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First Drive Review: Renault Duster

Friday, 2 October 2020

We get it here as a Renault, but this is how Dacia went about designing the latest version of the Duster SUV.
Charmingly chunky and bigger than all of its competitors, the Duster comes out strong.
Charmingly chunky and bigger than all of its competitors, the Duster comes out strong.
The 1.6-litre engine isn’t exactly bristling with power, but with the Duster weighing barely more than 1200kg, it really doesn’t need to be.
The 1.6-litre engine isn’t exactly bristling with power, but with the Duster weighing barely more than 1200kg, it really doesn’t need to be.

While James May banged on about various Dacias, including the Duster, for years on Top Gear largely for comic effect (although there was also genuine love there as well) it had the additional effect of creating a far higher global awareness of it than any budget car destined for a few European markets should ever have had. So that means the good news for the Duster is that it already has a far higher profile here than it really should as Renault drops it into our market as an entry point to its SUV line up.

Make me an instant expert: what do I need to know?

Good ground clearance and a reputation for ruggedness set the Duster up well for broken and unsealed roads.
Good ground clearance and a reputation for ruggedness set the Duster up well for broken and unsealed roads.

Renault, as you may well have guessed by now, owns small Romanian manufacturer Dacia, but had no desire whatsoever to expensively establish a new brand here in New Zealand, so we now join South Africa as the only markets in the world to get the Duster as a Renault.

**READ MORE:

The cheap, hard plastics of the interior are the biggest letdown of the Duster experience.
The cheap, hard plastics of the interior are the biggest letdown of the Duster experience.

* Renault's latest small SUV has landed

* Renault set to expand electrified options

Superb ride quality and tenacious handling are undeniable high points of the Duster experience.
Superb ride quality and tenacious handling are undeniable high points of the Duster experience.

* Is the traditional handbrake endangered?

* Renault NZ confirms two utes inbound

A big piece of black plastic and tiny little 16-inch alloy wheels. Don’t say the Duster isn’t interestingly quirky.
A big piece of black plastic and tiny little 16-inch alloy wheels. Don’t say the Duster isn’t interestingly quirky.

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Does the badge matter? Not in the grand scheme of things, but put it this way – if I owned one, I would certainly be looking into the cost involved in getting a Dacia grille shipped here and then do it regardless of that cost. But that’s probably just me.

What we get with the Renault version of the Duster is not the fully base stripped out car, but rather an upper-spec version for a market such as ours that disgracefully shuns black plastic bumpers, tiny engines and manual transmissions.

You can make the +’s instead of x’s, but they are still a knock off of Jeep’s Renegade taillights...
You can make the +’s instead of x’s, but they are still a knock off of Jeep’s Renegade taillights...

Renault are unleashing the Duster in a single model with an 84kW/156Nm 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine hooked up to a continuously variable transmission.

Okay, stop laughing, because I realise that doesn’t sound like a good start, but you do have to take into account two things that actually make a massive difference – firstly the Duster weighs a minuscule 1262kg and, secondly, the CVT pretty much just pretends it’s a conventional automatic – complete with defined shift points – and actually does a remarkably convincing job of it too.

But more on that later, because as mentioned previously, this isn’t a completely stripped out entry model, so it does come with a decent amount of kit for the money asked.

Blind spot monitoring system and a multi-view camera system complement all the standard safety systems, while remote central locking, a multi-function trip computer and a touchscreen infotainment system with Android Auto, Apple CarPlay and embedded satellite navigation (for those who don’t do the phone mirroring thing).

The downside is that infotainment system is a low tier unit with a relatively tiny 7-inch screen and an inconveniently-placed USB input above the screen so that the cord dangles down over it when in use. Annoying.

The other, much bigger downside is the Duster’s very cheap interior plastics – hard and even with the odd bit of ill-fitting trim, the Duster’s interior betrays its budget roots and immediately places it on the asthetic back foot with similarly-priced, but less well-equipped opposition.

The payoff, however, comes in the fact that the Duster is also bigger than said competition in the segment, while also offering a truly excellent ride that none of them can match.

Where did you drive it?

The back roads south of Auckland in the Bombay area were the location of the launch for the Duster and those roads showed off its strengths brilliantly.

That 1.6-litre engine is smooth and has a surprisingly characterful bark to it and while it does run out of puff on hills, it does a decent job hauling the Duster around and is also impressively economical with it.

The CVT actually does act much like a traditional automatic on the open road, at least enough to avoid the worst traditional CVT tendencies, while still retaining the smooth and economical capabilities that are the high point of CVTs around town.

But it is the deeply impressive ride of the Duster that will win it the most fans. It boasts a wonderfully compliant ride and floats over even the worst surfaces, while impressively retaining decent handling qualities as well.

There’s a fair degree of body roll, but the Duster hangs on tenaciously as it wafts effortlessly through corners much in the way that French cars used to do before the country’s motor industry as a whole seemingly forgot how to do that in the early 1990s.

And there is potentially more to come from the Duster family, with Renault NZ considering an AWD version, while it has already expressed its desire to bring the Duster-based Oroch ute here as well.

What stands out the most?

That superb ride quality and competent handling are the stars here, while the extra space over everything else in the segment is a huge bonus as well. It looks good and packs more standard equipment than most others at this price point.

Why would I buy it?

Because you want a small SUV with heaps of space and value fuel economy, satisfying driving dynamics and a superb ride over interior quality. Or you just want something charmingly different.

While the fact it is badged as a Renault may give you chills regarding the whole “French cars ≠ reliability” thing, the Duster has a long reputation for being massively durable and utterly bulletproof, which is why it has proven exceptionally popular in not just its home market, but also markets like the Middle East and South Africa where its 210mm of ground clearance (and, yes, that’s the FWD model) and rugged dependability are big plusses.

Another plus is the Duster’s 30,000km service intervals, which is double that of most of its rivals, with its initial service cost capped at $340.

Why wouldn’t I buy it?

You prefer interior quality over the Duster’s other high points. This is the Duster’s biggest weakness, with a dated design dominated by hard, cheap-feeling plastics with a few fit and finish issues.

The interior gives the Duster the feel of car that should be several thousand dollars less than it is, but the Duster’s other qualities could justify the money asked if they appeal to you more.