Deliveries of the Citroen Basalt started late last month and the car has been priced quite aggressively, starting from ₹7.99 lakh (ex-showroom). The Basalt is the first ICE coupe-SUV to be launched in the Indian mass market for automobiles. Citroen offers two petrol engine options, where the 1.2-litre naturally aspirated unit makes 80 bhp and 115 Nm of torque and the three-cylinder turbo-petrol makes 109 bhp and 190Nm on the manual, 205 Nm on the TC automatic.

The Basalt rides on 16-inch alloys and is fitted with LED headlamps. The cabin features rear AC vents and the rear seats get adjustable thigh support, a segment-first feature. The 10.25-inch infotainment includes wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, and the car is further equipped with six airbags, ESC, TPMs, and a rear parking camera, missing out on ADAS. 

Tata Motors has just launched the Curvv coupe-SUV in its ICE-powered variant and it is priced from ₹9.99 lakh (ex-showroom). This mid-size SUV joins the Citroen Basalt as new mass market entries in a coupe-SUV segment that was generally left to the high-end luxury brands. The Tata Curvv is built on the Indian manufacturer’s new ATLAS architecture for ICE vehicles and it is offered with two petrol engine options and one diesel unit. 

The Tata Curvv’s interior features ventilated leatherette seats, with the rear ones getting an incline function. The driver uses what Tata labels as a smart digital steering wheel accompanied by a 10.24-inch digital instrument cluster. Among varying options for infotainment, a 12.30-inch touchscreen display is reserved for the high-end variants. The car gets six airbags, ABS with EBD, ESP, and Level-2 ADAS with 20 features. 

 Renault and Nissan had announced earlier this year that they will be capitalising on India’s SUV craze to release four new C-segment SUVs in the country in 2025. One five-seater and one seven-seater is what’s expected from either brand. According to their joint announcement this year, all four SUVs are to be based on a localised iteration of the CMF-B platform that currently underpins the 2024 Duster. 

With this, Nissan’s five-seater is expected to be based on the upcoming Duster that will also be brought to India under Renault’s banner. The 2024 Dacia Duster features three engine options, out of which two are hybrids and one petrol-LPG unit. The car maintains its utilitarian aesthetic while providing upmarket features such as an ADAS suite, a seven-inch digital cluster, and a 10.1-inch central touchscreen angled towards the driver. 

The latest generation of the Renault Duster SUV was unveiled in 2023 under sister brand Dacia, and the car is slated for a global launch later this year. The utilitarian SUV was sold as part of the French carmaker’s portfolio in India but was discontinued for the country in 2022. It has gone through multiple iterations in the global market and the upcoming model is expected to make a return to India in 2025 as part of the carmaker’s plans with Nissan, but the launch timeline has not yet been confirmed. 

The 2024 Duster five-seater is likely to be one of the first launches out of all four projected models, and it is expected to come in three engine options, out of which two are petrol-hybrids. The 1.0-litre petrol-LPG is offered in select markets and might not make it to India. A 1.2-litre three-cylinder unit is available with a 48V mild-hybrid system and a six-speed gearbox. While this is the only motor available for the four-wheel drive variant, there is an additional 1.6-litre four-cylinder self-charging hybrid available.