22-08-2007
New Laguna : born under the sign of quality
Since it was fi rst launched in January 1994, more than 2.3 million of the
fi rst two generations of Laguna have been sold. New Laguna is manufactured
in the Sandouville factory in France with a level of quality never seen before.
Preparing for Renault’s return to the luxury car segment, New Laguna has been
manufactured to be both robust and reliable. The stated objective is to be in the
top three of its segment for product and service quality.
Driving pleasure…
New Laguna was designed from the outset to give true driving pleasure. It has a dynamic,
streamlined and elegant form, positioning it naturally in the realm of grand tourers, with an even more exclusive and
distinctive profi le for the Sport Tourer. Its class-leading dynamic performance is a benchmark. Its chassis is responsive and its
steering is particularly precise. Whilst being bigger and more spacious than its predecessor, New Laguna is notably lighter by
an average of 15 kg and is available with a wide range of powerful and economical engines from launch, all with six-speed
manual and automatic gearboxes.
…complete peace of mind
New Laguna provides a real sense of peace of mind for all its occupants. In terms of protection, it benefi ts from Renault’s
acclaimed real-world accident knowledge and all of the latest technologies, in particular, side impact with an innovative thorax
double airbag. The sophisticated air conditioning system offers class-leading thermal comfort. Equally, much attention has
been focused on New Laguna’s acoustics which are again top-of-the-class. With an economical and ecological ‘Renault eco2’
version, New Laguna dCi 110 hp only consumes 5.1 litres per 100 km on a combined cycle, or 136 g of CO2 emissions per km.
New Laguna is respectful of the environment right from its production through to the end of its lifecycle.
New Laguna will be launched from 12 October 2007 as the future reference point for the family saloon segment in terms
of usage, maintenance and repair costs.
Driving pleasure…
New Laguna has been manufactured with the aim of offering real driving pleasure. Its benchmark performance on
the road is fi rst class. The car offers top driving comfort through its fi ne-tuned chassis and needle-sharp steering. It
has an optimal weight distribution with a range of engines and gearboxes which offer high performance while being
economical with fuel.
A reactive chassis
Developed to go beyond the dynamic qualities for which
its predecessor was recognised, the New Laguna’s chassis
offers outstanding roadholding around bends. The steering is
more sensitive to the touch, while maintaining its suspension
quality through its vertical dampening. Renault’s engineers
have paid particular attention to the exact nature of the
trajectory and the roadholding qualities of the car’s body.
One characteristic of its turning capability is the specifi c roll
which characterises the turning angle taken by the car visà-
vis the road. With the New Laguna, it is 1.9° (the segment
average is 2.2°) for a transversal acceleration of 5m/s2. This
situation corresponds to driving conditions on a winding road
or at a roundabout outside of the city with a diameter of
400 m, driven at a speed of 60 km per hour.
The front axle is the pseudo McPherson type. The
diameter of its anti-roll bar has been increased from 19.5 to
24 mm. Light and compact, the supple rear axle is in the form
of an H, with anti-roll bars varying in diameter from 28.8 to
30.5 mm. The springs are 20% stiffer at the front and 50%
stiffer at the rear, resulting in better control during vertical
movements – without the vehicle being too sporty. New
Laguna is still astonishingly comfortable, thanks to greatly
improved suspension: in association with helicoidal springs of
varying fl exibility, the dampeners are pressurised at the front
and in the form of bi-tubes at the rear. The reinforcements are
situated at the appropriate points in the body, strengthening
the body mass and increasing the capacity to withstand
impact: in short, impeccable reliability.
Three tyre sizes are available
according to the engine size :
16 inches in three widths:
(195 and 205/60, as well as
215/55), 17 inches in 215/50
and 18 inches in 225/45, for
heightened performance.
Precise steering
The accuracy of the steering is based on a reduced
steering ratio and a stiffened steering column, with an aim to
offer the driver more driving pleasure through the steering.
With a ratio of 1/16e (i.e. a 16° angle of the wheel for a 1° angle
of the steering wheel), driving movements are rendered easier
and the car becomes more agile. The increased stiffness
and the systematic tracking and reduction of clearance
give the driver more direct, accurate contact with the road,
reducing response time between the steering wheel and the
change of direction. The reduction of vibration arising from
imperfections on the road surface
has improved driving pleasure as
a consequence. All the powerful
engines or those equipped with
particulate fi lter offer variable
hydraulic assistance. As a fi rst for
Renault in the segment, New
Laguna inaugurates a new
generation of assistance, through the utilisation of a driven
electric pump unit (PEG). Available with the main petrol and
diesel engines with manual gearbox, it allows the driver
to obtain assistance through the use of the electric pump
output, in accordance with the driving conditions. This output
depends on the speed and the level of assistance required
(speed and angle of the steering wheel) which allows an
optimal fuel consumption, by driving the pump electrically
when necessary. For the 1.6 16v petrol version, there is
constant hydraulic steering assistance.
Even lighter and more aerodynamic
Lighter, on average by 15 kg (up to 65 kg on the 110
hp eco² diesel version), New Laguna benefi ts from an
outstanding weight distribution. It is the fi rst Renault vehicle
to be lighter than its predecessor. A key ingredient in its
driving pleasure, the weight distribution is a key factor on
several different levels: dynamic performance (road holding,
acceleration, roll during bends), fuel consumption and CO2
emissions, active safety (shorter braking distance) and
passive safety (resistance in the case of impact). More than
300 actions have been listed and carried out by engineers,
qualifi ed in their various fi elds, to attain this result.
New Laguna’s performance, both dynamic and economic,
is also linked to work carried out on mock-ups to optimise
its aerodynamics. This was carried out in the wind tunnel
and by digital simulation. These efforts have resulted in New
Laguna’s position at the top of the saloon market, with an
SCx of 0.645 m² and a Cx of 0.293. (The SCx is the product
of the frontal S surface of the vehicle by the air penetration
coeffi cient, Cx). This progress is especially impressive for
vehicles with raised modularity (hatchback) compared with a “saloon” or “notchback”. It is all the more signifi cant for New
Laguna Sport Tourer, with a SCx of 0.696 and a Cx of 0.316,
bearing in mind that the average SCx of all saloon cars on
the market is 0.70 and the Cx, 0.315. These achievements
have been rendered possible by the quality of the changes
made and the work on the design of the rear lateral line
and the door mirrors, which are, however, bigger in order
to comply with the new regulations. As a fi rst for Renault,
there is a discreet, integral fairing on the undercarriage which
optimises the air fl ow while protecting the chassis.
Text and photos courtesy of Renault
