There’s some good news for the Renault fans in India. Recently, few spy shots of the coupe-styled Arkana SUV emerged on the internet. This vehicle has used the underpinning of both the newer CMF-B and older B0 platform. But the model that we saw in the photos, get the underpinnings of the CMF-B platform. Interestingly, there’s also an e-tech hybrid badge on the rear. There are some rumours suggesting that Renault India might bring in the Arkana for the Indian market. But, we do not have an official update from Renault India as of yet. The fact that Renault is testing the SUV for the Indian roads, does give us some hints.
Powering the SUV are two engine options, which comes in form of 1.3-litre turbo petrol and 1.6-litre turbo petrol. As mentioned the SUV was seen carrying the E-tech branding. And thus we believe, Renault might use its self-charging E-Tech system. This system makes use of the 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine, two electric motors and a unique multi-mode clutch-less dog box transmission.
If at all, Renault plans to bring the SUV for the Indian market, we believe Renault will use the European CMF-B platform-based model. This is because Renault believes CMF-B platform is more suitable other than reviving the older B0 platform. As evident from the Captur, this B0 platform does strike the customer’s attention. The interiors look pretty old when compared to the other offerings in the segment. This was also one of the main reasons why Captur could not capture the Indian market.
All these reasons weigh up perfectly to compel Renault to dump the B0 platform and use the more modern CMF-B platform. There are chances that Renault might bring in the SUV via the CBU route. This could potentially raise the price, but we believe Renault could still justify Arkana’s price with the updated interiors and tech. If the launch goes through, this will definitely put Renault in the news.
Also Read: Hybrid transmissions for Renault E-Tech platforms will use actuator module by Vitesco.