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-   -   Renault Duster : Official Review (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/official-new-car-reviews/123824-renault-duster-official-review-249.html)

Thanks Buddy...Did u notice any performance improvement?

Why dont you find the fuse which powers the socket and the reading will give you the answer.

Mine is a remapped Duster. The initial impression was mentioned in : http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/offici...ml#post3377889

Hello Himadri,
I tend to agree with your comments about comparing sedans/saloons and SUV is rather like comparing mangoes with guavas. SUV undercarriage and supension setups are meant for taking the rough with the smooth - more of the former and less of the latter in fact! Thus, the stiffer rides and greater rolls and more relaxed cornering abilities in most SUVs (leaving exotics like the Cayenne aside).

That said, I have my reservations (as I've mentioned elsewhere in this forum) about calling the Duster a proper SUV. I am a dedicated SUV user (currently a happy Scorpio owner for the past eight years and before that the Tata Sierra) and have been touring the country by road since 1994. I firmly believe that an SUV must have rear-wheel drive as a starter and preferably 4wd or AWD. Going by this yardstick, even the capable XUV500 was a pretender till they introduced the AWD version. I have been called a stubborn old goat (I'm 62) for my bias, but I stand by what I said - anything with an overall length exceeding 4m and a wheelbase exceeding 2.4m should stick to RWD, the rest is all packaging convenience, marketing hype and gross engineering practice !

Hi Shashanka,

Well I'm a proud owner of Duster and I'm thoroughly loving my ride till now, I agree to your point that if you call any car as an Sports Utility Vehicle, I have started to believe that it should atleast be a RWD if not AWD. After my latest drive to North Sikkim, I really felt that Duster should have been RWD, as the other RWD so called SUVs (Sumo, Bolero) had no problems when it comes to handle icy roads.

I know we are not supposed to drive on icy roads without proper tyres or snow chains, but if you have to, then the car should be a RWD.

If RWD vehicles were better on icy roads, the drivers should have been real good :)

The Capdase charger I use has a display which shows the car battery voltage. With this instrument plugged in the front charging outlet, dispalys 14.2V while car is running, 11.6-12.2V when ignition is off.

I guess you should try the Duster and I am sure you would be happily surprised. I have done the Sandakphu route till Singalila National park on this Duster. Leh can be high in altitude but the inclines of Sandakphu stretch is unmatched. No 2WD, RWD suv's ever gives it a try. Only 4WD Land Rovers.

Thats quiet strange infact. A RWD car will instantly start to fishtail on snow, slippery and slush ground. Where as a FWD with the help of the engine weight on the front wheels will be able to maintain a straight line of drive. I have been on snow and slush and never had problems of getting stuck.

I was also equally shocked when I saw it with my own eyes and I was cursing all the way because I couldn't reach Gurudongmar lake because of that. I read your entire t-log about your recent trip to 'Singalila National park' and that gave me lot of motivation to plan my trip but when I was actually there, I saw Sumos/Bolero/Max easily passing the icy roads/ditches whereas Duster struggled a lot even when I had hired a driver from Gangtok. I'm in the process of completing my T-log, probably then we can discuss about what I might have done to not get stuck where I was.

I'm not sure if this has been discussed elsewhere, however I was wondering if anyone has tried to install the Rubber strip that runs along the bottom of the doors in a Terrano on a Duster. From the inside, the doors of Terrano and Duster look similar especially the position of those drain holes et.al, correct me if I'm wrong.

I figure those rubber strips can improve the NVH levels.

Reusing pics from team bhp reviews:

Put up the tlog as fast you can, discussion and experience will be really interesting.
And how did you manage the permissions above Gangtok, just hiring a local driver was enough? Please post/pm me all details.

K&N air filter for 110 ps is available in India. I bought it from a dealers of Methods Automotive from Kerala.

Hi Himadri,
OK, I'll take yr word & give the Duster a try - even tho' the AWD W8 XUV500 is in my radar. We have two hyper-active boxers, our regular travelling companions, who need space, for which the Duster may prove inadequate.

Now, coming to the nitty-gritty - at the risk of repeating myself I'll again give the examples of the FWD sedans (City and Ikon) we found in difficulties in Uttaranchal (probably en route Mukteshwar if I remember correctly). They were both scrabbling for grip up an incline on the loose, kachcha surface that is prevalent there, once you step off the tarmac. The problem was resolved with a tow-rope and both of us pulling at the same time.

We've been doing this Uttaranchal run (mumbai>lucknow>uttaranchal>lucknow>mumbai) since '97, together with runs to madikeri(Coorg) from mumbai and back, as well as the occasional trip to kolkata via lucknow. And like yourself, we too have had no serious problems with the Sierra and now the Scorpio. We got stuck in mud once, between Almora and Kausani, and I have no desire to repeat that experience. Aside from that occasion, the Scorpio has been lion-hearted, stoically tackling everything in its path.

My basic reservation against large FWDers is the fact that tackling the combined forces of full steering lock, together with applied full torque (as often happens) takes a needless toll on the front undercarriage setup (arms, linkages, knuckles, bushes etc), with resultant higher wear & tear. And even mfrs. with decades of experience in making only FWDers (such as Saab, Citroen) have owners complaining about this aspect.

I hope we can make a trip to Sandakphu/Sangalila sometime soon.

Hello Gurha,
I'm glad you're enjoying your Duster and I wish you happy touring! I'm happy that you share my view about SUVs having AWD/RWD. And like you said, snow chains/studded tyres should be used when tackling snow/ice. Fortunately I have not tackled snow yet in my touring, but mud is something I have experience of - and boy, that's something I'd like to avoid. Do you know where we can get snow chains? I'll definitely keep it in mind, since Uttaranchal is more a home away from home for us, and summers there are fabulous.

Does it come with the importer's name Methods Automotive, Bangalore? On speaking to their Bangalore sales division and one of the main distributor Dreams and Doers, they confirmed they are not importing any filters for 110. There is some confusion somewhere. Anyways check with the importer before any purchase as there are chances of fake ones too.

Hi Shashanka,

I recently bought snow chains from amazon.com and got it shipped to India. There is a new thread started which tells you how to procure snow chains in India as there is one retailer who can possibly provide at a cheaper rates.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/4x4-te...ins-india.html

U made me restless. So I made a couple of calls to Methord Automotive banglore and they confirmed that K&N Filters is available for duster 110 ps and the one i am using is a genuine one. So the case is solved and closed ! :cool: