[.anshuman]

Originally Posted by josephnishanth

I just checked my Duster 85PS, bought in April 2013 at Chennai.
The steering rack is rusted! Since I had done flooring, the rack wasn't very visible. A little stooping and with a torch, the rust is visible!
Wonder how many other parts do we need to check for rust!! :(
Since my car is out of warranty now, would I be able to hold Renault responsible for this rust? What are the perils of driving along with this rust? Please enlighten

Now that the issue is known, i suggest all Duster owners to get the cars inspected at Independent workshops, take pictures of all the spots wherever you find rust, share the same in this thread(to help other fellow owners) and with Renault India and seek their feedback. The dealerships may not be of much help unless directed by the company, anyways if the design remains unaltered it may rust again.

Sadly due to our country's weak consumers laws and no automotive body to force a recall, social media is the only available tool if Renault India fails to acknowledge the issue.

[jfxavier]

Originally Posted by .anshuman

Sadly due to our country's weak consumers laws and no automotive body to force a recall, social media is the only available tool if Renault India fails to acknowledge the issue.

How far is this true?
Is our consumer protection forums not capable of handling complaints regarding cars?
Are there any precedents which lead you to this conclusion?

I am more than curious since I might head that way.

[xjosephjacob]

Originally Posted by .anshuman

Now that the issue is known, i suggest all Duster owners to get the cars inspected at Independent workshops, take pictures of all the spots wherever you find rust, share the same in this thread(to help other fellow owners) and with Renault India and seek their feedback.

This is a nice initiative. Here goes.

I already knew there is some rust forming on top of the shock absorber struts (Let the picture explain it better) and had taken it up with Renault 3-4 months ago. They assured me that this is common, as the struts didn't come with a protective cap or grease/Vaseline like stuff coated on it. They showed me a few Dusters in the yard that has this problem, and assured to address this in the next service.



Yesterday I thoroughly checked my Duster at a local workshop and found nothing new. FYI I live near the coastal belt, climate is salty and humid throughout, and the car has seen 6 months of monsoon.

That said, my 19 year old M800 and 10 year old Accent are better protected and have no rust on that part. Talk about attention to details.

[rr74]

Following up on my original post at -
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offici...ml#post3592144

I took my car to the Mysore Road service station in Bangalore and here is what happened (I'll not name the persons involved right now)-

1. I checked the new AWD parked inside the showroom for display along with the Service Manager and we both saw that the Knuckles were heavily rusted in that car too and looked exactly like the one shown in my photo in the link above.

2. The driveshaft in the parked AWD inside the showroom was not rusted unlike my car.

3. The engineer told me that the knuckle is made of cast iron and they cannot coat or paint it since it reaches high temperature. Absolute Rubbish !

4. The service guys took the picture of the chassis and sent it t some folks internally at Renault.

There were other things that happened there as well regarding my other issues but since this thread only deals with Rust issues, i'll limit my comments to that.

Fast forward, a few days later to my visit, i get a call from Renault After Sales and here is what happened -

1. He tells me that this will not cause structural failure.

2. He also tells me that once the surface is totally covered by Rust then it itself will form a protective coating and it will not rust further, so it's fine. This is a statement worth quoting ! I gave him a piece of my mind at this statement because i lost it.

3. He says they will get it cleaned but the rust will come again. I am putting my foot down and asking them for a permanent solution and asking them to give a detailed description of the procedure they are going to do.

He is fixing up an appointment with some Technical guy to inspect my car tomorrow and i will update back.

PS: Just for the heck of it - I have left a note on the PMs website mentioning the india make Duster recall as a setback for his MAKE IN INDIA initiative.

[rr74]

Update - I met a technical guy who came down to inspect my car today from Chennai. They lifted the car and I found that my front driveshaft is rusted as well.
They have now promised to replace both my front and rear driveshafts.

[soumobakshi]

Not sure if its early days, but as of now looks clean. Keeping Fingers Crossed.

[bhaskaracs]

What is this with vehicles manufactured in Chennai? Even Hyundai vehicles (if you look at the disk brakes and other wheel components) tend to rust pretty early - including fresh ones inside showrooms. I wonder it is just the few weeks/months they spend in Chennai yards unattended (and immobile) is causing this rust. I have seen several Hyundai Elantras/Vernas/i20s recently at a local HMP Plaza (both showroom and the work shop) with almost all vehicles with rusty wheel components - almost all of them. It appears it is the case with Duster too. Does Hyundai export from India? I havent heard any complaints in media about their cars rusting. Such things often come to surface first in the West. Perhaps, in few years 'auto majors manufacturing in Chennai facing rust issues' will be taught as a case study in Mech/Meta Eng-101 courses.

[humyum]

Originally Posted by bhaskaracs

What is this with vehicles manufactured in Chennai? Even Hyundai vehicles (if you look at the disk brakes and other wheel components) tend to rust pretty early - including fresh ones inside showrooms. I wonder it is just the few weeks/months they spend in Chennai yards unattended (and immobile) is causing this rust. I have seen several Hyundai Elantras/Vernas/i20s recently at a local HMP Plaza (both showroom and the work shop) with almost all vehicles with rusty wheel components - almost all of them. It appears it is the case with Duster too. Does Hyundai export from India? I havent heard any complaints in media about their cars rusting. Such things often come to surface first in the West. Perhaps, in few years 'auto majors manufacturing in Chennai facing rust issues' will be taught as a case study in Mech/Meta Eng-101 courses.

The rusting of the disc brakes is absolutely normal. Check for yourself. When you car has not been touched for a day or two, the brake disc surface will have rust on them which will vanish the moment you get of your building and hit the brakes the first time. The rust around the periphery of the brake disc is also completely harmless and normal.

Originally Posted by xjosephjacob

This is a nice initiative. Here goes.

I already knew there is some rust forming on top of the shock absorber struts (Let the picture explain it better) and had taken it up with Renault 3-4 months ago. They assured me that this is common, as the struts didn't come with a protective cap or grease/Vaseline like stuff coated on it. They showed me a few Dusters in the yard that has this problem, and assured to address this in the next service.

Attachment 1315896

A small suggestion. If Renault is not providing the Strut Cover ( or cap, I don't remember what exactly its called), get one for the Dzire or the SX4 (see if it fits). It will reduce the rusting of the top portion of the rust to a LARGE LARGE extent over the years. Also the top of the strut should be lubricated with greese always.

F1fan's Dzire has a strut cap right from the day he has owned his car, my VDI never had one. The top of his struts look like brand new and mine have years of rust over them.

[scorpian]

Rusting on disc and other areas is normal and i have seen the same on countless cars in Maruti.
They will have nilch effect,and purely due to cast iron properties.

As far as the shock absorber struts are concerned a dab of grease from FNG, or even a drop of machine oil is enough.

The rust on these surfaces is purely superficial and will not lead to wasting away effect so be at peace.

[BoneCollector]

I have been closely monitoring this thread as I have this in contention for my next vehicle. Rusting is a serious issue but then it depends on the amount and parts involved.
Since there is no rusting complaint in Terranos, is it safe to assume that they are rust free? I think they share the same mechanicals so should I wait for AWD Terrano?

[anexas06]

Here's mine.

Original post at: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offici...ml#post3607543

Have emailed Renault Customer Care. Let's see what they have to say.

[sonics]

Gave my Duster for 1st free Service to Trident Whitefield today. Upon highlighting my concern on the recent rusting problems reported in media, the dealer brushed aside saying no such issue found or reported in Duster vehicles sold in India.
As per him, the cast iron parts are bound to get rust in any vehicle but company will take recall action if pointed any rust formation in any painted area such as bonnet, doors etc.
I found, the service technician had put lot of grease on front struts fixation area in engine bay without asking for it.
The service advisor was advocating for under-body coat (3M) to address any of concerns for rust formation. He also highlighted that after recent rusting report, many Duster owners are opting for 3M coats to avoid such risk. At the same time, they are not giving any discount in such services.

[rajneeesh]

This is the tyopical Ostrich approach adopted by a lot of manufacturers in India. If one were to do a deep dive, I would find out most of these comanies that are avoiding recalls in India while doing so overseas are also the companies which are not doing well in the indian market ( one exception being Ford India).

Renualt India is treading on dangerous ground. If they believe they can brush such concerns under the carpet by claiming that they do not exist, they are in for unpleasant surprise. Duster has done well in the last 3 yers and it is the only Renault/ Nissan product that is getting decent numbers in India. If they do not take proactive action they will soon have problems selling it. The competition is hotting up and Hyundai Motors and Maruti Suzuki are poised to launch their on SUV's in this segment in the near future.

Fiat was a strong brand in India but despite decent products, Indian car buying people have rejected the brand. A lot of this is related to the bookings fiasco of the Fiat Uno and the way it was handled by the two JV partners. Renault must learn from such blunders made by other manufacturers and not repeat them.

[adarsh76]

This thread has left me horrified. One of my close friends has booked a Duster 85 psi Diesel and due to receive in 1 week time.

Just a simple question, should I tell him to reconsider his decision?

[volkman10]

Originally Posted by adarsh76

Just a simple question, should I tell him to reconsider his decision?

IMO, not needed. Just while doing PDI be extra cautious in the painting and rust seen as depicted in this thread.
I guess they would have corrected the painting process and all should be well now.