lThe alliance between Renault and the Chinese giant Geely has already borne its first fruits: the new Renault Grand Koleos, which emerged from the so-called Aurora Project, with the aim of being marketed in South Korea –where it is manufactured– and other markets outside Europe, among which our region could be included in a second stage.
Its conception is very similar to that of Ford with the Territory, based on a JMC brand SUV. In this case, beyond the name, the Grand Koleos has nothing to do with the Sport Utility of the rhombus firm that is sold in our market, but is actually a rebagde – a little deeper – of the Geely Manjaro, which At some point it was in the pipeline for our market but until now it has remained on standby.
The Manjaro is part of the renewed Geely portfolio, so it benefits from the technology and development capacity of the brands that make up the group, especially Volvo, since it shares the CMA modular platform used by the XC40 and C40, as well as such as the always distinguished safety equipment and robust structure that characterize the Swedish firm. The Grand Koleos starts from that base, to which Renault applied some design touches on the exterior to differentiate it.
Broadly speaking, its physiognomy and appearance are similar, but the French brand introduced a redesign in the front sector, with a grille with a diamond pattern and a more three-dimensional appearance, as well as a bumper with a trapezoidal air intake that gives it a more sporty air. It also has alloy wheels of its own design and a redesign of the C-pillar, with the third window that draws a more ascending and angular waist line. Finally, at the rear the internal design of the headlights was slightly retouched. With these modifications, the rhombus firm sought to bring it closer to its new aesthetic philosophy, giving it a family air with other SUVs such as the Austral, Espace or the Rafale.
Inside is where Renault’s influence is least noticeable, since the entire dashboard is similar to Geely’s Sport Utility, only changing the logo in the center of the steering wheel. Beyond this, the level of technology and equipment is worth highlighting, as it has three huge screens – one for the instruments, another for the multimedia system and another for the passenger -, head up display, three-zone automatic climate control, Premium Bose audio equipment, camera system with 360º vision, adaptive cruise control, autonomous emergency braking, parking assistant, lane maintenance system and involuntary lane change alert, among other items.
Mechanically, it is exactly the same as the Manjaro: it will be offered with a 2.0 turbo gasoline engine with 211 HP associated with a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, with front-wheel drive, or with an automatic transmission with an 8-speed torque converter and all-wheel drive. . The other variant is hybrid, combining a 1.5 turbo gasoline engine with an electric motor with which it delivers a combined 245 HP, only with front-wheel drive.
