French carmaker Renault kick-started the trend of making affordable compact SUVs for the Indian customer with the Duster. That was back in 2012 and since then the car itself has undergone a lot of changes and many other cars have also entered the segment to make it one of the highest selling in the Indian car space. But with the arrival of BS6 regulations earlier this year, Renault decided that going forward it would only have petrol engines in its portfolio in the country. A turbo petrol model of the Duster was also shown at the 2020 Auto Expo and now the car has been launched in the market.
Looks
One of the main reasons why the Duster has worked so well in India is because of the way it looks. The muscular stance, the high ground clearance and the sporty look have always appealed to the buyer. The facelift that came last year made the SUV even better when it came to looks. The triwinged full chrome grille, dual tone body colour front bumper with skid plates, signature projector headlamps with LED DRLs and the new 17 inch alloy wheels play their part in enhancing the look. The newly introduced Turbo variant gets crimson red accents on the front grille, tail gate, roof rails & fog lamp to give the car some added appeals and yes some exclusivity.
Interiors
Space has always been a big USP on the Duster and both the rows offer ample amount of leg room and head room. It now also gets a remote pre-cooling function which lets you switch on the engine and start the air conditioning even before entering the car by using the key fob. The all-black cabin gives a sporty feel and the quality of buttons is also good. However, the design at a lot of places looks a bit dated; for example, the climate control switches and the instrument cluster. The 7-inch infotainment screen is also too small for this cabin, though it has Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, voice recognition and EcoGuide — a system that monitors driving patterns and provides guidelines to improve efficiency. However, at a time when many cars in the segment are offering features like wireless charger and sunroof, the Duster doesn’t even get rear AC vents. The boot space though is big at 475 liters
Engine
The Turbo heart of course is the reason I am driving this car. The 1.3 litre mill makes 154 PS and 245 Nm, numbers that bring a smile on your face. The fact that peak torque kicks in at 1,600 rpm means the you can have a lot of fun in this car right from the word go. Compared the 1.5 litre petrol engine the Duster already comes with, this one gives 50 PS and 112 Nm more and that makes all the difference. This has in fact made the Duster the most powerful car in the segment. There are manual and CVT options on offer and there’s hardly lag that you can feel here. It’s a 7-step CVT but yes you do miss paddle shifts here. The car also gets a start/stop function which automatically switches off the engine when the car is stopped and re-starts on driver demand detection. This also helps in achieving better fuel efficiency. Renault claims a figure of approximately 16.5 kmpl on this turbo engine.
Ride, Handling & safety
One thing that has remained constant with the Duster is its impressive ride quality. The monsoons mean bad roads and yet I wasn’t affected by unfriendly surfaces. Unless you hit a really big pothole, the cabin gives you a comfortable drive experience. A ground clearance of 205 mm also helps in dealing with the bad roads and bumps. There isn’t too much body roll either, and that’s a surprise looking at the dimension. Renault says the Duster is compliant with front, side and pedestrian crash norms, and gets ABS with EBD, 2 airbags, ESP and Hill-Start Assist among other safety features.
Price
The Turbo Petrol engine gets 5 trims in all, 2 of which are CVT and 3 are manual. Price ranges from Rs 10.49 lakh (ex-showroom) to Rs 13.59 lakh (ex-showroom). This when compared to turbo variants of other cars in the segment like the Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos is much lesser. It’s even more affordable when compared to the Nissan Kicks which shares the same engine. This means the Duster remains a value for money option while becoming a better car to drive. Now only if that cabin felt like 2020!