Renault Austral review - Interior & comfort

The overall fit-and-finish of the Austral’s cabin has seen a step up from the outgoing Kadjar; while the Austral is nowhere near as plush as, say, a BMW X1, nearly everything feels well screwed together. There’s a generous amount of soft-touch plastic on display, but harder materials can be found lower down and the air vents feel cheap. The huge panoramic sunroof on Iconic Esprit Alpine gives the Austral’s cabin a wonderfully airy feel.

Is the Renault Austral’s infotainment and sat-nav system easy to use?

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What truly makes the Austral a joy to travel in is the mountain of tech that’s on offer. The centrepiece of the Austral’s interior is Renault’s latest OpenR infotainment system; this is powered by Google software and comprises a 12-inch digital instrument cluster, alongside a 12.3-inch portrait touchscreen. Both are incredibly configurable and responsive to your inputs, while there’s also a large 9.3-inch head-up display meaning you don’t have to take your eyes off the road to see information such as your current speed. The voice control works very well, and you can even control smart devices in your home with intuitive commands.

Is the Renault Austral well equipped?

Three trim levels are offered here, called: Techno, Techno Esprit Alpine and Iconic Esprit Alpine. Even the first of these is hardly lacking in equipment, with 19-inch alloy wheels, matrix LED headlights, all-around parking sensors and a rear-view camera. There’s also Renault’s hands-free key card instead of a traditional key. In other words, most people shouldn’t need to look any further than the Techno for all the kit they need.

If they do, Techno Esprit Alpine costs £2,000 more and gets a sportier look, thanks to 20-inch alloy wheels and a different bodykit, as well as Alcantara upholstery and blue stitching inside. The cabin also features heated front seats and a heated steering wheel, along with a powered tailgate. There’s even a massage function for the driver’s seat. The range-topper is another £2,000 on top at the time of writing and adds a 12-speaker Harman Kardon stereo, a panoramic sunroof, wireless phone charging and a 360-degree camera view.

What options should you choose on the Renault Austral?

There aren’t really any options for the Austral, with most features included on each trim. These include a few exterior paint options with a contrast colour roof and accessories like a tow hook for £700 or roof bars for £600 at the time of writing.