The latest addition to family crossovers is the five-door Renault Symbioz at the lower end of the lower middle class. With a length of 4.41 m, it ranks between the subcompact Captur and the also compact, but 20 cm longer, Austral. So it is aimed at customers who have so far bought the Megane Grandtour station wagon or the short version of the legendary Scenic. And this despite the fact that it is neither a thoroughbred station wagon nor a regular MPV. Customers want elevated, pseudo-off-road models, which do not resemble the SUV category, which is becoming toxic in Western European cities and is becoming the target of harassment both by the authorities and various guerilla secret organizations. Therefore, the Symbiosis looks more like a slightly raised station wagon, in addition, compared to the rounded Austral, it has a new, distinctive and angular design style that we already like on the Megane Electric and Scenic Electric models.
If Renault is still expanding the range of new models, he had to cut back elsewhere. The Symbiosis thus comes, according to the latest Renault fashion, to the market with a single drive, namely the E-tech 145 full hybrid, which is capable of working in both parallel and serial mode. It involved an atmospheric four-cylinder 1.6 with an Atkinson cycle and a pair of synchronous electric motors with permanent magnets, together with an innovative robotic box with toothed clutches, which offers four stages for gasoline and two for electric drive, a total of 14 combinations. By omitting the converter or friction clutches, weight and simplicity were saved, because the system does not have to have starting stages with a very light transmission. The car always starts electrically and only at higher speeds will it use the effective mechanical connection of the drive unit and wheels. Diesel fans should not be sad either, because the standard fuel consumption of 4.6 l and the declared range of up to 1,000 km will match them, even if it is gasoline instead of diesel.
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Renault Symbioz has done everything to make it look like a large hatchback or station wagon. Starting with the large wheels (18 or 19″), which have become a tradition at Renault recently, through the high and deliberately richly articulated sidewalls, to both ends, also generously decorated with horizontal lines. although the refined and expressive details were inspired by the new electric Meganes and Sceniky, the whole looks more conventional and has also forgiven some goodies such as recessed, electrically retractable handles, but there is also a panoramic glass roof Solarbay with electrochromatic dimming, which can be controlled, among other things, by voice.
The five-seater salon offers, among other things, a rear bench, sliding in a range of 16 cm, thanks to which the basic volume of the luggage can be changed from 492 to 624 l according to current needs, and then up to 1,582 l when fully folded; Unfortunately, the manufacturer has not yet specified according to which standard. There is also electric opening and closing of its lid, which can be controlled either with a switch on the dashboard, a remote control, or a kick under the bumper. The luggage compartment offers a flat floor and access without steps, for those who would find it insufficient, they will find an additional 24.7 liters of various storage spaces inside. In addition to the usual comfort on board, there is also an induction mobile phone charger for higher lines.
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Infotainment is provided by the OpenR Link system with the Android Automotive 12 operating system. It manages, among other things, intelligent navigation, which takes into account the driver’s habits, displayed on the central, vertically oriented 10.4″ touch screen. The second, vertical 10.25″ display then replaces the instrument panel shield. There are 50 or more optional applications available, depending on country and version, including those specially adapted for Renault vehicles. They can be used to consume music and video, access the Internet, play games or quizzes, or park more easily. For an additional fee, a Harman Kardon sound system with 9 speakers and sound processors, tuned in collaboration with musician Jean-Michel Jarre, is available. Ambient lighting with selectable atmosphere, 29 driving assistants including Level 2 autonomous driving await the driver.
The only drive unit is an E-Tech full hybrid 145 with a high-voltage system, a main traction electric motor with a power of 49 hp, a starter generator of 25 hp and an atmospheric gasoline four-cylinder 1.6 hp with a power of 94 hp. All this works together with a traction battery of 1.2 kWh and a so-called intelligent multi-mode gearbox (see above). In the city, you can drive up to 80% of the time purely electrically, and you can also benefit from prediction in cooperation with the map system. This takes into account not only the height profile of the route, but also the driving time and the current traffic situation.
Crossover design, 4,410 × 1,790 × ? hmm, ? kg DriveHybrid (electricity/gasoline), driven axle: front Power 107 (69) kW, 145 (94) hp Battery 1.2 kWh Charging Consumption?, range: 1,000 km Price from
