HI. I BOUGHT IT 4 DAYS AGO AND IT IS ASTONISHING!!!!!!! IT IS THE MILD HYBRID 1.3 GIVING 140BHP AND 260 Nm TORQUE. IT IS A MAGIC CAR. DRIVING IS LIKE FLOWING ON AN AIR CARPET. VERY POLITE BEHAVIOR IN ROAD BUMPS AND IN EVERYTHING. STEADY BODY. ENOUGH ACCELERATION FOR A FAMILY MAN, 26 Nm IS FAIR ENOUGH. VERY QUICKLY GETS TEHE 100KM AND YOU HARDLY REALIZE IF IT IS RUNNING, YOU THINK THAT YOU CAN OPEN THE DOOR AND GET OUT. AND ALL THIS FOR JUST 28900 EURO NOW WHEN EVERYTHING BECAME MORE EXPENCIVE AND WITH AN IMMEDIATE DELIVERY IN 2 DAYS. I AM VERY SATISFIED. WHEN I AM DRIVING IT , I WISH MY DESTINATION WAS MORE FAR SO I WILL ENJOY MORE DRIVING. REGARDS FROM CYPRUS!!!
Arkana sells well in France and it probably took Renault by surprise. Reasonable priced, trusted brand (in France), practical, a good alternative to the ICE Megane hatchback, and this overwhelming feeling it is one of the last of its kind before the whole of Europe goes electric with cars no one can afford
I drive mainly on country roads and test drove a number of different small SUVs before settling on the Arkana. The transmission works fine, It's no Megane RS but it's not suppose to be. My biggest annoyance is the door lock system. Every time you walk past the car with the key in your pocket and no intention to get in it still locks and unlocks. Boot space is great , my two Border Collies have heaps of room when we travel. Just finished a 9 hour drive and found the driving position and comfort quite good . Love the heated/ cooled seats. AVG 5.5 ltd /100 km on 95 Oct. I do carry a second jack as the one supplied with the car is pretty ordinary.
One of the few makers that have a wheel wells that can still accommodate a full size spare, even though it is not supplied as standard. The robotic clutch take up from standstill is just one of Renault DCT things. At least it’s reliable.
Interestingly, there is an AWD version of the Arkana for sale in some CIS countries like Russia and Kazakhstan. It uses a turbo 1.3 litre engine with around 150hp, mated to a CVT. However, it’s built on a different platform (it’s built on the Dacia B0 platform instead of the CMF-B platform that the European, Korean, Japanese and Australian specs use).
@@aimanfitri0iv There is a Captur built on the B0 platform too, sold in CIS countries and Latin American countries. In fact, that’s the same platform that the Dacia / Renault Duster uses, that is sold in CIS countries, Latin America, South Africa and Europe. The Arkana Russian spec and the European spec look quite similar to me, but of course, built on a different platform.
@@louisbeerreviews8964 The Captur (which is based on the B0 platform) is sold in Mexico. French manufacturers haven’t been on sale in the US for like three decades. But I know Peugeot and Renault still sell vehicles in Mexico. However, Renault doesn’t sell the Arkana in Mexico.
Hi Paul, I enjoy your reviews along with watching a fee other car reviewers. One aspect that no car reviewer seems to cover is interior illumination,dials,buttons..etc This has become even more relevanr with many models now 9 interior ambient lighting. Which Australian reviewer will be first to add this,if only just 1 minute
Good review. I love the car. Interesting to see smaller differences between same models. My RS Line Fast Track version of the car hits the mentioned 9,1 seconds from 0-100 with automatic shifting. If I do it manually I reach ±8,8 seconds. But who cares... The car is SO much fun to drive and fast enough. I never had a car with that good fuel consumption the arkana has. It´s increadible. Even with faster moving you can reach ~6l/100km
i went for this car for the looks, fuel consumption and boot space. really like the coupe suv sport hatch styling. I came from a 2016 gti (really struggled with boot space as we family do a lot of travelling with luggages) so ill be missing some performances but loving the fuel economy, interior design, ambient lighting and digital dash. I have the 10inch digital dash which is must have as its fun to change designs. you are right about the jerky take-off (i give it a second to move before a press the pedal to help with that), but it changes my driving style which helps with my full economy which is important these days. I think if it had traction control the take-off (not sure if im right on this) would address the jerky take off? Im also hearing some minor cabin squeek sound maybe because its just way too new when i got it and it needs to flex a bit more. other than that. fun to drive and you definitely get the looks as theres not many around yet. Pro's looks interior design and lighting wireless charger seemless Android auto integration huge boot space heated steering / heated seats / cooling ventilated seats electric seats con's jerky take-of Updated: some cabin squeek (it's not the cabin, it's the seatbelt where it's plugs in is where the squeeky noise is coming from. cabin is excellent.) - found the squeek which was coming from the seatbelt mechanism which in disappeared the more i use it. i am guessing the metal metal bit was too new.
cant agree more with you on this especially the pros and cons. i am getting used to the jerk off accelaration from standstill by giving it half or 1 sec before pressing on the pedal.
Can I ask a question. I’m looking at getting this car but I want to ask how does it handle going uphill with a 1.3L engine in a SUV??? Thank you very much in advance
The Arkana is the replacement for the Renault Kadjar (uk). Heard Paul mention the Koleos which is a size up from the Kadjar. In my opinion this is a backward step from the Kadjar which had much more room in the rear and cargo space as it didn't have the coupe shaped rear end.
@@ytlurker220for Australia arkana is replacement for kadjar, I owned a Kadjar and is bigger then arkana, only downside with kadjar is the heater, takes too long to warm up the car in wither and aircon is very disappointing
I LOVE Coupe SUVs. Everytime I see one, it's either a Merc, BMW or Audi. I saw this on the road the other day and couldn't believe it was a Renno. After looking in to the BMW make, I learnt a little about BMWs and decided it was a hell no. Merc and Audi are both too expensive. I really like this one, it'll to on the list!
Yep, take off is perky and jerky and I feel like a P plater with occasional minor wheels spin. My Cabin hates. The centre console is too close to my left leg. It it rubs and hurts. While you also feel too far from the door so can't rest arm there. It's just annoying that it feels like its not centred correctly. Android connect requires a cable. It then doesn't fit into the charging area and rattles about. It's a work car, it is good for my needs, slightly stylish, moderately comfortable, just enough zip. I would say it's a car that compromises everything for a broad range, but dose it all well enough. I like its looks are slightly different to every other car of its type.
I like the hatch type styling, but the rear tight seating would rule it out for me, notwithstanding that I rarely carry passengers in back. Driving a VW as I do, I find that dual clutch autos are a familiarisation thing. I've never driven Renaults version though. I like it apart from those back seats. Good review;Thanks.
Thanks for the review - I have just bought one so have only test driven so far! I drove a Captur rental car in the UK recently and loved it which caused me to want a Renault SUV and to trade in my Honda Jazz. My first choice was a Captur but there wasn't one available and I was offered an Arkana - didn't realise I could get an SUV that looked like that as I am new to them - so looking forward to picking mine up later this week. Cheers from Tassie :)
They also use this engine in the new merc a class, we have had our rs line for 2 months and fuel economy sits around high 5s freeway and city traffic. Sport mode car goes great, only gripe front seats are on the firm side.
RS Line is no longer the top spec here in the UK. There is now an E-Tech-Engineered spec which is one grade up from the RS. I have one on delivery in March 23 - been waiting over 8 months.
I’m a big fan of Paul’s review but he lost me with this one. I test drove an Arkana yesterday and didn’t get any of the gearbox issues he talked about. Why? Because I drove it like 99% of people will which isn’t burying the peddle to the floor. It’s a good car and does it’s job well. I ain’t a sports car and should be reviewed as such.
Does the new Arkana 2023 still have the old classic Renault logo outside? Thought it has the new all black and flat Renault logo, like on new Renault Austral
I have a lexus rx300 and a renault arkana RS... i prefer the Arkana, it seems much more fun and comfortable. But the lexus gets much more attention, so i have to keep it as a business status.
Bloody French cars! The styling is so good! Unfortunately however the dealer network is near on non existent, the reliability is average at best, but worst of all, the re-sale is horrendous!
Hi. Can someone please help me. How do I get the heated and ventilation setting for the car seats on the infotainment display? As shown on the video at 8.08 minutes. Thanks :)
You will find the heated and ventilated seats button at each end of the push button selector under the infotainment screen. Once you push the button it will come up on your infotainment screen
We recently test drove the Arkana and fair dinkum I could have written your script for this review. I found the driving position uncomfortable after about 10 minutes due to the hard edge of the centre consul digging into my left knee. We also drove the Captur and it is a blast to drive but it’s fixed passenger front seat made it difficult to enter and exit the cabin with out banging your head. We ended up buying a Skoda Kamiq. It had the best of both the Renaults in the one car and is better built.
I am thinking seriously to get one but there are few things make me hesitate to buy it like gearbox and no electric tail gate. Especially, a lot of people say that the gearbox is really headache esp going uphill and sliding back. Any idea to tell Renault to fix the gearbox
I've had my Arkana for two months now and the gearbox is actually really good, shifts are fast and smooth and it's quite a punchy engine, the jerkiness that everyone talks about is mostly lack of knowledge, you have to learn how to use the car, the start stop kills the engine 90% of the time when you're near a stand still so when you release and accelerate there will be that slight jerk but if you get to a stand still and the engine cuts lift the brake slightly and the engine engages and will be set in gear ready for accelation and there will be no jerkiness at all. On inclination the hill assist that automatically holds the brakes is what makes the car jerk while parking and not the gearbox but once you know the car well it becomes second nature, I highly recommend the car it really is a looker and does everything superbly, also self parking is great for small European parallels. Give it a good long test drive I'm sure you'll love it 👌🏻
Shame with the gearbox, family has a clio with similiar characteristics at low speed. It's terrible when you're reversing into a parallel park on a incline
There's two things i really hate with passion on today's vehicles......... Almost every piece of plastic that isn't body colour......is PIANO black😒 and the other thing is......FAKE exhaust tips. Today's cars are more Tupperware than Tupperware itself.
My interest perked up when I saw these. I quite like the styling- but Renault’s EDC (electronic dual clutch) is absolute garbage. A car of 2022 should not hesitate and jerk. Even higher speed gear changes are terrible. Huge let down they are still using them. My mate’s Clio had the nickname “Frogger” because it jumped and jerked due to the EDC.
They've been using EDC in couple of different versions for almost 10 years now, so it's not that bad; if your mates one was jerking and hopping that badly, he should've taken it to get fixed, as I've been driving my one almost every day for the last 3 years with no issues
I’m 5 mins into this review and I’m bored. He just tells me what I’m looking at. A review is meant to give educated opinion and information not “here’s the logo, here’s the exhaust”. I can see that for myself.
Always been a bit hesitant to purchase any brands like Renault or Peugeot..nothing stopping them leaving the country whenever the sales aren't great..which could be any moment 🤔
That's the same situation anywhere in the world. Here in India too, almost all French OEMs' (and their subsidiaries/parent companies - Stellantis, Nissan, etc) future is uncertain.
I thought it was a good car for the money but ruled it out when I drove it at highway speed on country roads. It had a rocking motion which I could not live with.
I did 8 years ago and my Megane is about to click over 160,000ks with absolutely no issues whatsoever. It’s been a great, comfortable little car and still drives very well.
I had one as a rental when my kamiq got hit. Kamiq was first ever dual clutch trans but didn't take long to get used to. The Renault one was quite horrible by comparison. Would never ever choose the lower model of the arkana either. The screen graphics look terrible on the lower screen
@@memeguyTM very vague reply. Was not saying the base model isn't value packed but the screen in that model would be a deal breaker. Graphics aren't much better than a 1990s Gameboy.
I just have 3 renaults in my garage.. renault kadjar 2017, renault arkana 2021, renault clio 2007... i just spent 100 dollars in an ignite sensor for the clio 2007.... kadjar and arkana only annual checkup.
