The Renault Koleos has been a success story for the French brand in Australia, but not a big enough global hit that it will see a further new-generation model.
Glen Sealey, general manager of Renault Australia, confirmed the news this week at the launch of the facelifted Trafic van, stating that the Koleos will not continue beyond the end of the current-generation lifecycle.
“Not that I can see. Koleos will run its life – it will run through, at this stage, until probably 2024, and that will be it,” said Mr Sealey.
“That’s not to say there won’t be a replacement, it’s just to say that today, I don’t see it,” he said.
Mr Sealey acknowledged the role that Koleos has played for the brand in Australia in its current second-generation guise, having been on sale here since 2016, stating that if offers “excellent value for money”. Indeed, it is one of the more affordable options in the market, with prices ranging from $35,000 to $47,500 (MSRP).
For the unaware, the Koleos is a product of the Renault-Nissan-Samsung Alliance, and as such, it shares its underpinnings with the popular Nissan X-Trail but is built in South Korea and branded as a Renault-Samsung QM6 in its home market.
Its donor model, the Nissan X-Trail, is finally set to be replaced later this year, but according to Mr Sealey, the same can’t be said for the Koleos.
That could be a stinger for the French brand in Australia, with sales of the Koleos up 72.5 per cent year-to-date, and in 2022 so far it has outsold models like the Volkswagen Tiguan, Ford Escape and Jeep Cherokee.
Mr Sealey suggests that the brand would likely offer something to take the place of the Koleos, though it might well be a vehicle sourced from Europe with a bigger pricetag and following the French brand’s drive towards a fully electrified line-up.
“What’s going to replace the new generation of Renaults, and Koleos is one, will be electrified cars, connected cars. It’s totally different technology, and totally different types of vehicles,” he said.
“For Renault, Koleos is a big SUV [physically] for Renault – for us, it’s not that big. And the market in Europe is not looking for big SUVs. They’re looking for electrified, efficient things.”
One potential candidate could be something more like a renewed version of the Renault Scenic, which has always tended to be more like a crossover than a SUV.
Of course, the brand is also working to bring the new Megane e-Tech, which is an SUV-ified version of the Megane hatch built on fully electric underpinnings. It’s coming here in 2023.
However, Mr Sealey said the brand has plans to still offer some more affordable Renault models – with petrol engines and based on Dacia products – alongside its electrified range of Euro-spec vehicles.
Keyword: Renault Koleos family SUV future in doubt! Rival to the Nissan X-Trail and Toyota RAV4 to finish up in 2024