While the Opel Grandland begins its sixth year of existence on our market, the Renault Austral is a novelty with great ambitions. Will it match the established player, or even surpass it?
Time flies perhaps at the speed of light (many physicists must be scratching their heads right now). Therefore, it will surprise anyone that such an Opel Grandland has been on the market for more than half a decade. However, the much more successful and also successful successor of the hopelessly forgotten antara has actually been with us since 2017. So it is not surprising that we recently tapped it in our bazaar column. Both the older version with the attribute X and the younger, modernized one.
In contrast, the Renault Austral appeared on our website only three issues earlier – in issue 6/2023 – but only in the first Czech test. Colleague Martin Jeník got his hands on a richly equipped Iconic specification with a stronger and more equipped, 116kW version of the turbocharged four-cylinder 1.3 TCe and a variator, i.e. a CVT transmission. The all-new SUV is desperately trying to erase our memories of the older Kadjar, given the woefully mediocre characteristics of its predecessor, it’s not that difficult after all.
Already during the first test, however, the Australian proved that his ambitions do not end with dancing on the grave of the Kadjar. It can be said that it is boldly aiming for the top of the segment and is helped by its fresh but very robust appearance, well-designed interior with great multimedia and comfortable driving characteristics. However, several proven competitors stand in his way as he climbs to the top. For example, the popular Opel, which generally scores points with its rich equipment and driving characteristics supplemented by the economy of the small-volume 1.2 Turbo unit. Ready? On the line!
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