Dacia Duster

Dacia Duster won the first place in the “Best budget 4×4” category in the Tow Car Awards that analyzes the most suitable car for towing a caravan.

Dacia Duster received another award in the UK, a very important marketplace for the Romanian car manufacturer. The performance was attributed to a diesel 1.5 dCi and 110 HP version, all-wheel drive and Ambiance equipment level.The jury cataloged the Duster as "perfect for towing with a very low price. The label is not an error. For how much you pay on a Kia Rio three-door, Dacia offers a 4×4 five-seater. Duster is undoubtedly a bargain ", argued the jury.

The jury has reviewed the submitted models and had noted several features. The tests included the acceleration of 50 to 95 km/h, the braking from 50 to 0 km/h, starting on a slope, the change to the emergency lane. There were noted the towing capabilities, how easy is attached the trailer and the special mirrors, the spare wheel usefulness and qualities of the car (luggage capacity, passenger space, comfort, efficiency).

Duster competed in the category of vehicles with a weight up to 1424 kg, with other well-known models. Also in this category, the Kia Cee’d Sportswagon won the award for the Best Ultra-light tow car.

Even if Dacia Duster is the cheapest SUV on the market, the tuning houses love to improve its design as lately demonstrated by the Germans from LZParts.

The Germans from the LZParts tuning house transformed the Duster in a 4×4 gadget with an emphasize on accessories. The limited edition is called Duster Admirable and has some major design improvements: the Red Burgundy CarWrap that covers most of the body, the head and tail lights that receive LED technology and a mini-bull-bar with two additional projectors. The Duster Admirable will be distinguished in the night by the mini-spots inserted in the mirrors that project the Dacia logo on the road.  

The basic wheels are 16 inches, are finished in matt black and use Conti CrossContact All Terrain tires but if you want a more aggressive look you can chose the 20 inches wheels with the W-TecExtrem 8.5×20 ET35 tires. The Duster Admirable is elevated by 3 centimeters due to the new H & R springs and the lower part is protected by shields.

In the interior the central console has integrated a Parrot Asteroid Smart navigation with touch screen and a variety of features, including a outside temperature thermometer. But the most interesting thing is the adapted autopilot controlled by a lever near the steering wheel.

The car gauges have been also modified, using a special night lighting system. The audio system has been upgraded properly and the spare wheel was replaced with a Sinus Live subwoofer.

Source: lzparts.de

The Indian designer DC Design is working on a new concept based on Dacia Duster. The concept will have a futuristic look, LED lights and a new front grille.

Dacia Duster has the reputation of the cheapest SUV in the world, but is also a source of inspiration for the automotive designers, like the Indian design studio, DC Design.

The Indian studio has published a teaser that announces the new concept based on Dacia Duster, that is sold under the Renault logo in India. The aim of the Mumbai body builder and designer is to create a futuristic interpretation of the Romanian SUV.

The first picture shows the Duster concept dominated by masculine lines, chrome and discrete LED lights. The overall design seems to be inspired by the Renault DCross concept presented last year by the French car manufacturer at the Auto Show in Sao Paulo, South America.

Although the name is still a mystery, the Indian Duster Concept promises to be a source of inspiration for the Dacia and Renault designers, who are currently working on finalizing the facelift for the Dacia Duster. The Dacia Duster facelift should be officially unveiled this autumn, at the Frankfurt Motor Show.

In the 23rd edition of the Rallye des Gazelles which brought together 300 women for an orientation race based on ingenuity and endurance, the four Woman@Renault teams traveled an average of 2,500 kilometers in their Dacia Duster, specially adapted for this race.

After 15 days of racing in the heart of the Moroccan dunes, the 300 competitors in the Rallye Aicha des Gazelles have crossed the finish line in Essaouira on March 30. Among them, eight “gazelles” of the Women @ Renault team managed to finish in the top of the race. Thus, in the Crossover category, the Dacia Duster teams claimed the first, second and the ninth places.

“We are very proud of our ranking Gazelles who, at the wheel of Dacia Duster, were able to demonstrate commitment, courage, generosity and solidarity throughout this unpredictable competition,” said Claire Martin, Director of Social Responsibility from Renault and a member of the Ethics Committee of the Aïcha des Gazelles rally.

The Dacia Duster sold in the UK is an upgraded version of the Renault Duster sold in India and produced in Chennai. Thus, the UK Duster version has a new dashboard present on the new generation of Logan and Sandero, the window controls are located on the doors, not on the center console, and the multimedia system is also from the new generation of cars launched last year.

The Dacia Duster UK version can be equipped with other additional equipment like parking sensors, additional ventilation for the rear seats, leather upholstery and rigid boot covering. All this equipment is superior and cannot be found on the models produced by Dacia in Mioveni and sold in other European markets.

Here are the differences from the two Duster models:

                      – the UK Duster dashboard

             – the European Duster dashboard

In the first two months of 2013, there were registered 330 Dacia cars in the UK, of which 150 units were Duster and 180 units were Sandero, that are produced in the Romanian factory in Pitesti.

Dacia announced the prices for the Duster Adventure, the limited edition model that has been presented in Geneva. The Duster Adventure is specially equipped for off-road activities with two projectors on the ceiling, front and rear aluminum shields and black mask headlights.

The Duster Adventure special edition will be sold in several European countries and the French have already announced the prices. Thus, the French customers who wish to buy a Duster Adventure will have to pay 14,350 euros for the 4×2 version powered by an 1.6 and 16v LPG engine with 105 HP. For the diesel fans, the Duster Adventure will have a price between 15,850 and 18,350 euros and will have two engine versions: the dCi 90 and the dCi 110.

The Dacia Duster Adventure will be available from April in other European countries.

In addition to the launch of the new Logan MCV, the Dacia stand in Geneva hosted the presentation of the new limited edition of the Duster. It is called Dacia Duster Adventure and is a spicy version in terms of aesthetic design of the Romanian SUV.

Those who expected a facelift for the Duster will be disappointed, Dacia delaying the launch of a modernized version of its SUV for a future Motor Show, perhaps in Frankfurt (September 2013).

Unlike the conventional versions of Duster, the Adventure comes with new projectors mounted on the ceiling, with front and rear aluminum shields, with a body that can be ordered in two colors (Glacier White and Black Nacre) and headlights with a black mask. The sporty image of the Dacia Duster Adventure is completed by stickers devoted to this limited version with full width appearance of the model name on the side doors, darkened windows, 16-inch wheels and a black grille.

The interior has also suffered some changes. The black upholstery is complemented by white embroidery, the glossy black center console is contrasted by the white trim (on the steering wheel, the interior door handles and around the air vents).

The Dacia Duster Adventure limited version will be available in 4×2 and 4×4 version and will equipped with a semi-integrated Garmin GPS with maps of 45 European countries.

The Renault Duster was tested in South America on tough terrain. Here’s the result:

The Dacia factory in Pitesti manufactured the 400,000 Duster unit announced the official Dacia site. The 400,000 Duster unit is a 4×4 gray platinum Laureate version, powered by a 1.5 dCi engine with 110 HP and that will be delivered to a customer in France, the most important export market for the Dacia brand.

Taking into account that the average price of a Duster is 15,000 euros, the value of the unit produced by Dacia from 2010 until today is more than 6 billion euros. Currently, the Duster represent 45% from the daily production of the Romanian car manufacturer.

During the three years since it was launched, 95% of the Duster units were exported, mainly in Western European countries.

Dacia prepares a facelift version for the Duster, which will most likely be presented at the Geneva Motor Show.

Dacia Duster retains 34% of its value after three years, according to a study by CAP, a UK company specializing in residual values​​. The Romanian SUV, that has already gathered a waiting list in the UK of five months for the Access version, has a residual value with only 2% lower than the rivals in the segment, which have a bigger initial price,  according to CAP.

"We all know that Dacia Duster is a great package for anyone who desires a practical, affordable and reliable SUV. The CAP study strengthens our belief that it is a very attractive model for the British customers. After they will drove a Duster I doubt that many customers will ever want to part with it. But if you will ever need to sell it or give it in exchange for a new Dacia model you will not lose very much. I can not think of how residual value of Sandero will crush the competition, in the near future, "said Phil York, the marketing director of Dacia UK.

The orders for Duster Acces have exceeded one-third of the initial Dacia predictions and the 4×4 versions orders have already reached more than double the initial predictions. The Duster’s top versions follow the same trend as in other markets where this model is sold, managing to attract two thirds of the customers of the Duster.