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-   -   Nissan's Duster-based SUV, the Terrano: Full Pics are out! (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian-car-scene/128481-nissans-duster-based-suv-terrano-full-pics-out-4.html)

I had an interesting thought, perhaps Renault-Nissan don't need to cannibalize each other's sales of the Duster by following a similar strategy to the Sunny-Scala and Micra-Pulse. Perhaps, they could launch the Nissan version as one variant with 4x4 and priced above the top Renault variant. This way people who want 4x4 will have no choice but to buy the pricier Nissan version and all 4x2 buyers will have to choose Renault.

I had been to the local Nissan dealership for enquiring about the booking status for a Micra. The finance adviser there is so sure about a March last / April first launch of the Nissan Duster. Yes, he said it is to be named the Duster! But guys, I'm taking this with a pinch of salt.

I'll return back to this thread once I get to know more on this. Couldn't catch up with my friendly sales adviser this time. Anybody got other information?

March launch cannot be ruled out, since I guess nothing will change in the Nissan version except probably a few body panels.

The Renault-Nissan brand positioning in our market is such that Nissan versions of the same car seem to be priced lower. A March/April "Nissan Duster" launch at a lower price point than "Renault Duster" could be an effective strategy to counter the Ford Ecosport.

Thats a good point. Very much possible. Only point is we need to set the expectations. People are already not happy with Duster build quality.
And they have hopes that the Nissan version would be cheaper and with better build quality ! :)

I was thinking of a Diwali 2013 launch for the reasons below. Read these in some auto forums, can't vouch for the authenticity. But that article said this was an interview with some big shot in Nissan.

Continuing post from above...

1. Nissan's version of Duster is told to have "substantial changes" from Renault's

2. A 4WD considered to be available right from the launch.

3. Renault has given permission quite late for Nissan's version as they didn't want the lower priced version to cannibalise the looong waiting periods of Duster.

With these 3 points coming in some auto forum, I was really looking at a Diwali 2013 launch. I don't think we have seen any test mules yet right?! Even if there are ONLY minor changes, we should see the testing happening for atleast 3-4 months?

The honeymoon period is still NOT over for Duster; so I will be surprised if Renault allows such a quick launch.

Just a though, maybe Nissan might want name it the xterra. That is the closest look-a-like of Duster I believe.

It also comes in 4X2 and 4X4 options here in US. The stripped down version of this car could very well come in the Safari/Scorpio/Duster price range.

Question is, why would they need to test it? Its the same car with the same engine. A few changed panels and bumpers don't need test mules, in my opinion.

Everybody looks for a perfect product. And real life scenarios will be different from "theory". Even if it's a new panel that is fitted onto a rebadged car, it is required to be tested on roads as to how is it holding good with usage. Even an alloy design will definitely need some calibration for optimal usage & testing will help to check for alignment / suspension / abnormal wear & tear, dynamics etc.

I would NOT say these re-badged cars are tested to the same intensity as a newly designed product, but a fair testing is required to check everything.

Happened to see this now. Yes, the Duster is a Nissan platform vehicle, both the Duster and the Logan are Dacia B0 (which i guess might be Nissan's further development their B0 platform) platform vehicles.

http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/News/Se...ficial-photos/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nissan_B_platform

Looks like except the Koleos and the Fluence all other vehicles of Renault's India line-up has more Nissan than Renault in it.

I don't recall any reports of Pulse/Scala being spotted on public roads before they were introduced in the market. Maybe the testing is restricted inside factory premises.

Well you are right in a way. Often Facelifts are spotted being tested and therefore a Nissan Duster with modified body panels may need to be tested.

There is plenty of platform sharing between the two brands.

The Duster is based on the Logan which in turn is based on a heavily reworked Renault Clio platform.

The Koleos is a re-skinned Nissan X-Trail. The Koleos was developed by Nissan. And the Fluence is a Renault Megane with a boot-job. :)

Its the B0 platform that Clio II, Logan and Duster is based on. The B0 platform is developed by Nissan.

Its like the Ertiga being based on the Swift platform, and CRV being based on Civic, but here manufactured the same company so no badge engineering.

Oh! Koleos too?! :) Looks like all Renault is doing is cosmetic jobs then.. except for the Fluence which is their own design, i suppose.

Duster 4x4: Excellent & typically quirky review by Top Gear on the BBC site. There are some nice pictures as well so do follow the link.

http://www.bbc.com/autos/story/20130...dust-in-peru/1

Summary:

I decide, altitude-drunk, thankful to be alive, that this must be the perfect car for Peru. You want something with four-wheel drive, something cheap enough you won't mind it getting a bit dented by, say, a rapidly onrushing valley floor. Decent visibility is a must, to avoid clouting a mototaxi and being clouted by a ten-tonne truck.

And, the altitude-monologue continues, all those things that make the Duster so good here make it the perfect cheap car for Britain. A bit of extra suspension travel isn't only useful when you're tackling an Ande – it provides useful compliance on crumbled tarmac too, absorbing divots and ruts. The trade-off – in budget cars, at least – is usually a wallowing, sailboat approach to corners. But the Duster is slop-free. Maybe it's the hypoxia speaking, but I'm pretty sure it nails the ride-handling balance better than cars at many times its price.

The Duster doesn't aspire to budget chic or any such daft notion. It's simply budget, and all the better for it: honest, simple, good enough to make you reassess what you actually need, not want, from a new car. I can't claim it steers like an Exige or has a gearshift to match the Boxster, but it does all that stuff entirely adequately. And OK, its interior won't send Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen into raptures, but it has everything you need: seats, steering wheel, radio, all still attached after our thousand-mile off-road battering. We have subjected this simple, brilliant little car to punishment beyond anything that even Britain's most abused Defender has endured, and it has passed with flying colours. Brownish colours, admittedly, but flying brownish colours nonetheless.

Altitude sickness promotes grand, woozy thoughts, and this is mine. The Duster distills the very essence of motoring. Some cars we love for their pupil-melting beauty or for pushing the boundaries of technical possibility. But the main reason we love cars is because they offer freedom, a passport to the furthest-flung corners of the globe. And no car in the world offers more freedom for your quid than the Dacia Duster. Soft, strong and thoroughly canyon-proof, it's TopGear's Budget Car of the Year.

I've read somewhere that Koleos is based on Nissan Qashqai.

Hope Nissan does a Skoda (Rapid) with the Duster. Not just rebadging.
Also, please re-do the tailgate and interiors from scratch. :)