[bdman]

Hi. Can other Duster owner help with figuring out the stock?

1. When playing from my USB, when the engine is turned off, some times it starts back from where it left off, some times it starts from the beginning. Is there a method to this madness?

2. Is there anyway to Pause the music while playing from the USB?

TIA

[urajkumar]

Having booked a Duster and cancelled it later, i agree that it is over priced considering it is sold as VFM in Europe. However let us also consider that it is not a sub 4 meter SUV thereby does not get the benefit of excise duty cuts which Ford has. I hope the refresh brings about a price correction and much needed interior change it needs.

Also Ford while is advertising 5.59 ex showroom, not one car (base 1.5 petrol) has been shown to media nor do i think it will it ever get delivered in the next 3 months. So a 5.59 pricing for a non-existent car as enter level pricing to get footfalls is just eyewash. Something Renault did when it launched too (I doubt if anyone was ever given delivery of the Renault base petrol version, i don't remember seeing any posts till date)

however the diesel and ecoboost are still very good VFM products and they are fully utilizing the excise duty benifits while still loading it with as many features.

I have pre-booked the Ecosport Automatic version only now realizing that the wait is going to be a long one. Still i am willing to wait this one out.

[ssmani]

Nice to see Ecosports price is very reasonable and as everybody knows that India is price-sensitive nation, right pricing will provide the product upper hand. Ford may maintain the introductory price.

I believe, now the Renault dealers will behave properly and buying experience will be better than earlier. Renault should consider giving dealership to different companies in a city. in Chennai, there are 3 dealers but all of them are own by same person. I had a better experience in a grocery store than the Renault dealer in Chennai. Hope things will change now!!!

One of my friend has Toyota Innova, the way he narrates about his experience with his dealer and follow-up by Toyota, I feel that I am missing something with my Duster.

[arnetheus]

Took a test drive of duster 110 bhp today, cramped space, pathetic material (the handle seems it will just come off in my hand), and frankly haughty salesmen. I really didnt see any VFM in buying this 10+ lakh car, and with ford ecosport (havent test driven it) in the fray, renault needs to take a hard look at this offer.

[KPS]

Originally Posted by arnetheus

Took a test drive of duster 110 bhp today, cramped space, .......

If you call the Duster cramped, then you will need to crawl into the Ecosport. It is much smaller than the Duster and is at best a 4 seater

The Duster space is better that most sedans. With the curved roof most of the modern sedans feel cramped in the rear.

Cheers

KPS

[ampere]

Originally Posted by arnetheus

Took a test drive of duster 110 bhp today, cramped space, pathetic material (the handle seems it will just come off in my hand), and frankly haughty salesmen. I really didnt see any VFM in buying this 10+ lakh car, and with ford ecosport (havent test driven it) in the fray, renault needs to take a hard look at this offer.

Was the cramped space because of the rear AC tower? If yes, try the version without the tower. You can add other features as accessories. But if fit and finish is a let down, that is a different track altogether.

[agambhandari]

Originally Posted by KPS

If you call the Duster cramped, then you will need to crawl into the Ecosport. It is much smaller than the Duster and is at best a 4 seater

The Duster space is better that most sedans. With the curved roof most of the modern sedans feel cramped in the rear.

Cheers

KPS

Duster is just about Okay in terms of space. In fact in the T-Bhp review as well, i20 class space is said about the rear space. The EcoSport has a notch lesser and is further aggravated by the all black interiors.

[engrohit]

Originally Posted by agambhandari

Duster is just about Okay in terms of space. In fact in the T-Bhp review as well, i20 class space is said about the rear space. The EcoSport has a notch lesser and is further aggravated by the all black interiors.

Well I visited ford showroom in Thane today and checked out the Ecosport. The space is well a notch better than Figo parked alongside.

[Seran Manian]

Oh... How the views about Duster make a U turn after finding a cheaper alternative! These will go on for a while I hope and then things will setlle down faster if Duster prices are slashed as expected by many. I am playing a waiting game...

[drmohitg]

Renault was too hasty and greedy when they decided to increase the prices of the Duster so soon after its launch. The problem they have now is that on one hand they risk getting cannibalized by the Ecosport and on the other hand risk losing a lot of face if they decide to cut back on the prices. The whole lot of people who have bought the car would not take it well to see there newly bought cars lose value so fast in the market. So interestingly Renault is in a soup here. And things will only get worse for it with the upcoming launch of the Nissan's version of the SUV.

[BUXX]

^^ can we all restrict this discussion to the Duster only.
There is already a thread for the Ecosport v/s Duster debate-We should all feel free to fill pages there!

Coming back to the Duster- the AC water problem has struck mine too (85 OPT)
Mines is run 8400 Kms till now and have been using the AC continuously in the past 2-3 months at 2/3/4 Fan blower settings. Never faced any issues till now...

However, just came back from a roadtrip in MP and found a few drops of AC water dripping on my left foot during U-turns and sudden jerks. Happened 3-4 times.
Water quantity was only a couple of drops and the water felt cold.
Should I follow it up with the Service center?
I had recently installed a Front bullbar/Dog bar before this highway run. Could it have resulting in some AC drain pipe getting bent/compressed?

[ampere]

Originally Posted by BUXX

Should I follow it up with the Service center?
I had recently installed a Front bullbar/Dog bar before this highway run. Could it have resulting in some AC drain pipe getting bent/compressed?

You should follow it up. Yes it does looks like under some condition, the pipe is getting bent/compressed.

[StarrySky]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Renault was too hasty and greedy when they decided to increase the prices of the Duster so soon after its launch. The problem they have now is that on one hand they risk getting cannibalized by the Ecosport and on the other hand risk losing a lot of face if they decide to cut back on the prices. The whole lot of people who have bought the car would not take it well to see there newly bought cars lose value so fast in the market. So interestingly Renault is in a soup here. And things will only get worse for it with the upcoming launch of the Nissan's version of the SUV.

I don't think there's going to be an immediate price cut on the Duster. First of all, it's just speculation that EcoSport is going to seriously dent the Duster's sales. Renault will atleast wait for 2-3 months to see how the numbers evolve. EcoSport is just as likely to pull potential premium hatchback/compact sedan/C-segment sedan customers as potential Duster customers. So the final hit on the Duster's numbers may not be large enough to worry Renault.

If they want Duster to appear more VFM, they could introduce a new lowest variant, give it features of RxE, give RxE feature of RxL and add some extra features to RxZ etc and manage without losing face or facing too much ill-will from existing customers. This might stop some customers going to EcoSport and could also help to win some Scorpio/Safari/XUV customers as well.

[acroback]

First things first :-
Just returned from a 800 Km long weekend trip to Wayanad ( amazing place BTW).
+ Ride quality was good.
+ No fatigue at all, I was the single driver.
+ impressive mileage of 19kmpl over this 800 Kms(includes ghats, climbs, city traffic, highways etc )
+ very good breaking control at high speeds. Stopped within ~2 secs from 90 kmph to 0kmph (thanks to a handicapped dog on Mysore's ring road).
+ Torque is great for ghats, you can do most of the terrain in 3rd and 4th gear. Rarely needed 2nd gear, 1st only once.

- It sucks to drive in rainy season, somehow all the mud is splashed on the car. Perhaps side effect of wider tyres.
- Annoying bluetooth gave headaches.
- Wind noise at 100 kmph is prominent.

Second service experience :-
The car returned from 2nd service before the trip.

Some points everyone should make note of :-
- Renault Whitefield people tried to scam me, by charging me for oil filter which they never changed. And they flatly refused to accept their mistake. I have the old filter for proof though. How did I find that out? Simple, like most of the new car parts filters too have QC checks marked via colors. They were intact when I asked them to show me what they changed. This meant, they never changed it in the first place.
- Car returned with 3 minor scratches on the bonnet.
- Engine bay was not even dusted with high pressure air (or with a cloth) because I refused 3M's coating for engine. It was filled with dust on delivery. Despite me pointing it out, Whitefield renault employees just turned their face around and did nothing.
- As expected, car was cleaned at the last time and I was still able to find some junk when I looked under seats.
- Somehow car managed to run 34 Kms during servicing. Either they are testing duster to make sure customer is happy or used it as a test mule. Not sure what it can be.
- They charged for removal of rear bumper for painting (left rear side was scratched ) but did not fix the wireless sensors properly while fixing it back. Reason, "Saar, bumper need to be opened again to do that, so we will not do it. Plus it is working fine saar".

I do not know who is responsible for this? The service Manager just gave orders from his cozy cabin to his crew and never showed his smug face to me. I asked to be taken to his cabin so that I can talk to him. I gave him a feedback, and he was smug about it. "Yes yes we agree it is mistake but we did not do it on purpose, so not our fault".

In short, he did not care about my ramblings.

How I feel? Annoyed, I get a Car which costs like 13+ Lacs in Bangalore and I am being treated like a moron. It felt like talking to a wall.

Once my warranty is over, I will avoid going back to these people again unless something critical needs to replaced. I would do all oil changes myself, but then warranty period stops me from doing it.

[jaibir]

Visited the Renault showroom over the weekend. Quoted waiting for the RXE 85 diesel is now down to 4 weeks. This was quoted as 6 months in Jan-Feb.