Team-BHP - Renault Duster : Official Review

Looks like the hike is around 3-4%! That's huge. What is the % of hike that's happening across other brands? I have seen 1-2% hike max for manufacturers, but <3% is surprising!

Quote:

Originally Posted by zen kobane (Post 2919053)

Is it allowed to post messages about offering car booking transfer to other forum members?

Let me know someone. Its about Duster :)

You want to transfer your booking to someone else or want someone else's booking transferred to you? No, there is no restriction unless there is some commercial benefit solicited. :)

I have been wanting to update for last 2 days but was in Nashik where we didn't have good internet connectivity. While it was good news 2 days back, it has turned out to be bad news today.

I got a call 2 days earlier stating someone has cancelled a petrol duster & I could get the allocation by paying 5000 premium (most likely commission to the sales executive). While 5000 was not much, i didnt feel good about the sleazy deal and so i said i will meet him today once i was back in chennai.

So today i was on the way when i saw a tweet from ACI Hormazd about the price hike. So i went there still thinking with the poor demand for Petrol what could happen. The sales guy shocked me saying its 30000 increase for petrol as well. I was told that the cost of the car at delivery only matters and its not based on booking time :Frustrati. So the sales guy re-confirmed that i would have to pay the extra 30000 in spite of booking it earlier. So kindly re-check with the sales team even if you have booked prior to August (i booked in Sep). He then told that customer who wanted to cancel changed his mind (ha has probably given it to someone else i think). So the wait was back to 3 months again.

Extremely frustrated i didnt know what to do. My wife already told me she found the rear just like Swift (cramped - we are family of 6 footers). I also booked it half-hearted since there was no ABS or Airbags. The base version was bare with just essentials which i was still willing to overlook since i loved the Duster.

At a time when all manufactures are giving discounts to sell cars (all the more for Petrol), Renault has increase cost of a "value for money world SUV" which was already dangerously close to the bigger and better Mahindra XUV. Even assuming diesel demand was high & they wanted to cash in, Why would they increase cost of Petrol vehicle? The 7.21 lakhs only was just a marketing gimmic then? If this was their attitude even before becoming a main stay player, i worried how they would treat us once we become their customer. How much will they fleece us for service? Their sales team is arrogant (i have seen & so have many who have posted earlier) and does not care a hoot for the customers.

I decided & gave a request for cancellation immediately. Thankfully there was no cancellation charges (thank god for the small mercy). I am now back in the same boat. Dont know what to buy. I am going to wait & watch for the Eco-sport to come, hopefully ford does not disappoint.
please:

Urajkumar

It appears that the success of the Duster has gotten to their heads. And it's rather sad. I'm sure it's not just the price-hike that made you cancel your booking. The price hike is something we could have dealt with and I'm sure you would have too. But the lack of safety-features has put us off completely so we'll just have to wait for the EcoSport too, even though I really like the Renault.

The Duster looked like an attractive proposition initially, but the negatives (in the petrol variant) began to outweigh the good stuff. And now, the price-hike pretty much seals it.

I'm hoping Nissan's version of the Duster irons out the issues we have. We wouldn't mind waiting for that.

Ouch, this is hard. Ambitious but perhaps given the frenzy inevitable. Duster was always priced 50-75k higher on all variants. With those interiors and the image of Duster globally as a cheap, bare basic and utilitarian SUV, Renault have no business asking these prices.

Duster was on the edge but with this hike, and the basic low cost interiors I don't know how anyone can justify spending this kind of money. After 14 lakhs I wonder whether folks will feel that when they sit in the car.

BTW The Yeti Active can be had for 14.7 on road in Pune after discounts, slightly more in Mumbai, it presents significant more value because its not a car designed and built to be sold cheaply, none of the engineering is about saving costs as the main agenda as it is for the Duster. The XUV is also been steadily increasing in prices and becoming less VFM - 16 plus on road for W8.

EDIT: I just got the feeling car prices are moving steadily much higher than our pay packets. This seriously devalues the rupee and our earnings.

D Seg used to be 12-14 now its 17 plus, VW can sell the Jetta at $22k in US, pay US wages and business costs and make profits and yet they want 20 lakhs here! And they are paying Indian wages which is 10x less! Where are the savings?

Let not talk about taxes because US has taxes too. Volumes - let's see them price Jetta at 35k plus in US and see the volumes plunge!

C seg are already 10-12 now, very soon we will see hatches at 10. I just can't imagine Duster, the so called 'low cost' SUV at 14 lakhs! Sure we have wide income disparity and 2-3% of Indians are relatively cost insensitive and can pay 12 or 16 lakhs but that doesn't grow the pie, surely volumes need sensible pricing.

What is the percentage of all taxes and excise duties that contribute to the ex-showroom price of a car in India? Are there any handy rules-of-thumb?

My point is - the 2012 UK price of Duster, which is made here and will be exported to UK has been quoted at about 13,000 to 14,000 GBP (for the top-end model with 4x4 and all the options, bells and whistles included)

Check out this link to Autoevolution
http://www.autoevolution.com/news/da...ced-46610.html

Assuming 13,000 GBP (1000 GBP less for a hypothetical reduction in price for an equivalent 4x2 model less the extra hardware) and @ 85.3 INR to a GBP, that would be equivalent to our RXZ 110, it would be priced at Rs 11.08 lakhs/-. That's almost the same price for the RXZ 110 in India (pre-price hike).

So how do they manage that, despite the transportation costs, exit and entry costs and notoriously high taxes, etc in UK?

Are the taxes and duties here to blame or is Renault just raking in the 'moolah' while they can? Any opinions?

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...w/16601792.cms

if this is correct, I will be the first to cancel duster booking

I booked from Bangalore on July 7th and delivery date given was sept first week. My booking was 85Bhp RXE
Now also there was no allocation, no posible delivery date
Hence I cancelled my booking in 27th sept

and Booked 110 from ernakulam since it was getting deilvered to people who booked after mine
(I booked from Ernalulam since Duster Price was above my Budjet in Bangalore)

and with this price hike without doing customer delivery, is there any chance to going to consumer court ?

Quote:

Originally Posted by raul (Post 2919201)

BTW The Yeti Active can be had for 14.7 on road in Pune after discounts, slightly more in Mumbai, it presents significant more value because its not a car designed and built to be sold cheaply, none of the engineering is about saving costs as the main agenda as it is for the Duster. The XUV is also been steadily increasing in prices and becoming less VFM - 16 plus on road for W8.

Exactly, Yeti is more sensible choice considering its just another 70 k and takes you to different league altogether. XUV is definitely another choice but yeti is closest as its the 5 seater similar to duster.

Quote:

Originally Posted by arunrajk81 (Post 2919274)

if this is correct, I will be the first to cancel duster booking....
and with this price hike without doing customer delivery, is there any chance to going to consumer court ?

Unfortunately, its very true!
My SA just confirmed a few minutes ago regarding the price hike of Rs 40K for all diesel models.
Also, it appears to be across the board from Oct 01 onwards - no talk of 'price protection' for early bookings.
I had reported some days earlier in my Sep 26 post of the impending price hike.
Not sure whether you can approach a consumer court - since the terms specified in the booking advance receipt confirms that "prices indicated are tentative..blah..blah..actual price will be that prevailing at the time of delivery"

Quote:

Originally Posted by arunrajk81 (Post 2919274)

...if this is correct, I will be the first to cancel duster booking...

and with this price hike without doing customer delivery, is there any chance to going to consumer court ?

Someone already has cancelled his booking! I don't think you stand any chance in consumer court as

1. Renault has not committed a delivery time on records(?)
2. A customer is supposed to pay for the car as per the prices on the delivery day.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rigid Rotor (Post 2919386)

...Also, it appears to be across the board from Oct 01 onwards - no talk of 'price protection' for early bookings....

Quote:

Originally Posted by micrographics (Post 2919419)

...I also asked whether there is any price protection and she told that as of now they have not received any communication from Renault on this....

I read couple of poss back that price protection is given to all bookings till 30 August.

Quote:

Originally Posted by motorhead1981 (Post 2919452)

I booked my woodland brown 110 ps on the 5th of August. I called up my SA the day before yesterday even before the price rise was announced. He told me that the rise was in the offing and assured me that am protected. Fingers crossed

Congrats on your purchase. Just a word of caution here. Get it in writing from the SA or at the very least record his statement on a smartphone. Verbal commitments holds no good and as per the policy, price prevailing at the time of delivery applies.