Renault Duster AWD

What you’ll like:

• Robust, abuse-friendly build & construction
• A very competent softroader. AWD system can take you places no 2WD can
• Retuned 109 BHP engine & shorter gear ratios make the Duster AWD extremely driveable
• 1.5L dCi turbo-diesel is known for its consistently high fuel efficiency
• Outstanding ride quality has further improved. Comfortable over any kind of road
• Car-like to drive. Balanced handling and dynamics. Extremely stable at high speeds
• Safety kit: ESP, ASR, ABS, EBD, BA & understeer control. Dual airbags for the top variant
• 210 mm of ground clearance for the AWD version. Dismisses broken roads with aplomb

What you won’t:

• Not a hardcore offroader like the Jeep & Gypsy 4x4s
• No 3rd row of seats. The Scorpio & Safari Storme are 7-seaters
• Interiors look cheap & dated in many areas. Weird ergonomics as well
• Mediocre rear seat legroom. More like C1 segment sedans than C2
• Poor NVH insulation. Engine, road & wind noise are prominent inside the cabin
• Missing features: No climate control, 60:40 splitting rear seat, dead pedal or 1-touch down windows
• Bigger, more spacious & feature-packed XUV500 AWD isn't priced too far above
• Renault's after-sales service quality is inconsistent

n an uncanny twist of fate, Renault takes on Mahindra - once partner & now competitor - with an SUV based on the same Logan platform that formed their marriage in '07. The Duster is positioned at the heart of the Rs. 7 - 12 lakh UV segment...a segment that makes up most of Mahindra's bottom line. 

2012 has seen sales of SUVs & MUVs (combined) overtake sedans for the first time ever. Our market's fascination with SUVs is well acknowledged; however, not everyone wants to drive a gargantuan SUV in crowded Indian cities. The time of compact SUVs has indeed come. With a monocoque construction (unlike the other ladder-on-frame utility vehicles), compact SUVs are lighter and, being sedan based, very car-like to drive as well. However, they aren't as tough as traditional ladder frame UVs, especially in load carrying or offroad applications. The monocoque UV seldom has a 3rd row of seats either (Ertiga being an exception). While commercial users will undoubtedly stick to conventional UVs, it's the personal user that the compact SUV has square in its sight. Cross-shopping across segments is commonplace in India, and the target customers include those who are considering a premium hatchback or C segment sedan. 

The compact SUV category is poised to heat up with many manufacturers currently finalising their plans for launch. The Ford EcoSport is being prepared for a 2013 entry, while the Maruti XA Alpha, Chevrolet Trax and Ssangyong Korando might follow soon after. The sub-4 meter Mahindra Xylo will also target the same personal owner who is looking for more than a hatchback or sedan. Renault is doing all it can to cash in on the first-mover advantage. The initial Dacia product for India (i.e. Logan) may have failed, but if the booking volumes are anything to go by, the second Dacia (Duster) is off to a strong start. Sources indicate that booking volumes have crossed 12,000 already, with customer deliveries starting toward the end of July. 

The Duster is the 4th Renault that has been launched in India. The Fluence, Koleos and Pulse met with a poor market response. This SUV might just be the game changer for Renault, with the potential to multiply the company's marketshare by 5 - 6 times overnight. Renault’s sales target for the Duster is 3,000 – 4,000 units a month. This is actually the first time that Renault as a brand has gotten so much attention from the Indian masses. Fact is, a good part of them weren't even aware of Renault's Indian presence. As we found out, the interest in the Duster is extremely high. Over our 3 day review event, innumerable folk (including those from rural India) interrupted our drive / photo shoot with questions on the new "Renolt". 

The Duster is primarily sold as a Dacia product internationally. Most of its markets are developing countries, albeit a UK launch is around the corner. The Dacia brand is synonymous with low cost cars that have simple, robust underpinnings. The Duster's clothes will please all and excite none. It's nowhere asin-your-face as the XUV500 or the EcoSport. I might add that, as a man of traditional taste, I prefer the Duster's simple design to that of the awkward Skoda Yeti. The front is the best looking part of this car. Its face has an imposing stance, thanks to the bulky wheel arches, large headlamps & brash chrome grille. The silver skid plate adds to the rough & tough look, although you should be warned that it's made of plastic and is thus, easy to break. The intimidation ends at the front, and the small dimensions don't give this SUV the street cred of the Scorpio or better still, the Safari. The Duster isn't very tall; that's probably why the roof rails (which enhance its height) are standard, even on the base variant. The plain-jane doors make for a rather bland side profile. Also, the flap-type door handles went out of style in the nineties, while their silver paint is a cheap touch. The beefed up wheel arches lend the Duster a wide & planted look, especially when viewed from the rear. One way that Renault could have greatly improved the Duster's looks is by mounting the spare wheel on the tail gate. The wheels & tyres are simply massive. I'm glad that Renault chose 215/65 R16 tyres. Not only does this size offer superior grip, but it also improves the Duster's stance. 

Many BHPians commented that the Duster looks like an overgrown hatchback. Well, after seeing the vehicle in person, I have to disagree with them. Sure, the Duster isn't a big, butch SUV, but it’s still an SUV...compact dimensions aside. In terms of footprint, I'd place the Duster in the ballpark of the Skoda Yeti. The small footprint could work as an advantage or a disadvantage, depending which side of the fence you are on. As mentioned earlier, a large SUV can get unwieldy in dense traffic and is tougher to park in the city. 

Interior
Ingress is easier than in the lower slung sedans. The elderly will surely appreciate the higher placement of the Duster's seats. However, egress from the back seat isn't as simple. The gap between the large rear seat & the B Pillar is limited, thus interfering with an effortless exit. 

Slide inside the Duster and you'll immediately notice the bright, airy ambience. The large greenhouse allows a lot of sunlight in. In terms of look & feel, the interiors are all function and no form. The overall design is uninspiring; it's liveable, yes, but there is no “wow” factor at all. You'll be happy or unhappy with the interiors, depending on what class of vehicle you are comparing the Duster to. Scorpio, Safari or Xylo? The Duster blows them away. Interior quality is at least 2 levels superior to what the home-grown MUVs have to offer. The Duster feels far more contemporary on the inside, while fit & finish are much superior too. On the other hand, if you are cross-shopping with equivalently priced sedans (like the Vento or Verna), the Duster's interiors will fail miserably. There is an abundance of hard & shiny plastics here. None of the parts feel particularly worthy of a million rupee car; the quality is more in line with entry-level sedans than the likes of the Honda City. Unlike the exteriors, cost cutting is extremely obvious on the inside. For instance, the rubber beading wouldn't look out of place on a humble Maruti WagonR. The switchgear is economy-grade and the 7,000 rpm counter is common to the petrol & diesel variants (no redline marked). Feel closely and you'll notice a lot of flimsy parts and panels with rough edges. It appears that the purchasing department exhausted its budget on the exteriors & mechanicals, and were left with little by the time they got inside. 

On the positive side, I found the colour combination to be very tasteful. The black, beige & cream colour combination works, while the piano black & chrome touches are thoughtfully applied. They play their part in improving the feel of the Duster's interiors. In full grey, this interior would have looked right out of the nineties (Logan memories are afresh). Which reminds me, I prefer the Duster's interiors to that of my Nissan Sunny. In summary, those who buy the entry & mid-variants for 8 - 10 lakhs will learn to live with it. But customers spending 12 - 13 lakh for the higher 110 PS Dusters will inevitably feel short changed. 

Space for front seat occupants is A+. The Duster has reasonable width on the inside and the driver won't be elbowing his co-passenger much. Also, the glove box doesn’t interfere with the front passenger's knees. Headroom is just about enough, although it isn't excessive as in other SUVs. The front seats don't get much in the way of bolstering. They are on the flatter side and under-thigh support, especially, is lacking. I liked the fabric seat upholstery. The compound isn't too firm and feels durable. Actually, I prefer the Duster's fabric upholstery to the economy-grade leather seats offered on the topmost variant. The front seats get a rating of 7 / 10 from me. All 4 doors offer a comfortable place to rest your forearms on the move. That said, a center armrest for the driver is sorely missed, especially since the competing Scorpio offers a wonderful center armrest for the driver & co-passenger (each). The front seat's fore & aft adjustment range is long enough to accommodate the shorter as well as taller drivers. The driver's chair gets adjustable lumbar support as well. The setting is progressive and provides you with adequate lower back support. If you want to increase the seat height, you have to get off and pull on the bare metal lever (no plastic cladding). Of course, you can lower the height while being seated. It's a rudimentary procedure and just one of the many areas in which cost-cutting is obvious. On the bright side, the seat height adjustment has a good range. Short drivers will need this feature; even though the dashboard is placed on the lower side, the top of the instrument console will interfere with their line of sight. Frontal & lateral visibility are superb, and rearward view isn't too bad either. Whatever the reason may be, some folk will appreciate being able to "see the bonnet" while driving. The steering gets tilt adjustment only (reach is fixed). I found the horn pad to be unnecessarily large, even if it makes honking easier. As a result, the gaps in the lower half of the steering are too small. When cornering, I was unable to make much use of the steering's bottom half. I'm going to go against the tide by saying I actually liked the placement of the audio controls (behind the steering, to the right). I prefer my steering wheels to be just that, and don't like the clutter that integrated audio & phone controls bring. Drive the Duster for a while and you'll agree that the audio controls are intuitive to use. Their el-cheapo build quality leaves a lot to be desired though, with the audio buttons of our brand new test car suffering from excessive play. 

I could write a book on the messy ergonomics : Power window buttons are thankfully placed on the driver's door (remember the Logan's controls?), but the console on which they are fitted looks like an after-thought. Most of you will need to really stretch to access the buttons which are placed all the way at the start of the door. The sharp edge of this console poked my right leg a bit too much while driving. The clutch, brake and accelerator pedals are awkwardly positioned, and are also too close to one another. There's no dead pedal...placing my left foot in the available space (to the left of the clutch) was tricky with large shoes. The ORVM adjustment knob is strangely located below the handbrake. Then, the center console angle & the tiny central lock / unlock button are geared for left-hand-drive variants. Ergonomically, the Duster misses the mark by a mile. Try as I might, even after spending 2 days with the SUV, I just couldn't find my "ideal" driving position. Every hour or two, I'd fidget with some seat setting or the other. The Duster is simply not as user-friendly as the typical Japanese or Korean car. In fact, the only other car in which that ideal driving position remained elusive is the Fiat Linea. 

Even though the Duster is built on the Logan’s platform, it doesn't offer the rear legroom of its sedan sibling. To put things in perspective, legroom is similar to a Hyundai i20 rather than the Honda City. I'd term it as strictly adequate; it's not what I would call spacious, but neither is it too cramped. The back of the front seat is scooped in to liberate that much more knee room. Where the rear bench scores is in support & sheer width. The seat back is superbly reclined, making the bench a comfortable place to relax on. Also, the center armrest is great to use. The rear seat is positioned noticeably higher than the front; this, combined with the large windows, makes for a bright ambience. It's not claustrophobic at the back at all. The rear seat is wide enough to easily accommodate 3 passengers. The India-specific rear air conditioner looks like an after-market fitment though. It's placed too close for comfort to the rear seat. The 5th passenger will have to twist & turn his legs before being able to sit in the middle. That said, he won't have any problem once he is seated (contrary to popular perception). I sat as the 5th passenger for a couple of kms and didn't have any complaints. The 5th passenger's seatback - which is the base of the center armrest - is soft and provides adequate cushioning. The rear air-conditioner has its own condensor and is extremely effective, unlike the Nissan Sunny's meagre air blower. At speed II, it can chill the Duster's rear section in no time, despite having only a single air vent. Do note that speed II is pretty noisy. You might want to switch back to speed I after the desired temperature has been reached. The planted ride quality improves overall comfort levels for rear passengers. The body roll is well in control and I'd much rather be seated on the backseat of a Duster than a shaky Xylo. The single fly in the ointment is the limited legroom, something Renault could have easily solved by equipping the Duster with a sliding rear seat. Such small additions make the difference between an "average" and "intelligently" packaged interior. After all, what do you use more? The rear seat or the boot? Why not leave it up to the owner to decide? A number of market successes have proven that the Indian customer prioritises rear seat space over luggage capacity. At the very least, the rear seat should have been positioned further back to release more legroom for passengers. 

The 2nd day of our test-drive included a drive on the Coimbatore highway. The Duster's air-conditioner seemed up to the task of keeping the cabin cool under a hot sun, although rains were intermittent and I'll leave the final verdict to Duster ownership reports. We had only the front air-con running most of the time and I doubt anyone will miss the rear unit. The OEM stereo has mediocre levels of sound quality, thanks to the budget quality speakers. If you care even a little bit about audio quality, upgrading the speakers might be a good idea. 

There is a fair amount of storage space at the front. The glovebox runs deep and is illuminated. The door pockets are deep as well, and can hold 1 liter bottles. Be warned that the mouth (of the door pockets) is quite narrow and the rough edges can scratch your hand. There are two small cup / can holders right ahead of the gear lever. The dashboard has accommodating storage cubicles above the center air-vents and the glovebox. I found the cubicle below the handbrake perfect to park my smart-phone. It also has borders that ensure your phone doesn't slide out under hard cornering. Rear passengers don't get door pockets, although there are two seat-back pockets (on the front seats). The 475 liter boot has a practical layout and the loading lip isn't too high either. The twin-tray parcel shelf can hold knick knacks in place. The parcel shelf will also come in handy to hide shopping bags from prying eyes. I am at a loss for words why the folding rear seat doesn't have a 60:40 split option. This greatly limits cargo flexibility. My unscientific opinion is that a split seat would be used a lot more in lifestyle SUVs than hatchbacks or sedans.