RENAULT Latitude 2010-Present Photos, engines & full specs

When the Premium market expanded in 2010 after the 2008 world financial crisis, Renault unveiled a car for the up-market called the Latitude. It was based on the Renault-Nissan D platform, which was used also for the Renault Espace minivan, the Samsung SM5 or the Nissan Maxima. It was quite unusual to see a luxury vehicle from the French carmaker, even though it used to have a premium-car contender during the 80s as well, the Safrane.

The 4.9m (16 ft) car was a front-wheel-drive only vehicle and had numerous luxury options fitted as standard. Depending on the engines, it had either a six-speed manual or a six-speed automatic transmission. It featured an optional all-wheel-steering system, which helped it turn faster on tight corners.

The available engines range between 140 and 240 hp, with three choices of gasoline units and two turbodiesels. Performance were good only for the top V6 engines, either gasoline or turbodiesel. Both of them had 240 hp, but the 3.5-liter gasoline had only 330 Nm (243.4 lb-ft) of torque, while the 3.0-liter turbodiesel had 450 Nm (332 lb-ft) of pulling power. Even so, the 0-100 kph (62 mph) sprint took 6.4 seconds for the gasoline and 7.6 seconds for the latter.

Inside, there is room for five adults and a lot of space in the rear thanks to the big, 2.76 m (108.7 in) wheelbase. It offered the best rear-seats room in its class. The trunk was also big, with its 608 liters (21.4 cu-ft) of space. Remember, this is a sedan, not a hatchback or a station wagon. The five-star EuroNCAP rating was also a plus for the vehicle. If they only would have decided to put a rear independent suspension on it...