Renault’s Fluence looks pretty, but does it have enough muscle?

Belle of the Ball..

What was the main attraction at the opening of last month’s Automech car show? It wasn’t BMW’s stylish new 5 Series, the return of the bullish Jeep Wrangler, or the sporty new Opel Astra. It wasn’t even extravagant specimens from the likes of Ferrari, Spyker and Bentley. No, the limelight was stolen by a good-looking model without much under the hood.

Paris Hilton — socialite, heiress and celebrity extraordinaire — may have eclipsed the motors at the launch of the country’s leading auto show, but with the local auto industry in the midst of a boom, there was enough excitement to ensure crowds kept coming back for all five days at the Cairo International Convention & Exhibition Centre.

Alongside the many cars making their Egyptian debut, one notable head-turner was Renault’s own take on affordable Parisian style — the Fluence. Business Today got behind the wheel of the 2010 sedan to find out if there’s any substance beneath its good looks.

Style

This car is undoubtedly one of the better looking options among mid-market sedans. In the last decade, Renault has garnered a reputation for outlandish redesigns of their small but stylish run-arounds, and it has achieved a lot of success. The angular styling has been toned down recently, but you only have to look at the Fluence to realize it comes from a pedigreed design house.

An exaggerated upper air intake, a lower grill accented with chrome fog lamps and streamlined headlight clusters lend the front end an air of aggression. But the smooth contours running from the hood into a tight waist, through to a chunky rear end quell any of Renault’s racing instincts and convey a sense of calm and stability. The Fluence is a case of understated styling over aggressive design.

And this seems to be the case on the inside too. The cabin is spacious and comfortable, with clean lines running across the dash and a simple three-dial display. The console, while perfectly well equipped, isn’t littered with mostly-useless bells and whistles. You get simple cruise control and speed limit buttons built into the wheel. A stalk behind the wheel gives you audio functions and calls at your fingertips (via Bluetooth to your mobile phone), and two elegant chrome mounted center panels house dual-zone climate control and a multifunction CD/radio/MP3 player, complete with a tasty white-on-black display panel.

Other features that life easier are sensors which take automatic control of the xenon headlamps and wipers as atmospheric conditions change, rear parking radar and a “hands-free Renault card.” Just keep the card on you and the car unlocks and starts automatically — no need to insert a key (but if you want to, there’s a flashy folding key-fob too).

Although you do get a multifunction trip computer, built-in GPS is currently not an option in Egypt as Renault will not offer support for a system that doesn’t cover the whole country. A bit ridiculous, but the nice people at the service center can provide you with a fully functioning third party navigation aid from around LE 4,000.

The simple finish inside the Fluence generally works very well, however there are some details that seem to have been overlooked. The chrome touches on the console and steering wheel make you feel as though you could be sitting in something considerably more prestigious, particularly if you go for the leather wheel and seats package. But then some of the switches and vents are constructed out of a particularly lifeless grey plastic. Unfortunately, it is touches like this that betray the car’s budget production.

Handling

While the Fluence proves that simplicity can be a strength when it comes to aesthetics, it is also a good example of how a lack of options under the hood can leave you wanting more. The only engine choice is a 1.6 liter 16V four-cylinder that generates 105 horsepower with an automatic four-speed steptronic gearbox. There is also a five-speed manual transmission available that grants you an extra five horsepower, but bt didn’t get the chance to test it.

With a generous torque profile at low revs, the engine is pretty punchy from the get go without seeming jumpy. However, as you up the pace, the engine struggles to deliver any real zip, with the four gears making it difficult to get the most out of what power there is. Gear changes during gradual acceleration are pretty comfortable and smooth, but when looking for a burst of speed when cruising — and when realistically you need it, for rapid overtakes — the gearbox feels a little clumsy and takes far too long to register. By the time it does, your foot is milking the floor and you end up getting more of a downshift than you bargained for. This isn’t a serious problem, as the engine doesn’t have the potential to really get you into trouble, but it still leaves something to be desired.

When it comes to ride and handling, the Fluence fares a little better. A basic Macpherson strut, coupled with a high body and reinforced suspension and tires, make the car ideally suited to less-than-predictable Egyptian roads — the car generally feels stable and comfortable on the straight, and external noise is considerably reduced.

Typically, what you gain in comfort you have to pay for in the corners. Make no mistake, this car is not designed to be thrown round a racetrack and exhibits large amounts of oversteer when pushed into corners. That said, despite a significant body roll, you don’t feel out of control if forced to turn quickly, in keeping with Renault’s excellent safety record. The company was the first to produce a small car that received Euro NCAP’s five-star safety rating, and the Fluence’s multiple airbags, side impact beams, ABS and brake assist system all help it achieve the same standard.

All-in-all, the Fluence is a great looking mid-range sedan with plenty of features and decent highway performance. And it’s no trivial developing market pony either — the Fluence is the base for Renault’s first mass production electric car, the Fluence ZE, which is expected to go on sale in Israel and Denmark in 2011.

Despite handsome competition from the likes of the Volkswagen Jetta and the Mazda 3, at a starting price of LE 116,000, the Fluence certainly makes an attractive option. bt