Renault Trafic

The interior cabin of the Renault Trafic, however, is not as basic as one would have expected it to be from the impression generated by its exterior design. It is far from basic, and the black and beige themed interior cabin feels a bit premium with a good quality finish and the decent equipment list on board.

The butterfly-themed instrument console with a centrally located digital speedometer is quite a unique design for a commercial van, and the driver’s cockpit feels completed by the presence of a multi-functional steering wheel. The central console of the dashboard here looks quite busy with a rounded rectangular panel in the middle housing a 2-DIN audio system and controls for air conditioner, with vertical AC vents on its either sides.

The dashboard-mounted gear lever is placed ergonomically well. This passenger cockpit can seat three people abreast, which makes it a practical place to be in.

While the Renault Trafic as a passenger van is appreciated for its premium appeal on the outside in the overseas markets wherever it is available, the commercial van version of the same vehicle in Singapore is a stripped-out version of the same. This means that it misses out on a number of features and premium design elements, making it look quite basic.

At the front, the sloping design of the bonnet of the Renault Trafic ends up in a wide front fascia, which includes a large grille with its lower boundary finished in chrome. There are large boomerang-shaped headlamps, with C-shaped kinks on their outer surfaces. The entire front bumper is left unpainted in black color, which looks quite basic and doesn’t get fog lamps too.

The side profile of the Renault Trafic, as expected, looks quite boxy and straight forward, with no major design inclusions to make it look apart from the conventional norms. The door handles and rearview mirrors are finished in black, whereas the wheels do get wheel caps and not alloys, all of which make the side profile look like it has been built to a cost.

Like the Renault Kangoo, the outer pillars of the Renault Trafic at the back are finished in an unpainted black theme, which also houses the vertically laid tail light assemblies. The design of the rear doors, however, has been executed in a symmetrical way, with the rear windscreen given a covered design to indicate that it is a closed compartment van.

The Renault Trafic is armed with a suspensions setup of Macpherson type with lower arms at the front and deflection beam with coil springs at the rear. The large boxy type body of the Renault Trafic gives it a pronounced body roll at higher speeds, however, the ride quality feels plush and soothing for a van like this.

Both the variants of the Renault Trafic do house a common 1.6-litre four-cylinder diesel engine mated to a 6-speed manual gearbox. This engine does make a maximum power output of 115 PS, while the peak torque output is rated at 300 Nm. A front-wheel-drive layout is standard on both the variants too.

The Renault Trafic is equipped with sufficient amount of safety features, the list of which includes dual front airbags, ABS with EBD and brake assist, traction control and electronic stability control.

For its size and price, the Renault Trafic appears out to be a well-executed commercial van, with its core purpose of providing a combination of a tractable engine and robust chassis executed in a balanced manner. Being a commercial van, the exterior design might not enthuse you, but the interior cabin is well laid out with all the necessary features and kit at the place.