Renault Triber - First Drive Review – How good is the budget seven-seater?
There's a whole lot we knew about the Renault Triber. Its price, specifications, features and its class defining ability to seat seven people while being under four meters in length. However there was one very important piece of the puzzle missing. We didn't how it drives, until today.
Over the course of the drive through the narrow and twisty roads of South Goa we put the Triber through the paces and here's what we think of it.
Renault Triber on the design front
The Triber is a good looking MPV. The designers have done a very good job considering the constraints creating a sub four meter MPV would have presented. The nose is attractively styled with the wraparound headlamps styled to fit the contours of the smiling face. There is a smooth progression to the design as we move towards the sides and here the designers have really worked their magic. The Triber gets the right proportions and is certainly easy on the eye. Moving on to the back, the lines that run along the sides merge with the tail seamlessly.
On the inside, as we have seen previously, the Triber stands out when it comes to the quality of materials used, and the features on offer. It gets Android Auto, Apple Car Play support and extremely useful features new to the price point that include a cooled storage bin, AC vents for all three rows, fresh styling for the infotainment system and more. The seats too offer enough support and are finished in a fabric that most users would like. The third row although a bit cramped is surprisingly usable for a car this compact.
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Engine and Transmission
The Kwid's 1.0-litre petrol engine does duty in the Triber as well. While, it has been uprated for the Triber, the engine and transmission are sore points for the MPV. There is a certain lack of grunt from the motor and it is clearly not an enthusiastic one. We filled the MPV with seven people and it did stutter getting off the line. That being said, it is not something that is a deal breaker. The 5-speed gearbox from the Kwid still has that rubberiness in the shift action and combined with the inconsistent clutch feel, it brings down the drivability of the whole drivetrain.
Once you get a move on, things get a whole lot better and the car picks up speed fairly easily. Driving through the city shouldn't be a problem at all.
How does the Triber ride and handle?
The uprated CMF-A+ platform shines through especially when it comes to the ride and handling. The Triber rode well over all sorts of surfaces that we encountered; in fact it rounded off the edges of the bigger bumps and undulations that we felt making it actually a pretty comfortable place to be in. The ride had a tendency of improving the quicker we went. Through the narrow roads of Goa, the Triber handled really well and had a composure that is unmatched at this price point. In fact I would go so far as to say that it is rather agile, easily handling sudden changes in direction while feeling planted at highway speeds. Overall, with the Triber Renault have struck the perfect balance with the ride and handling.
The steering too though vague around dead centre is fairly accurate. The narrow roads didn't allow us to test it at triple-digit speeds but most users wouldn't be hustling their MPV either.
Another thing that complemented the Triber's ride and handling package was the brakes. They have good progression, bite and sufficient feedback.
Conclusion
The Triber on the whole is a very good package and is a great option for those on the lookout for an affordable MPV that can seat seven. The ride and handling are surprisingly good and the feature set on offer, simply put is unmatched. The fact that Renault designers have packaged it in a design that is quite palatable is a bonus. Sure, the engine and transmission are a let-down but that is something that most users can see beyond especially with a sticker price that starts at Rs 4.95 lakh (ex-showroom).
