Renault Korea unveiled the newly developed midsize sports utility vehicle (SUV) Filante to the world at the end of last month. Filante is the second model of Renault Korea's new car development project "Aurora." Under the Aurora project, Renault Korea is set to lead the development and production of three new models to be released by Renault Group, and the first vehicle was the midsize SUV Grand Koleos, released in 2024.
Renault Korea developed Filante on the same platform as the Grand Koleos but improved the design and various performance elements. In particular, the company said it put considerable effort into reducing noise and vibration to achieve the quietness and driving stability felt in premium sedans. I test-drove the Filante Esprit Alpine trim on a roughly 140-kilometer section in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang, on the 4th.
Filante's exterior felt smaller than expected. It is a midsize SUV like Hyundai Motor's Palisade or Ioniq 9, but from the front it did not look much different from the midsize SUV Grand Koleos. Some even said it looked smaller.
That is because Filante is designed as a coupe-style model. Filante's overall height is 1,635 millimeters, 70 millimeters lower than the Grand Koleos. However, from the side, its horizontally stretched profile makes it feel quite long. Filante's overall length is 4,915 millimeters and width is 1,890 millimeters, which are 200 millimeters longer and 10 millimeters wider than the Grand Koleos, respectively. Still, compared with the Palisade, which is in the same class, the body is smaller.
The overall exterior emphasized a sleek look. A lighting design that radiates from the diamond-shaped Renault lozenge emblem is applied to the front grille. Paired with the sharpened daytime running lights (DRLs), this design exuded a sophisticated feel.
The profile that lowers from the front to the rear also added to the sleekness. The slanted rear glass and the light-emitting diode (LED) rear lamps connected to the body made the width look broader.
The interior was also clean. Unlike the Grand Koleos, a D-cut steering wheel was applied to emphasize distinction. The seats, which wrap around the occupants, also offered good seating comfort. Suede material used on the headliner and elsewhere added a premium touch.
Renault Korea applied a panoramic glass roof that extends from the driver's seat to the second row on the Filante's ceiling to enhance openness. Even when seated in the second row, the roof did not feel low. During the daytime test, the sunlight was strong, but there was no sensation of the head heating up. The trunk space is 633 liters.
The overall driving performance felt solid. When the engine started and pressure was applied to the accelerator, the car responded immediately and surged forward, which was impressive. Filante uses the E-Tech hybrid system composed of a 1.5-liter turbo engine, a 100-kilowatt drive motor, and a 60-kilowatt starter motor, delivering a maximum output of 250 horsepower.
On the instrument cluster, the instantaneous degree of motor intervention is displayed in kilowatts depending on how hard the accelerator is pressed. Pressing hard to gain speed, it climbed to 170 kilowatts.
In both low- and high-speed driving, Filante did not feel significantly noisy or vibratory. Although a glass roof, which is vulnerable to noise, was applied, there was little inflow of external noise such as wind noise. Compared with the Grand Koleos, vibration felt lower, thanks to Filante's frequency-sensitive dampers. This device classifies road-induced vibration into three stages and attenuates it.
Lee Tae-won, in charge of driving performance evaluation, said, "We made the glass roof thicker to curb vibration and noise," and noted, "If the Grand Koleos had one device to attenuate vibration, Filante adds a sensitive damper." The laminated acoustic glass applied to the first and second rows also helps reduce noise.
Filante is equipped with the large language model artificial intelligence (AI)-based voice assistant "adot Auto." It analyzed driving patterns, recommended destinations, and supported voice conversations. It handled tasks like weather and destination recommendations smoothly, but due to limited data it could not provide information such as driving range or fuel economy.
Driving modes are divided into AI, Eco, Comfort, Sport, and Snow. AI assesses the driver's driving characteristics over 10 minutes and recommends the optimal mode.
Driving in Sport mode, the steering wheel firmed up, and the body surged forward more quickly. After the drive, the fuel economy shown on the instrument cluster was 13.3 kilometers per liter, lower than the official combined rating of 15.1 kilometers per liter. This appeared to reflect the variety of tests conducted.
Filante, which begins customer deliveries next month, will be sold in four trims. With eco-friendly vehicle tax benefits applied, prices are: ▲ Techno 43.31 million won ▲ Iconic 46.96 million won ▲ Esprit Alpine 49.71 million won ▲ Esprit Alpine 1955 52.18 million won.