The French->ke4230 automakers have a knack for creating some of the visually unique and interesting cars on the market. If you don’t believe that, take on look at the new KWID Concept from Renault->ke72. An exterior that looks like an angry, off-road hatchback->ke304 is painted a hue of steel and covered in bright sunshine yellow accents. It has an interior that appears to be built by stretching massive rubber bands across the inside. It also comes with a remote controlled quad-copter.

Who the hell thinks of this stuff?

The quirky concept->ke169 is design to shoot cupid’s arrow straight through the heart of the young and tech-savvy buyer. It is loaded with high tech wizardry, and even features a tablet computer built into the dash.

The KWID is aimed squarely at developing markets like India->ke3066 where new car buyers tend to be far younger than in other more developed car-buying nations.

Continue reading to find out more about this chunk of French madness.

2014 Renault Kwid Concept

Specifications
  • Make: Array
  • Model: 2014 Renault Kwid Concept
  • Engine/Motor: turbocharged
  • Horsepower: 120
  • Torque: 110
  • Transmission: dual-clutch transmission
  • [do not use] Vehicle Model: Array
Pros
Cons

Exterior

The KWID looks bonkers, but a close look shows a lot of subtle touches that give this car its overall feel. For starters, the blacked A-pillars give the roof a “floating” look that helps to lengthen the profile of the greenhouse, a great technique to make a car look longer and lower. The rear fenders feature a sharp yellow accent that make the flared design more prominent. This helps the fenders look larger and it visually widens the car.

One of the biggest announcements for the KWID is its inclusion of a remote controlled quad-copter. Dubbed the Flying Companion, this UAV mounts to the roof of the KWID and can be activated at any time from the tablet interface in the cabin. The Flying Companion is equipped with a camera and Renault say it’s the perfect partner for checking out the source of congestion when you are stuck in traffic.

Interior

The inside of the KWID is even more daring and forward thinking than the outside. It features a reversed five-person seating layout in which you sit three-wide in the front, with a pair of passengers in the rear. The driver sits center-mounted and the flanking passenger’s seats are angled slightly outward; I assume this is to keep their feet away from the driver’s controls.

The interior design was created to “serve as a snug cocoon” and the look was inspired by a bird’s nest. The seats are a solid base of a white material and feature an elastic material that is white and yellow stretched across that base. It looks neat, but also slightly uncomfortable.

Drivetrain

The drivetrain of the concept is a small 1.2-liter turbocharged gasoline engine that is mated to a dual-clutch automatic transmission. Despite the rough and tumble off-road looks of the exterior, the KWID is actually a FWD car. All-show and no-go as it were.

While the concept is powered by dinosaur juice, the car has been design to be an EV powered machine with room for all the batteries and electric motors already accounted for.

Conclusion

The KWID is a fun look at where the future of cars could go. With technology like iPads and small drone vehicles becoming cheaper and more common, it is only a matter of time before things like this are true automotive realities. I wish the KWID would actually be an AWD car for dessert-buggy fun, but it carries itself with presence and smart design that will appeal to many.

If this is Renault’s vision of the future, I can’t wait for it to arrive.