The Renault Triber has notched a new sales milestone – 75,000 units and counting. Launched on August 28, 2019, the seven-seater has given the French carmaker a new charge in the Indian market. From a utility vehicle market share of 1.57 percent in FY2019, Renault India closed FY2021 with 4.79 percent market share. And it has the Triber to thank for that. The recently launched Kiger compact SUV has now only added to the company’s sales momentum.
- Triber helps Renault gain 4.79 percent utility vehicles market share
- Flexible seating said to have helped gain popularity in rural markets
- Triber currently priced between Rs 5.30-7.82 lakh
As per our sister publication Autocar Professional’s data analytics, the Renault Triber– which was introduced with pricing ranging from Rs 4.95 lakh to Rs 6.49 lakh, in four variants and a single petrol engine-gearbox combination- would have notched the 75,000 sales milestone in the early days of April. Here’s why.
In FY2020 (between August 2019-March 2020), the Triber sold a total of 33,860 units and 40,956 units in FY2021, taking the cumulative total to 74,816 units – 184 short of the 75,000 mark. The SUV sold a total of 11,768 units in Q4 FY2021 (January-March 2021), which makes for a monthly average of 3,922 a month or 126 units a day. This means that the remaining 184 units would have been sold in the first three-odd days of this month.
Renault betting big on the Triber
Right from the onset, Venkatram Mamillapalle, Country CEO and Managing Director, Renault India Operations, was bullish on demand for the Triber, both in India and in export markets.
In an interview last December, he had said, “I believe the Triber can do very well, as evident by the recent surge (in demand).” He revealed that the MPV has found particular favour among people in smaller cities for its load lugging capabilities. “They remove the third row and fold the second one”, expanding its boot capacity from 84 litres to a cavernous 625 litres, and essentially using the seven-seater for transporting goods.
The company’s push and expansion in rural India is also paying off. At present, Renault India has more than 390 sales and 470 service outlets, including over 200 'Workshop on Wheels' facilities, across the country.
Renault Triber export demand increases
The Triber is also seeing growing demand in overseas markets. Export operations began on December 24, 2019, with a shipment of 600 units to South Africa. Since then, exports of the Triber have expanded to other parts of Africa and the SAARC region. Over 6,000 Tribers have been exported till now – 1,503 units in FY2020 and 4,620 units (up 207 percent) in FY2021 (till end-February 2021).
FY2022 has just begun as has the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in India. Like the rest of the industry, Renault India, will have to contend with some challenges along the way but there’s no denying the fact that the Triber now has an established footprint in the utility vehicle market. And this is in sync with the new Kiger – which is also seeing good sales traction. Renault seems to have finally got its finger on the pulse of the value-conscious Indian buyer.
Renault Triber: A brief overview
The most recent update for the Renault Triber came just last month, bringing with it additional features and new dual-tone colours on the fully-loaded Triber RxZ. Prices for the 2021 Triber start at Rs 5.30 lakh and go up to Rs 7.82 lakh.
Powering the Renault Triber is an upgraded version of the Kwid’s 1.0-litre (BR10), three-cylinder petrol engine. It develops 72hp and 96Nm of torque and comes paired to either a 5-speed manual gearbox or 5-speed AMT unit. The ARAI-rated mileage for the manual is 20kpl. Renault is expected to introduce a turbocharged Triber, with 100hp, at a later stage.
Top-spec Tribers feature an 8.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionality, a digital instrument cluster, AC vents in all three rows, a cooled centre box, keyless entry, push-button start/stop, power windows, projector headlamps with LED DRLs and a rear wash-wipe.
In terms of safety, all Tribers come with three-point seatbelts on all rows, ABS, reverse parking sensors and at least two airbags. Additionally, top-spec variants get the added safety of front-side airbags and a rear parking camera.
All prices, ex-showroom, Delhi
Also see:
Renault Triber AMT long term review, first report
Renault Triber long term review, third report
Renault partners with Cero Recycling for vehicle scrappage