[josephrmathias]

Originally Posted by PapaBravo

Congrats !! It must have been difficult going from AT to MT.

1st gear is indeed short & irritating sometimes. You will get used to it eventually. Interiors are no great shakes either. But the usability spectrum of Duster is very wide. Be it Highways, City, Bad roads or Hilly terrain. One car does all. And without any problem.

There is an FB page called Team Duster India. You can join that. Some people there have contacts with the dealer. You might be able to solve the issue with Trident.

Regards,

Pawan

Thanks.

The shift from AT to MT took a lot of time especially with Bangalore Traffic.

My main reason for the purchase was to Drive Point to Point from home in Bangalore to Coffee Estate in Chikmagalur. The last 20km being a dirt track.

Before I would have to change from car to JEEP or drive 15km extra on a longer winding road.

Happy to say that the 4WD has held up excellently on the dirt track with almost 0 slipping. The duster in 4wd Lock mode in 2nd gear easily climbs the slippery steep slopes almost as easy as an MM440 Jeep without breaking much of a sweat and that too in the middle of the rains we have just had.

That is mighty impressive.

The interior quality and dealer experience are the biggest drawbacks here. But all in all am quite happy with the car after getting used to the extremely short 1st gear.

Have been seeing a lot of information floating around on the upcoming Kaptur and updated Duster. If either releases in the near future the purchase may end up being a bit of a disppointment

[aryayush]

Can someone explain to me what Renault’s thinking is behind losing the plot with the Duster? The company had a phenomenal success on its hands and, to this day, the car enjoys a dedicated fan following and continues to receive critical acclaim for its butch character and sorted ride and handling characteristics.

Why is the company not taking steps to ensure that the major longstanding complaints with the product—its dated, ugly interiors and lack of equipment being prime among them—are addressed?

Surely the company that was perceptive enough to recognise the need for products like the Duster and Kwid before any other manufacturer, has an understanding of what it would take to make these products remain successful?

Unlike in its other markets, the Duster was never viewed as the cheapest SUV you could buy in India—and at a price of over ₹15 lac for the top-spec model, it is clearly not. Why, then, does it still have interiors that would look out of place even in a Maruti Suzuki Swift?

I was in the market for a Renault Duster petrol automatic, with a budget of about ₹15 lac (on road), and Renault’s current offering falls well within it. It is so much cheaper than what I expect to pay for a car of its kind that I cannot help but wonder why Renault does not charge me ₹1 – ₹2 lac more and offer a better specced car that I can actually enjoy sitting in and be proud of.

Given the much greater success of the Hyundai Creta compared to the Duster, despite being far more expensive and an inferior car on almost every metric besides interior quality and features, I cannot help but see a market for the taking there, that Renault is squandering for no discernible reason at all.

What am I missing here?

[srishiva]

Is Duster being a Dacia product responsible for Renault not really making it look premium ? They have let it be without updating even the interior which shouldn't have taken much effort. Maybe Dacia decides what to do with it and Renault has no choice but keep it going without doing anything by itself. Atleast for us in India since its Renault, we think it should be good.

[Tgo]

Originally Posted by srishiva

Is Duster being a Dacia product responsible for Renault not really making it look premium ? They have let it be without updating even the interior which shouldn't have taken much effort. Maybe Dacia decides what to do with it and Renault has no choice but keep it going without doing anything by itself. Atleast for us in India since its Renault, we think it should be good.

It is sold as a Dacia in Europe and the positioning lower than Renault in that market. Making it feel upmarket and premium for India and Brasil would be overkill since everything from the design, fabrication of molds, clips, wiring electronics and software would need to be developed/re-worked. Too big an investment but has to be done nonetheless, if they are serious about the market they operate in.

[aryayush]

This is not a satisfactory enough answer. I always had in mind that I would ask this question if I ever joined Team-BHP. It boggles my mind how Renault can offer such a watered down product at a price range of ₹10 – ₹15 lac. Is there any other car in India that does duty in this segment and has such paltry interiors? Surely there must be some compelling reason preventing them from doing what seems like the blindingly obvious thing to do to anyone watching the company from the outside?

[IshaanIan]

Originally Posted by aryayush

This is not a satisfactory enough answer. I always had in mind that I would ask this question if I ever joined Team-BHP. It boggles my mind how Renault can offer such a watered down product at a price range of ₹10 – ₹15 lac.

I'd say it's because it simply isn't worth it. With work on the next generation Duster already underway (scheduled to be unveiled at the frankfurt show later this year), it makes no sense for Renault to pump in so much cash to majorly spruce up what is basically a product at the fag end of its lifecycle (8 years since it first went into production). For all its amazing ride and handling characteristics, the car performs very poorly structurally. As an automobile major, would you really feel okay rejuvenating a car that is is structurally unstable and then sell it for 10-15 lakhs? Why not just let it die out and allow the next generation of the car to sort everyone's issues out. The platform simply doesn't deserve any more investment.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

The platform simply doesn't deserve any more investment.

And what we are going to get is a new body inspired by the European Captur, over the same old Duster platform.

They might work on the safety aspects though - as it becomes mandatory soon.

[IshaanIan]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

And what we are going to get is a new body inspired by the European Captur, over the same old Duster platform.

They might work on the safety aspects though - as it becomes mandatory soon.

Umm nope they are not working with the old Dacia B0 platform. What I hear is that they will be using the jointly developed Renault-Nissan CMF-CD platform that is used by the Qashqai, X-Trail, Koleos, Scenic etc. One of the main reasons that they are using the CMF-CD platform is crash safety performance. Renault aims to score a proper 5 stars in the ENCAP tests with the new Duster. I don't know if they will then go on to build a 3rd world specific Duster that is separate from international variants based on the older platform. That would just be plain silly IMO in this day and age of globalization.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by IshaanIan

don't know if they will then go on to build a 3rd world specific Duster that is separate from international variants based on the older platform. That would just be plain silly IMO in this day and age of globalization.

I hope your words come true.

But the car is almost here. It's scheduled for an October launch, and the rumours suggest a premium positioning over Duster, with the top variants rumoured to go directly against (even may be above) Creta.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...-india-13.html

[Tgo]

Originally Posted by aryayush

It boggles my mind how Renault can offer such a watered down product at a price range of ₹10 – ₹15 lac.

For that matter, all SUVs are watered down compared to similar priced sedans. Its just the compromise the owners are willing to make for better ride quality, peace of mind on rough roads, image and trendiness.

A similar discussion was underway on the Jeep compass thread where similar priced sedans were offering so much more except for the SUV tag.

[shashankjain16]

Okay, previously I posted about option between Harrier and Hexa and some suggested trying Renault Duster.

It does look a really awesome package. Almost perfect for what I need:

1) A very comfortable car for long drives.
2) Good ground clearance
3) A capable offroader

From outside it still looks good to me. From inside, it's a bit outdated. Apart from looks, what bothers me is if it will last - since it is coming of age what can be said about its life, servicing, parts, etc.

The next generation Duster's launch is not confirmed so waiting for it may not be fruitful at this moment.

What are your opinions? I would like to go with the Top model - All-wheel drive version.

[Samba]

Originally Posted by shashankjain16

what bothers me is if it will last - since it is coming of age what can be said about its life, servicing, parts, etc.

The next generation Duster's launch is not confirmed so waiting for it may not be fruitful at this moment.

You have got a very valid point.

Last year i had the same thought but i could not find a single car in my budget which could satisfy all my needs.

So based on some calculative risk, i took the plunge to buy a Duster AWD.

The car is indeed old and outdated now, but at this price point our market do not have an alternative for the Duster AWD till now. I will never buy a Duster 2wd at this point of time. AWD was the major deciding factor for me.

My calculation was -

If Renault takes this model off, there are enough Dusters on road so getting spares wont be a problem.

5 years extended warranty was reassuring.

If Renault launches the next gen Duster, it shares the same engine.

Now if you want to buy a Duster and want to sell the car off within the next 5 years then do expect a heavy hit on the resale value. If you are planning to keep it atleast for a longer period then go for it.

You can check out my Duster AWD ownership report over here-

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-...oint-view.html (Renault Duster AWD : An owner's point of view)

[porsche_guy]

Voted No

The Duster is pretty old now. At the most, I think it should be thought of as a more civilized Thar for people who find it too crude for daily use (Talking about AWD).

Also as we all must have experienced, as petrolheads, we make a lot of decisions that are not sensible. But hey, it's all worth it in the end with the smile on our faces!

[cmani0000]

It's a very good car, if you can live with outdated interior and average build quality and not planning to change car sooner, you can go for it.

If I were you, I will not choose duster now. This was my decision even in 2018 Jan.

[Durango Dude]

The Duster has been "done and dusted", unless you're going to use for duties at the farm house! Better look at alternatives.