallic accents which adds more decent look to the car. It features advanced features such as an automatic air climate control unit with a 2-Din music player, stylish instrument cluster. The car comes with a leather covered steering wheel of three spoke with multi-functional switches for extra convenience. The cabin looks roomy and spacious with enough leg room, should room, head room which offers more comfort to the occupants seated inside the car. Along with that, it has a height adjustable function for better convenience. The facelift of the Renault Pulse is blessed with important features like sun visors, drink holders, accessory power sockets etc which is quite useful. The Pulse is embedded with lot of comfortable features such as power windows, folding rear seats, power steering with tilt adjustment, lock/unlock sensing automatic folding ORVMs, internal release for fuel lid, central locking system. To entertain the occupants while travelling, the Pulse is well fitted with an advanced 2 Din music system featuring a MP3/CD player and USB socket. Apart from this, it has an AUX-In socket with Bluetooth connectivity for phone and audio streaming.

Braking and Handling

The Renault Pulse has been well tuned for better ride and handling in which the front brake is of disc type and rear brake is of drum type. This combination of disc and drum type ensures excellent road grip on both highways and city roads. Likewise, the front axle of the Pulse features a Mc-Phersion Strut and rear axle has torsion beam type forks for comfortable driving and stability of the vehicle even on rugged roads.

Safety Features

The safety feature of the Renault Pulse has been modified to protect all the occupants travelling inside the car. The features are listed below.

1) Dual front airbags
2) Fog lamps
3) Seat belts
4) Anit pinch function for driver side window
5) Child proof rear door locks
6) Engine immobilizer
7) Head rests for front and rear seats
8) High mount stop lamp
9) Speed sensing auto door locks

Verdict

Renault Pulse is a good choice for its attractive exteriors, comfortable features and petrol engine pick up. But it lacks ground clearance, fuel efficiency, boot space, minimized nvh levels etc. It these features are upgraded, definitely it would be the best choice.