Laguna II launched on the Web

A flood of new cars, many of them targeting the hot M2 sector, is on the way. Ford’s Mondeo, Citroen’s Xantia replacement C5 and Renault’s Laguna II are next generation models. Volkswagen’s Passat and Skoda Octavia receive significant mid-life surgery to protect major market shares. Not all were originally scheduled world debuts at the Paris Show. Ford comes to the market earlier than expected. C5 and Laguna II are late comers. Renault and Citroen anxious to get quality spot on launch later than planned - which shouldn’t detract one whit from their attractiveness - or their market value.

Renault cheekily launched Laguna II on the Web with President Louis Sweitzer’s address spoiled by regular and disconcerting disconnections. Right or wrong: Eircom.net, our servers, get the blame. Great looking car, lousy launch!

Carried through in 41 months, the Laguna II project (codenamed X74) set about renewing Renault's challenge in the highly important upper-medium M2 segment of the market - which added up to 2,700,565 new vehicles registrations in Western Europe in 1999 - by replacing the existing Laguna and Laguna Nevada.

The previous-generation Laguna, introduced in 1994, included two types of body, the 5-door hatchback and the estate car. But the differences stopped there. Their product content was built up in the same way, their ranges were identical and their customer positioning similar. In most European markets, the estate car was therefore seen by buyers simply as a "functional large-volume" or "family transport" or "boxed on bit" of the hatchback.

From the outset, the X74 project envisaged that the two body styles would be distinct from each other. "Two cars, two philosophies, two market positions: a hatchback with a focus on expressiveness, dynamic and even sporting, and a modern estate car with the accent on aesthetics, elegant, top-of-the-range, aimed at demanding customers, a car that some people will not hesitate to class as a sports estate," explains Thierry Dombreval, Senior Vice President, Strategy and Marketing.

From its launch, the petrol-engined Laguna II range will be available with three engines, 1.6 16v, 1.8 16v, and 3.0 V6 24v, developing 110, 120, and 210bhp respectively. The diesel range of the Laguna II will initially consist of two 1.9 dCi common-rail engines. During 2001, a 2.2 dCi engine will complete the diesel range. This engine, developed from the unit which already equips the Espace, will deliver increased performance with 98 kW (135bhp) and a torque output of almost 320 Nm from 1,750rpm.

Renault has improved the basic specification of the car (stability, handling, braking), and has also equipped it with a host of electronic systems aimed at helping the driver in the most demanding operating conditions. While ABS complete with its EBV electronic rear proportioning facility is the best known of these, the Laguna II also features ESP dynamic driving control with ASR traction control system, and emergency brake assist. Standard packaging is high. Included on the spec sheet are: air conditioning with separate driver/passenger adjustment, new radios, new GPS navigation and Odysline communication systems, cruise control, a parking aid system, new sunroofs, and a tyre pressure monitoring system

While the stability, handling and braking - complemented by the new ESP and emergency braking assist systems - are among the most important aspects of active safety, they are all nonetheless dependent on one fundamental feature: the tyres. Tyre pressure is an essential parameter in active safety. The consequences of dangerously low pressure are well known. At normal speeds, the tyres can leave the wheel rim or grip can be lost, resulting in leaving the road. At higher speeds, on the motorway for example, under-inflation can lead to a tyre blow out. At the very least, the undesirable results of incorrect inflation pressure are accelerated tyre wear and increased fuel consumption.

The Laguna II innovates by offering, on all its versions, a new tyre pressure monitoring system - developed by a specially created partnership between Renault and Michelin. Each wheel is equipped with a sensor, built into the inflation valve, which regularly measures the tyre's internal pressure. This information is then transmitted by a coded radio wave - to a computer. Unlike some systems already available on the market, which can only detect a seriously deflated condition, this system informs the driver of any error in pressure: a slow leak or simply incorrect inflation. It also verifies the proper balance between the tyre pressures and the speed of the vehicle, informing the driver as necessary.

A major innovation, developed by Renault with its partner Valéo for the sake of easier accessibility, is the keyless car. The system works using radio frequency technology and takes the form of a badge in credit card format. In its remote control version, with a single touch, it allows locking and unlocking of the doors, rear hatch and fuel filler cover, like a conventional "plip". Inside the car, the ignition key has vanished: the user inserts the badge in a reader situated on the centre console, and then simply pushes the start/stop button. Having recognised the badge, the system then unlocks the engine immobiliser and the electro-mechanical steering column lock, and automatically starts the car. Engine starting is impossible without the encrypted interrogation of a rolling code with 65,000 combinations.

- John Reilly.