[vskesavan]

Originally Posted by Neil Roy

Only oil filter and oil was changed. They have used Elf mineral oil Presigrade 15/40. Guess it is part of Renault's go green policy to stay away from synthetic oil( I'm just guessing here)




I have posted my views. Hope it solves your problem.


Did even better. Bundled the senior most Service person, trained directly by Renault france specifically for Duster launch. into my boot and made him listen to the sound for a distance of 4 kms over rough roads. Left him scratching his head as to how to arrest the noise. After 2 months I think he has stopped scratching his head as he is yet to revert with a concrete solution. My stopgap arrangement is to have a 2 turn loose thread on the bolt which holds the stepney arrangements. Only if the bolt is tightened fully, the sound is more pronounced.


First off, welcome to the party. It is a good choice, especially considering the state of chennai roads.Personally, I would have preferred an ABS version.Try to negotiate for insurance directly. You will save at least Rs.7500/-.
As far as sales and service experience goes, sales experience is pathetic. Service experience is actually quite enjoyable, if you are knowledgeable about the specifics of Duster.The service team are a very possessive and proud lot when it comes to Duster. I am actually very happy so far@1 0000kms of enjoyable service.Just now completed 11800Kms on the ODO and at the cost of repeating myself- A VERY WISE INVESTMENT.
Cheers

On road price of RXl (O) 85 is Rs.12,65,000/- approx. So I think Rs.1,65,000/- more is far away from my budget. I plan to spend further for reverse sensor and seat cover only.

[vskesavan]

I got insurance quote from ICICI Lombard as follows:
"A quick quote has been generated for your vehicle:
RTO City, Registration Date: CHENNAI, 31/12/2012
Model : Renault, DUSTER RXL DIESEL
Insured Declared Value (IDV): 907908
Premium Estimate* : 24651/-"
But the Renault showroom at chennai qutoted more than Rs.34,000/-.

[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by vskesavan

I got insurance quote from ICICI Lombard as follows:
"A quick quote has been generated for your vehicle:
RTO City, Registration Date: CHENNAI, 31/12/2012
Model : Renault, DUSTER RXL DIESEL
Insured Declared Value (IDV): 907908
Premium Estimate* : 24651/-"
But the Renault showroom at chennai qutoted more than Rs.34,000/-.

Dealers make huge profits on insurance. Not only Renault, but others too. Take a print out of this & ask the SA to match it or tell him you will get the insurance done yourself.

[Neil Roy]

Originally Posted by vskesavan

I got insurance quote from ICICI Lombard as follows:
"A quick quote has been generated for your vehicle:
RTO City, Registration Date: CHENNAI, 31/12/2012
Model : Renault, DUSTER RXL DIESEL
Insured Declared Value (IDV): 907908
Premium Estimate* : 24651/-"
But the Renault showroom at chennai qutoted more than Rs.34,000/-.

All insurance companies offer a discount to the customer if you negotiate directly. If you go via the company route, the company enjoys the discount. I have taken zero depreciation policy for my Duster and it cost me Rs.31500/- approx.I personally feel that Duster being a new vehicle, spares might be on the higher side, and in the unfortunate event of anything going wrong,zero depreciation policy comes in handy. Strictly my opinion.

[sumeshmani]

Originally Posted by Neil Roy

I have taken zero depreciation policy for my Duster and it cost me Rs.31500/- approx.I personally feel that Duster being a new vehicle, spares might be on the higher side, and in the unfortunate event of anything going wrong,zero depreciation policy comes in handy. Strictly my opinion.

Hi Neil, please share more details about the insurance. Details like which insurance provider, how did you handle dealer's objections, etc.

Will the premium remain same for subsequent years for a zero-depreciation policy? I mean, will the no claim bonus be applicable for such policies?

Sorry if i missed these details from an earlier post of yours.

[kumarsiddhi]

Originally Posted by sumeshmani

Hi Neil, please share more details about the insurance. Details like which insurance provider, how did you handle dealer's objections, etc.

Will the premium remain same for subsequent years for a zero-depreciation policy? I mean, will the no claim bonus be applicable for such policies?

Sorry if i missed these details from an earlier post of yours.

Hi,

I got my Zero dep from Bajaj Allianz and paid around 30,600/-. Initially the dealer was creating issues saying that it might not be cashless at Whitefiled renault. I called up the insurance company and they said that the other Renault workshop is registered with them for cashless. With this information the dealer agreed and after few days confirmed that even Whitefield Renault is registered for cashless

Some tricks of these dealers.

Sid

[Neil Roy]

Just now back after leaving the Duster with Khivraj Chennai for 15000 Kms checkup(not regular service).
Reason for checkup - very poor pickup and low mileage during my recent trip to coimbatore. Pickup so poor, I had a tough time overhauling an XUV who wanted to pit his ability against the Duster.
The Service advisor had a look under the hood and guess what - AIR filter is clogged. Had it cleaned thoroughly and now the Duster is back to its pace once more.Now the service manual states that AIR filter has to be cleaned at 10000 Kms and replaced at 20000 Kms. Even though mine was cleaned at 10000 Km service, it is clogged within 5000 Kms.So all Duster owners, if you have loss of pickup and mileage, check your air filter.I am planning to see if the cleaned AIR filter will work till 20000Kms on the ODO, else the better option will be to replace at every 10000 Km intervals.
Another interesting thing that I have observed is that the OE Audio system can be turned on without the key being inserted into the ignition.This means that without the keys itself, you can playback songs and connect to Blue tooth etc. Just press the POWER button and see for yourself. Credit to this incredible find goes to my 3 year old Son, who kept fiddling with the HU even after I removed the ignition keys.Sorry if this info has already been posted.
Cheers

[Neil Roy]

I have completed 17000 Kms on the ODO and had my first insurance claim(more on that later). Anyways now received this by post and thought of sharing it with our fellow members in general and Chennai team-bhpians in particular.




Hmmm. Wonder what they meant by the first line of their letter. "We assured that your car would be in excellent shape and giving you MILES OF DRIVING BILLS"
I sincerely hope not. Anyways, Iam super happy to note that at least Chennai Renault service(read Khivraj pearl ) is taking the initiative to instill customer confidence in their brand
Fellow Bhpians, if possible please confirm if similar camps are being conducted in your area too.
Cheers

[Rigid Rotor]

Originally Posted by Neil Roy

....Another interesting thing that I have observed is that the OE Audio system can be turned on without the key being inserted into the ignition.This means that without the keys itself, you can playback songs and connect to Blue tooth etc. Just press the POWER button and see for yourself. Credit to this incredible find goes to my 3 year old Son, who kept fiddling with the HU even after I removed the ignition keys....

Yep that's correct! However, the HU auto-switches off after exactly 10 minutes, if the ignition is not selected to at least the accessory position.

Originally Posted by Neil Roy

I have completed 17000 Kms on the ODO...
Hmmm. Wonder what they meant by the first line of their letter. "We assured that your car would be in excellent shape and giving you MILES OF DRIVING BILLS"
I sincerely hope not. ..

All Hail Neil - Our Duster Fleet leader! Good to know you are regularly clocking mileage!
On the "driving bills" bit - let's just hope its only a typo!!

[Neil Roy]

Presenting the Duster in it's elements at 4000 ft above Mean sea level. Notice anything different?


Just to clarify for the not so observant, I've done up my roof rails completely with silver colour as can be seen below. Still notice anything different?




Got my set of team-bhp stickers as can be seen below.

Originally Posted by himadrimondal

6. Found a strange problem with the visibility of the Duster while making steep uphills.
While going uphill, I can see the top end but as the top of the uphill is reached, the immediate downhill is not visible due to the flat bonnet positioning.
A little bit of guess work starts but that becomes even more difficult if the downhill starts with a curve.
The best solution is to take note of the road down below just before the top of uphill is reached.

Had the same problem that Himadri faced during my off-roading escapades. What is worrying is that even in plains, when one is facing sharp turns, the road ahead for a good 3 metres is invisible. Had a very scary experience once when some construction workers placed their toddler on a narrow road near a sharp turn and went to work.I had no idea that the baby was there. Luckily, I stopped on the turn and got down to ask for directions and spotted the baby. Still scared to think what might have been if I had not stopped. After that I made my 3 year old son to stand in front of the Duster and sat inside to confirm the visibility and shocked to find that it is not that great. The Duster gives the illusion of having great frontal visibility,but at least for short guys like me, it does not cut much ice.Anything less than 2 feet is not visible for immediately. This problem is compounded if one is on an upward incline or even a high bump(like in some roads which have a high exit gradient). All SUVs have high seating position to account for the high bonnet stance. This is not available in the Duster.Greater comfort comes at the cost of reduced visibility I guess. So it boils down to just One thing. Drive safe guys.

[Neil Roy]

Presenting the 20000 km service update.



Iam happily surprised.

Important highlights on my journey thus far.

1) Tyre blow out of my new wanderers @ 2500 Kms
2) AC water leakage inside cabin due to manufacturing defect.Solved within the second visit at 5000 kms.
3) Overflow of water from scuttle panel into the cabin floor. Rectified within half hour of visit to service center at 8000 kms.
4) 10000 kms service done where oil and filter alone were replaced.
5) Air filter was blocked at 14000 Kms and the same cleaned at service station within half an hour.
6) Had my first insurance claim at 17500 Kms where the front bumper was replaced.

Average mileage inside city has gone up to 11-11.5KMPL inside chennai city, bumper to bumper traffic.
Average mileage under normal cruising @ 100-120KM/HR works out at around 15-15.5KMPL.

Special mention to KHIVRAJ Pearl for their workmanship and service. Never had to go for repeat jobs once a complaint is given. It speaks volumes of their commitment to understanding customer feedback.

All in all, a pleasant journey thus far and hopefully Duster serves it's time well in the coming months.

Request to Mods to update title to 20000 Kms update.

Cheers and drive safe guys.

[kavesh55]

At INR 1600 the fuel filter is anything but cheap. How often does one have to change it ?

[Neil Roy]

Originally Posted by kavesh55

At INR 1600 the fuel filter is anything but cheap. How often does one have to change it ?

Fuel filter has to be replaced at 20000 kms as per service manual. I think even logan fuel filter costs upward of INR 1300.

[Rigid Rotor]

I understand that fuel filters for common rail diesel engines are expensive, compared to the earlier gen diesel engines. So it would not appear to be unusual when compared to any other contemporary common rail engine.

The overall amount of about Rs 6k appears quite reasonable- comparable to routine Indica servicing costs at 5 K intervals.

[swiftdiesel]

Originally Posted by Neil Roy

Presenting the 20000 km service update.

Spotted your car and probably you on 20 March, Wed, around 2 PM on the national highway near Tindivanam, on the way to Chennai. I was driving on the other side in my Ertiga to Theni. Your silver-red livery was a giveaway!