Renault Captur 2019 Review

In a market segment where 2018’s top-selling vehicle, the Mazda CX-3, accounted for 16,293 sales and Renault’s Captur scored just 457, it would be fair to say France is no threat to major small-SUV influencers.

The little Renault, for all its French charm, is never likely to be more than a niche player in a market where most of the competition – apart from, say, Nissan’s once-outrageous JUKE and Toyota’s stylistically somewhat over-worked C-HR – relies on more-or-less conventional but French-influenced design philosophies to make an impact in a strongly-competitive and heavily-populated segment.

The Renault Captur, which has been on the Australian market for four years and scored good acceptance at the beginning, remains an appealingly-styled, thoughtfully-functional small SUV that is actually bucking the trend by joining a handful of other competitors that, in early 2019, managed to increase sales over the previous year.

Not by much, mind you: Sales for the first quarter of 2019 were only 24 units better than the previous year’s figures. Still, it’s all in the right direction and must come as something of a solace for the French brand.

Part of that sales up-kick comes from a 2017 update  that only started to gather steam in 2018 and, very recently, the arrival of a bigger, punchier new 1.3-litre turbo that substantially upped power from the previous 1.2-litre turbo’s 88kW/190Nm to a more stirring 110kW/250Nm, while at the same time reducing both fuel consumption and exhaust emissions.

Renault initially offered the new engine only in a limited-run Intens S-Edition model, but has now slotted it as an option into the base Zen variant, where it is an alternative to the existing 66kW/135Nm 0.9-litre (900cc) three-cylinder turbo, and made it standard in the top-spec Intens.

This, along with a relatively low 1284kg kerb weight, makes for a pretty punchy, almost-sporty Captur, which was not the case before.

It out-powers the likes of Mazda CX-3, Honda HR-V, Suzuki S-Cross and Toyota C-HR, and is ahead of most of the (petrol-powered) field in torque output. Its consumption/emissions claims of 5.4L/100km and 120 g/km respectively are pretty healthy too, at the pointy end of segment expectations.

We didn’t equate the fuel figure on test though, with a figure of 7.1L/100km recorded over a week of mixed country and city driving. And the Captur asks for pricier, premium unleaded fuel.

The power delivery is marred a bit in initial take-off, where there’s some hesitation via the combined functions of the sometimes reluctant ZF dual-clutch gearbox and the typical small-capacity turbo lag. This is exacerbated by the inclusion of hill-start assist, which is intended to stop the Captur from rolling when starting on an incline.

The driver needs to be watchful with the brake pedal because the clutch engagement is often too slow to prevent some backward or forward movement. Under way though, the six-speed transmission shifts electively and the turbo lag, though noticeable, ceases to be a problem.

Noise levels tend to be on the intrusive side, but ride is generally okay for a small car, except for some suggestion of shortness in the suspension’s (MacPherson Strut-style at the front and torsion-beam at the rear) workable range of travel. There’s good initial bump absorption, but a dislike for anything remotely large.

Along with that goes lightly-weighted, relatively low-geared but responsive steering that is assisted by predicable road grip from the 205/55R17 tyres. The “Emotion” alloy wheels fitted to Intens-spec Capturs lift the aesthetics too.

The Captur, particularly in Intens form, strives for a funky, youthful interior that is just different enough to distinguish itself from the mainstream brands.

Things like the removable, washable seat covers, the Intens-spec version’s fixed panoramic sunroof, self-parking capability, inbuilt R-Link sat-nav with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto connectivity, LED headlights (with see-around-the-corner front fog lights), a sliding back seat, a double-level boot that expands from 377 litres to 1235 litres when you drop the rear backrests, heated door mirrors, Arkamys sound system and a good spread of parking sensors on the front, rear and sides make for a pretty handy small SUV.

It’s also reasonably roomy inside, enabling passengers in the back – with the help of fore-aft rear-seat adjustment – to negotiate a comfortable seating position.

That capability is marred however by irritating French-style ergonomics that include a seeming preoccupation with puzzling control placements.

For example the cruise control is operated via a hidden lever – which also controls audio volume – off to the right of the steering column and the master switch is located low on the centre console. And there’s an almost impossibly-awkward rotating knob in the tight space between the lower cushions and the B-pillar for fine-tuning the front seat backrests.
The faux leather front seats offer no power adjustment, although they are comfortable enough, nonetheless.

But perhaps the most surprising oversight relates to safety tech.

Although the Captur scored a full five stars when the three-cylinder variant was Euro NCAP-tested in 2013 (it was launched here in 2015), its lack of autonomous emergency braking alone would compromise it significantly today.

Add this to missing, increasingly-common technologies such as lane-departure warning, rear cross-traffic alert and pedestrian avoidance and the little Renault is very much on the back foot. And with only four airbags, all up front, there’s no airbag protection for those travelling in the back seat.

One of the Captur’s few concessions to current safety practices is the inclusion of blind-spot monitoring. Oh, and somewhat surprisingly, the Intens-spec Captur does come with automated self-parking that enables it to squeeze into spaces only 70cm longer than the car itself.

How the Captur in its current form would rate by today’s more stringent safety-testing standards is hard to say, but it certainly wouldn’t score five stars.

So, for now, Renault kind-of sidesteps the issue. The company clearly has been needing to lift its game in this sense for some time and there’s little doubt it will – although who knows when. The Captur has some way to go before its catches up with its competition.

Renault offers an entirely competitive warranty/servicing arrangement. Extending to five years/100,000km with fixed pricing for the first three services, the deal includes servicing intervals that are scheduled annually, or every 30,000km (a high figure).

The Captur is also backed by 12 months of free 24/7 roadside assist that can stretch to as much as four years if the car is consistently serviced at a Renault dealer.

The advent of the new, perky engine definitely makes for a better Captur. This should please those seeking a bit of extra urge, and justifies the Intens version’s $1000 kick upwards to $29,990 (before on-road costs).

The base, manual-transmission 0.9-litre three-cylinder Zen remains at $21,990 and the auto version is tagged, despite the fact it’s also fitted with the new 1.3-litre engine, as before at $25,990. Which almost makes it a bargain.

How much does the 2019 Renault Captur Intens cost?
Price: $29,990 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 1.3-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 110kW/250Nm
Transmission: Six-speed dual-clutch
Fuel: 5.4L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 120g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: N/A