Renault Koleos HZG Intens 4WD Diesel (2016-2026)

Great SUV with many standard features – Purchased the vehicle in January 2018 and have had no problems at all. Love the standard features which are options on many of the rivals such as heated and ventilated front seats. The Diesel engine is economical and smooth. Rlink system can be frustrating to use and I’ve had trouble updating the navigation software as my model didn’t come with Apple CarPlay as standard.

The hidden Gem in the SUV market – I am not one of those guys that walks into a dealership not knowing anything about the vehicle i am about to test drive, normally there is a lot of online research, looking at recalls, issues and professional road tests. From my research i then make a short list and share this with my wife and i get her opinion, otherwise i would have a Jaguar or Aston in my dreams... Then we both test drive the short list and then discuss. We have found that not always a higher KW rating transforms into better and more enjoyable drive. In our short list my first choice mentally was so disappointing to test drive even though it ticked all the boxes, i left deflated. We test drove both the Koleos petrol and Diesel Intens 4wd versions and we found the petrol with the CVT (constantly variable transmission) a poor match, the car seemed to constantly be looking for the right ratio and this equated to poor off the mark acceleration or as my dad would have said the car "dithered". The diesel version with its excellent torque it just went and to put this into prospective it is quicker off the mark than the Megane GT line 1.2 which is no slouch. Lets get rid of the skeleton in the cupboard CVT (constantly variable transmission) the transmission, these used to be called the rubber band transmissions and Nissan and Subaru both has issues and recalls from there early versions 2010-2016. The CVT fitted to the Koleos is the same as the Nissan XTRONIC CVT which has been fitted X trail for a few years with no reported major issues that i could find, in fact the unit is suitable up to 3.5 litre engines, so well within its current application. The Koleos does share the engine and power train set up with the current Nissan X-trail range. The Koleos uses the same R-Link 2 system as in the Megane and has a nice fluent feel and far better than the unit i had fitted to my 2017 Megane and now with Android Auto and Apples version, but keep in mind if you wish the traffic updates to be live you will need to purchase the option pack at $300 for 3 years and its well worth it. The Sat Nav is easy to use and i love to use the point of interest when searching. Seat are conformable and supportive for those who like to push the boundaries of the car, the car has very little body roll. The Koleos when pushed hard braking is great and the Diesel feels sporty without the noise , bit of over steer in sharp corners when pushed HARD, but easy to correct. The car is very economical on long distances and will do over 700 KMS to the full tank. Air-Conditioning is excellent also love the chilled seats (front only) and chilled drink holder on a hot day. Plenty of room in the rear for luggage and the one touch seat folding for the rear is so easy. The bose sound with 11 speakers only get better the louder you push it, also we use a 128gb USB to store all our favourite music, which works a treat. Things i don't like or would change i not not a huge list, auto fold mirrors when locking rather than having to push a button. I am not a huge fan of auto stop and start i always deactivate it, wish there was an off function in the R-Link menu . I think the ride high is a little low for major off roads adventures but with caution doable and i think the car would have greater presence with 35-50 high increase.

The Koleas has a lot of greats, its stylish on the outside and some great functions and cleaver styling on the inside, fun to drive and functional. You really have to look hard to find faults, buts it more down to a personal taste and what suits your needs, don't be fooled by the reported power (kws and torque) as it feel more powerful then unnamed vehicle at 155kw.

Update March 2020:- Had the car now for 4 months did my first trip away, filled the car up and drove 486kms with the cruse control set to 110 kms on ECO mode arrived home with over 1/2 a tank indicating 456km available in the tank. Drove some dirt road with corrugations, car handles great and not overly noisy in the cab.