[rahul_kej]

If someone can throw light over this. My friend forwarded me this from his Dusters AWD manual. Though its recommended by the company, is it a good practice when doing it regularly in city driving.

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by rahul_kej

If someone can throw light over this. My friend forwarded me this from his Dusters AWD manual. Though its recommended by the company, is it a good practice when doing it regularly in city driving.

Attachment 1300410

Second gear is good enough for level starts as its pretty short. However, if you are in stop and go traffic, the slower speed of first gives more control.

[rdhan]

Originally Posted by DriveTrain

This stickering seem to be only present in the demo / test vehicles. It is not there in the actual cars that are being sold. Probably would be available as an accessory later. The only visible differentiation is the 4WD badging at the rear. It is not there in my RXZ AWD.



This is correct , it is in the manual , please see the snapshot below.
Here is a link to a US Dacia Duster Owners Manual , pretty much identical with my own manual.

But did not find similar instructions for the 4*4 Safari Dicor? Wonder why the difference?

[DriveTrain]

Originally Posted by rahul_kej

If someone can throw light over this. My friend forwarded me this from his Dusters AWD manual. Though its recommended by the company, is it a good practice when doing it regularly in city driving.

I have been following this advise with no problems at all. Actually if you engage 1st gear on level ground , almost immediately you will need to engage 2nd. Most of your city driving can be comfortably accomplished in 5th or in 4th gear if traffic is more.


I had taken the car for an under body anti corrosion treatment , here are some snaps of the under body , front and rear axles in case it interests some one

This is an earlier stationary shot


Engine Guard


Shaft



Front Left Wheel



Front Right Wheel



Rear Differential (Look closely , there is a black tie that clamps the brake cable to the clip)



Rear Left Wheel



Rear Right Wheel



A closer look from a different angle



One more

[Flash777]

Wonderful review of one of the best vehicles for India.

Am a proud Duster owner myself and can vouch for the amazing dynamics. Makes u believe that u are Colin Mc Ray on gravel roads especially.

Can only imagine wat an AWD version of the same with Independent Link suspension and shorter gearing is capable of. The only weaknesses of 2WD - Turbo Lag & Heavy Clutch have been taken care of brilliantly.

Test Drove the AWD when launched and was blown away. Was really tempted to trade in my 1 yr old 2WD.

[maglev]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

We recently rented a Dacia duster AWD model 2013 for about 5000kms.....

Completely off-topic, but when is this 5000 km travelogue going live?

[Tejas@perioimpl]

Wonderful write up Rehaan! It was great fun while doing the review with you. Thanks for the opportunity!

[sandeepmohan]

I have never been a fan of the Duster for a few reasons. For what you pay, you don't get a nice looking car on the outside or the inside. Quite a lot of stuff screams cheap. As already mentioned, legroom at the back is poor. Equipment isn't great.

Considering what Renault want for a Duster, the question always comes to mind as to what other car you can buy for similar money or less. Sure you don't get the ground clearance and most sedans don't have the dynamics of a Duster but that's pretty much it.

Now if I were in the market for a Duster class of vehicle (not a sedan), there is no doubt that its going to be the Renault that I buy, eyes closed. Sure, the competition has more value, better looks (subjective) and a lot more equipment. When it comes to reliability, nothing can touch the Renault.

Very recently, I visited Varanashi Organic Farm. Apart from the farming bit, they also do water sports and Recreation. The farm is spread across 50 acres of land. The owners son, who takes care of Sport and Recreation drives a top spec Duster. He took us to one of the ponds on the property. Getting to the pond is close to a km from the main house. There is only a path, no proper road as such. Basically a mud road and very steep inclines. We were 6 adults in the Duster. The way the Duster took to all the mud, slush and inclines, it felt like it was built to do just this. It takes a battering like this, several times, every day. With the odo reading >30,000, I was surprised at how well the car was holding up. There was only one long steep incline where we lost traction and had to re attempt the climb. Now this was a stock car. I was simply blown away at what this car can do in 2wd form. Considering the kinda of abuse this car is subject to, I can't imagine a competitor product holding up anywhere as good.

With the AWD, I see no reason why anyone would want a TATA or Mahindra anymore. In stock form, there is no way this Renault can be beaten. Renault may not have the best track record when it comes to service but when it comes to reliability and durability, I doubt if the competition can get anywhere close to it.

[PISTONS]

Hi All, This is my first ever post on TBHP. Being a part of this wonderful community, I always feel very anxious and excited to check for the updates very often and refresh the web page for every 1 hour.
First of all thanks for a wonderful review by Rehaan there, the best as always and makes me hop into TBHP portal official review section for the finest attention to detailing culture followed in TBHP. Wonderful efforts and sense of writing the content and maintaining the flow and articulating every things leads to a 5 star rating. I always wanted to thank for the way pictures are being captured during this process. Basically they ensure an aesthetic backgrounds and offers a delicious feast for the eyes.
But one thing caught my attention. Please help me in understanding the specification matrix placed in PAGE 1 comparing various AWD available in the market. This table captures the "Ground Clarence" of XUV and Scorpio as 160 mm and 165 mm respectively. I think, this data requires a validation. Please check and advice. Thanks all.

[4x4addict]

Originally Posted by rdhan

But did not find similar instructions for the 4*4 Safari Dicor? Wonder why the difference?

Being able to take of in second gear is not connected to 4x4 in anyway, but it has to do with short gearing. The first and second gear of the 4x4 duster combined with the short (4.88) final drive ratio and low kerb weight allows you to take off in second.

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan

Now if I were in the market for a Duster class of vehicle (not a sedan), there is no doubt that its going to be the Renault that I buy, eyes closed. Sure, the competition has more value, better looks (subjective) and a lot more equipment. When it comes to reliability, nothing can touch the Renault.
anywhere as good.


With the AWD, I see no reason why anyone would want a TATA or Mahindra anymore. In stock form, there is no way this Renault can be beaten. Renault may not have the best track record when it comes to service but when it comes to reliability and durability, I doubt if the competition can get anywhere close to it.

Absolutely man. Most people who have owned a 4x4 Safari or Scorpio will not buy that product again.

[John]

Superb review by Rehaan & Tejas. Thank you. Rated 5 stars!

[The Wolf]

Originally Posted by PISTONS

Hi All, This is my first ever post on TBHP. Being a part of this wonderful community, I always feel very anxious and excited to check for the updates very often and refresh the web page for every 1 hour.
First of all thanks for a wonderful review by Rehaan there, the best as always and makes me hop into TBHP portal official review section for the finest attention to detailing culture followed in TBHP. Wonderful efforts and sense of writing the content and maintaining the flow and articulating every things leads to a 5 star rating. I always wanted to thank for the way pictures are being captured during this process. Basically they ensure an aesthetic backgrounds and offers a delicious feast for the eyes.
But one thing caught my attention. Please help me in understanding the specification matrix placed in PAGE 1 comparing various AWD available in the market. This table captures the "Ground Clarence" of XUV and Scorpio as 160 mm and 165 mm respectively. I think, this data requires a validation. Please check and advice. Thanks all.

Hi, welcome to TBHP, have a pleasant stay here...

Reg the Scorpio and Xuv 5oo GC, you are correct the figures stated here are incorrect, its 180mm for the scorpio 4x4 and 160mm for the Xuv 5oo.

[InControl]

Excellent excellent revieww. Rated an easily deserved 5 stars.
Offroad and underbody pics/review addons are really helpful as well.

[rxpaul]

Originally Posted by maglev

Completely off-topic, but when is this 5000 km travelogue going live?

Yes tsk, please schedule it for the Diwali hols...

[4x4addict]

Originally Posted by The Wolf

Reg the Scorpio and Xuv 5oo GC, you are correct the figures stated here are incorrect, its 180mm for the scorpio 4x4 and 160mm for the Xuv 5oo.

The XUV originally had a GC of about 180 or 200 mm, when the previous congress finance minister Shitambaram increased excise duty for all vehicles above 160 mm GC, Mahindra added some stone guard or something to lower the GC. There was no suspension changes, so I am sure it can be pretty easily brought back up to the original spec.

This was a veryshort sighted and brainless move since it affected many cars with high GC like SX4, Corrolla etc. I don't know the rational for this kind of hike, but being a Harward educated chap, he probably knows the rationale.