Renault has revealed a hybrid pickup truck called the Niagara concept, which previews an eight-model offensive it is planning across international markets.
Part of its 'International Game Plan 2027', the French company is seeking to improve its already-strong overseas performance. Fully five of its top ten markets were outside of Europe last year, while in 2022, among the French manufacturers it took 43 per cent of sales internationally - making it the most successful car company in its country.
€3bn investment
With an investment of €3 billion, Renault wants to launch eight new models outside Europe by 2025. Five of these will be larger C- and D-segment machines, with the brand aiming to double its net revenue per unit sold internationally by 2027, when compared to 2019 (the last proper pre-Covid trading year).
The Niagara concept is a preview of what is to come for Renault in these markets. Lowering CO2 emissions for the upcoming array of new models will be key for Renault in its drive to make one in three cars it sells outside Europe be either a hybrid or a full "E-Tech Electric" in the next four years.
Key to this success is a modular platform allowing for a vehicle length of between four and five metres, four choices of wheelbase (between 2.6 and 3.0 metres), and rear units with one of three lengths. Powertrains will be a mix of petrol, diesel, flex fuel (E100), LPG, 48-volt mild hybrids and even full hybrids.
Hybrid powertrain for pickup
But the Niagara concept possibly previews the look of these cars. Packing a mild-hybrid engine at the front and an electric motor at the rear, the Niagara's powertrain is known as E-Tech Hybrid 4WD. The truck features a 3D front grille, while the Renault logo features letters with a 'pixel-art' finish. Its high ground clearance and skid plates team with the idea that the Niagara concept can travel the world, while the camouflage is colour-coded to certain aspects of the truck's character - so there's green for adventure, yellow for its sporty edge, grey for the technological make-up of its body and black for power.
Whether the Niagara itself will ever make production or not is probably not relevant here; instead, what it shows is that Renault is significantly expanding its product portfolio, following on from impressive sales numbers both here in Europe and further afield.
Fabrice Cambolive, the CEO of Renault, expressed as much when he said: "As our product renewal is bearing fruit in Europe, we are now going to make the brand more global and more profitable. Thus, Renault is now going on the offensive outside Europe with eight new vehicle launches between now and 2027, based on a reduced number of platforms, shared across regions and thereby enhancing our synergies."
And of the Niagara itself, Gilles Vidal, the vice-president of Renault Design, added that the "Niagara concept embodies the style of the future international line-up of the Renault brand. Robust and mighty with oversized and exuberant lines, this exploratory concept is also sophisticated and packed with technologies. It is the promise of an unlimited journey."