[johy]

First off, Driven-Tweel, congratulations on your purchase. The car does look nice. I am presuming you will take up the issue of the black color with Renault; I am a little surprised it looks purplish-bluish; I just hope it is not a re-painted vehicle (Please, I don't want you ring your alarm bells, but a black should look black). With other colors, red, blue, and green, there are hues one might expect. Even with white, it might be a bright white or a dull one, even leaning towards beige. However, I am not quite sure about black. Nonetheless, I am not by means an expert.

Addendum: More of blue in their black paint could produce this, I think.

Originally Posted by Maanspeedo

But after last evening...my obssession has fizzled out , if you drive a petrol( I drive ANHC & Civic and sometimes diesel Logan ) ,you won't like it much . If you drive a honda/toyota /Germans , you wont like the steering and gear shift .

If You drive Bolero, Safari, Scorpio and to some extent XUV ,You may like Duster a lot.

If you are an enthusiast you won't like 85 PS and if you drive to office in a congested metro city , you won't like 110.

Maanspeedo, that was a very balanced view point. Many of us, me included went out to test drive the Duster, hoping for a better car than we currently drive. And why not? We are, in fact, practically looking to upgrade. I mostly drive a Baleno and to be fair, I should not be expecting it to be an upgrade in the pure sense of the word - that would be wholly unfair. But deep inside, I hoped it would somehow be better. For me, it drove like an SUV, with very decent handling. However, I am sure it will become a tad dull to drive around (if I am looking for driving pleasure). But from point A to point B with a lot of potholes in between, the Duster will reach me well and that is the only thing that is still urging me to book one. I can't afford a more expensive SUV that will give me a similar ride quality.

Still looking for a proper upgrade, I find myself test-driving Ventos, Rapids and the like. That is, I guess, what happens when one drives Balenos and Citys!

[Neil Roy]

@DRIVEN-TWEEL, Congrats on being the First Duster owner on team-bhp. Must say she's quite a looker and the alloys are tastefully done. Not to in your face and not to subtle either.
So what say guys? We give DRIVEN-TWEEL a honeymoon period of 4 hours alone with his new bride(DUSTER) before we start getting all the details.
That way he is happy and we are also, well at least satisfied.

[sathyaprakash]

Neil Roy > Did you have any latest feed back about the delivery schedule? The guys at the showroom who initially said my 85ps will be available at the first week of August is now keeping their mouth shut.

All other states far away from Chennai are getting 85 but its still to show its face in Chennai which is very near to the factory why is it?

Did any body from Chennai test drive 85? I have not even seen any other color except brown & white why is it like this to make matters worse Black is not pure Black but deep purple Blue

How funny we need to book a car without seeing the color or testing and guy at showroom says if there is any change in the order we need to wait indefinitely.

[DRIVEN-TWEEL]

Originally Posted by BUXX

@ driven-tweel & others:

is the front silver skid plate missing in the RxL model?? or is it black in color??

Its missing. It looks almost same with and without,other than 3mm extra thickness and silver colour. Silver one has screws on to it and slightly thicker. Bumper can be painted to look like it. Hope it would end up in good finish.

[arunrajk81]

I am also facing same issue for insurance from Bangalore dealer
They are quoting around 29k for Base diesel and from other insurance I am got the quote for around 16k. How you managed to get it resolved. I also contact Renault customer care, but yet to get the reply.

[BUXX]

^^ Thanks for clarifying Driven-Tweel.

This just gets sillier.
why would they remove this in RxL? Bloody thing costs nothing, but buyers will not be able to source as after market fitment.

[Neil Roy]

@ satyaprakash, I force feedback out of them everyday for delivery schedules. It is becoming more of a daily morning routine.
Come to office.
Boot up System.
Login to Team-Bhp Duster Review.
Get updates from all our team-bhp members/potential owners.
Call Khivraj Chenna, give them an earful, corner them into giving a fictitious delivery schedule and keep Phone down.
Pat myself on showing them who's the boss.
Press refresh button, and the cycle starts again.
I think Chennai dealership is the culprit here. They dont have a clue as to what's happening around them. In fact, Once I went to the dealership once to get the delivery date directly. Not seeing my SA, I thought I'll have a look see at the Koleos. One renault staff discreetly locked the vehicle using the remote. I was pretty miffed, but kept my head and walked out. Such is my anticipation for Duster that I'm just keeping my mouth shut until I get delivery. Problem for me is compounded by the fact that I have sold my regular ride,a pertol Chevy Beat this week and driving an old non-A/c Esteem. Why am I telling you all this?
This is what a Car that you love does to you. I'm just hoping it is worth the wait.Always remember, Patience is a virtue.

[Rada]

The latest from the Chennai dealer regarding the delivery schedule of the Duster. I quote:

" All the 8 variants of the vehicle has to get clearance from the RTO, where they scrutinize the vehicle and match it against the published spec-s to ensure there are no deviations. This is taking longer than anticipated. We expect the first customer deliveries to start by the 3rd of August".

Is this the truth or just an excuse? I have no idea.

[DRIVEN-TWEEL]

Originally Posted by sathyaprakash

DRIVEN-TWEEL > Wonderful car & nice color there, congrats to be the first proud owner of Duster in our forum.

In your earlier post you have mentioned scuff plates available in the RXZ110 alone can you elaborate on that are you sure all other models don't have the scuff plates? or its available but not painted in chrome color bcz this is what the sales guy told me.

Please put a detailed report about the turbo lag & mileage in the city driving along with your first driving experience. Have you planned for any long trip shortly?

Is there any mental block to drive faster without airbags? Is the driving position satisfactory without the drivers height adjustment?

Finally how do you feel in comparison with the Tuscon regarding space, comfort & performance? as i think you are the one who's owning both and it will be apt to compare as they have the same dimension.

Scuff plates are missing. Bumper has the same shape with humps onto it. That makes us confuse that its same in both with one silver and the other black. Silver has screws on to it. So it has to be an add on.
turbo lag is obvious in 2nd gear in low rpm. I can easily live with it. Vehicle starts pulling well from 1800rpm and rushes after 2200. drive is very relaxed and not much effort is needed. I have just run 60kms and i want to drive more and more. Waiting for lunch break and for a night drive. i will be goin for a long trip this weekend, then i guess i will get to know more about the duster. I can comment on mileage after that. I havnt felt any sort of mental block for going fast inside 120. After that might be that i have worries. I dont like to go above 120 even if i have airbags.
driving position is fine.im 6.2" tall. I can only feel my restlessness during long journeys. So will comment later regarding that. Visibility at the rear is not great not very bad also. Getting a sensor would be great. 6th gear is smooth but im not used to it and it is not easy to slot into it. Armrest is a must but would like to have a solidly built with good shape too. Will wait till
find a goog one.
tucson's leg space was much more at the rear and we could recline a lot. Duster has better ride. Much comfortable than tucson. Driving tucson in city was irritating, have to downshit very often, duster is fun driving overall. But i have hardly done kms to give proper comment. Duster has much better quality in certain areas where it is a must. Tucson had those small things lacking. The one thing that irritates me in duster is the door thud when we are inside. When someone closes the door u can hear a double clatter which makes us think its half shut. When u look at instument pannel you notice that its already shut. First few times i made the passengers reshut the doors. Tucson had 4wd and tcs which was good. Overall i am happy with duster in its abilities.

[BUXX]

@ Driven-Tweel: But as per the specs on Renault's site: even the 110 RxL should get that Engine protective underguard! The thing that is missing here...

[h.s.r]

Originally Posted by Sharkpin

there is no external badging difference between the 85 and 110 ps , the engine outputs are not mentioned anywhere, the only way i guess to find out if its a 110ps duster from an external view is if its the RXZ model as the RXZ model is not present in 85 ps.

Yes there is no external badging related to power output.
But one difference SA told that 110 PS has silver roof rails on all models.
Don't know how true this is.

Originally Posted by BUXX

^^ Thanks for clarifying Driven-Tweel.

This just gets sillier.
why would they remove this in RxL? Bloody thing costs nothing, but buyers will not be able to source as after market fitment.

Yes they are missing.
Scuff plates give a premium look to the vehicle.
Its only thing sorely missed externally.
Attaching a pic of Duster 85 PS RXL model.

Mid row without Ac tower.It looks better this way.

[micrographics]

Originally Posted by h.s.r

Yes there is no external badging related to power output.
But one difference SA told that 110 PS has silver roof rails on all models.
Don't know how true this is.



Yes they are missing.
Scuff plates give a premium look to the vehicle.
Its only thing sorely missed externally.
Attaching a pic of Duster 85 PS RXL model.

Mid row without Ac tower.It looks better this way.

@h.s.r.

When I checked with SA at Bangalore, he told that Scuff plates, Silver Handles, Silver Mirror, Silver Roof Rails, Silver Front and Rear Guard (which is actually available in RxZ) will be there in RxL if customer order 85 PS with Option Pack. But still I'm not sure.

[DRIVEN-TWEEL]

Originally Posted by BUXX

@ Driven-Tweel: But as per the specs on Renault's site: even the 110 RxL should get that Engine protective underguard! The thing that is missing here...

Yes,even i have read it. its something that i really miss not having. If anyone gets any details about its availability, please let eveyone know.

[h.s.r]

Originally Posted by micrographics

@h.s.r.

When I checked with SA at Bangalore, he told that Scuff plates, Silver Handles, Silver Mirror, Silver Roof Rails, Silver Front and Rear Guard (which is actually available in RxZ) will be there in RxL if customer order 85 PS with Option Pack. But still I'm not sure.

I was told only roof rails are given in silver on 110 PS model, but i am not believing until i see for myself.
Renault SA's are the most confused brigade i have encountered with.
They are not competent enough to tackle this Duster type of rush.
The SA from which i have booked Duster cant even fill the cheque properly.

[raul]

Congrats Driven Tweel, first on the board with the Duster! Thanks for the pics. The specification details are available on Renault.co.in and folks should take a closer look.

Apart from the superficial chrome finishings - on handles and mirrors, roof boards, running boards, scuff plates, interior grey handles as opposed to Piano black, differing seat cover design, the RXL 110 is missing airbags, rear parking sensors, alloys and rear ac (that's a good thing) compared to the RXZ 110

The RXL 85 (O) is missing the 110 engine, all the chrome stuff and rear ac.

The difference between the RXZ 85 (O) and RXZ 110 is 1 lakh, same for the RXL 110 and the RXZ 110. I personally think for folks spending 11 plus better to spend the lakh more and get the safety bits and the more powerful engine.

One lakh more for these is more VFM than getting the lesser variants with various missing bits.