Renault has a new Koleos thanks to China's Geely
Renault has revealed its new Grand Koleos under the tagline “Born in France, made in Korea” – but this new crossover is actually a lightly restyled Chinese Geely Monjaro/Xingyue L.
The Grand Koleos will be built at Renault Korea Motors’ Busan factory, which currently builds the Arkana and Koleos for our market.
We’ve contacted Renault Australia to confirm if the Grand Koleos is coming here.
While the Grand Koleos has a unique, frameless grille and different wheels, it otherwise appears visually unchanged from the Geely it’s based on, down to the LED lighting signatures.
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Supplied Credit: CarExpert
The Grand Koleos measures 4780mm long on a 2820mm wheelbase. That makes it 70mm longer than a Mitsubishi Outlander and only 35mm shorter than a Kia Sorento.
While it’s 98mm longer than the existing Koleos on a 115mm longer wheelbase, it still has only two rows of seating.
It’s available with a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine with up to 155kW of power. This is mated with a seven-speed dual-clutch auto in front-wheel drive guise or an eight-speed auto with all-wheel drive.
Supplied Credit: CarExpert
An available turbocharged 1.5-litre hybrid powertrain features 100kW and 60kW electric motors and a 1.64kWh battery, for a total system output of 180kW.
Inside, it’s offered with three 12.3-inch screens: a digital instrument cluster, an infotainment touchscreen, and an available passenger display.
Available features include semi-autonomous parking, a Bose sound system, and an augmented reality head-up display.
Supplied Credit: CarExpert
Standard safety equipment includes autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection and junction assist; blind-spot monitoring; lane-keep assist; front and rear cross-traffic alert; and a surround-view camera with a transparent chassis view.
As with various French Renaults, there’s an Esprit Alpine trim.
On the Grand Koleos, this brings unique two-tone 20-inch alloy wheels, blue accents, and black Alcantara upholstery. It’s uniquely available with all-wheel drive.
Supplied Credit: CarExpert
The Grand Koleos rides the same Compact Modular Architecture as a raft of Geely Group vehicles, including the Volvo XC40 and Polestar 2.
It’s set to be one of several electrified, CMA-based Renault vehicles due between now and 2027, with Renault Korea having previously teased a coupe crossover.
Geely acquired a 34 per cent stake in Renault Korea in 2022, and the Chinese carmaker and Renault have also established a joint venture for the production of combustion and hybrid powertrains.
Supplied Credit: CarExpert
Renault Australia has committed to the existing Koleos, a close relation to the previous-generation Nissan X-Trail, into 2025.
The company’s managing director, Glen Sealey, told media the Koleos has a “fantastic future” earlier this year.
“Koleos is one of those vehicles that has pretty much stood the test of time,” Mr Sealey said. “We see a future for it ongoing. We’ll certainly have it for the remainder of this year, and we’ll certainly have it next year as well.”
Geely Monjaro Credit: CarExpert
Current Renault Koleos Credit: CarExpert
MORE: Everything Renault Koleos