Most Affordable Renault Duster Turbo 1.0: Surprisingly Drivable, And BIG On Value.
One line review of the Duster Turbo 1.0 Manual: Most affordable Renault Duster is surprisingly drivable, and BIG on value.
What would a 1 liter, 3 cylinder turbo petrol engine borrowed from the Kiger and making 100 PS-166 Nm really do on the much larger, heavier Duster? Especially, after experiencing the much more powerful 1.3 liter turbo petrol engine in both manual and DCT trims.
These were not just my thoughts but perhaps the thoughts of most others who were at the Renault Duster 1.0 Turbo Manual drive recently. It was almost as if Mr. Abhinav Sinha - marketing director at Renault India - read our thoughts.
At the pre-drive briefing, he said that Renault engineers had worked very hard to make the Duster 1.0 super drivable by optimising engine maps and the 6 speed manual gearbox's ratios. He emphasized on the torque curve, and the fact that all of 166 Nm was available right from 2,000 rpm. I couldn't wait to find out.
Off the bat, the Duster 1.0 MT was more drivable than the Duster 1.3 MT. Reason: Light clutch with short travel. It makes a huge difference in city driving. On the other hand, the 1.3 liter motor needs higher revs to get going: Turbo effect mainly. Low end is better on the smaller motor, making it more suited to city conditions.
Finding the clutch's bite point was very easy and the 6 speed gearbox slots quite well. Rowing through the gears produces a seamless dollop of torque, with little to no turbo lag until you find yourself a gear or two too high. More than enough torque for city driving and quick overtakes. Nobody is going to say it's underpowered in city conditions. Even on the highway, it'll happily cruise at 100-120.
With the AC on in a very sultry Navi Mumbai, getting off from standstill at a traffic stop on Palm Beach road in 3rd gear was possible without stalling. A little clutch slip is all it took. And the Duster 1.0 went from standstill to over 100 Kph in 3rd.
It's quite a tractable motor thanks to the ECU tuning and gear ratio selection. In fact, one can stay in 3rd gear from 20 Kph all the way to 100 Kph, making it almost like a semi-automatic. Good job, Renault. You can hit 6th gear at about 60 without any drama.
Steering felt fairly direct and had decent weight - not too light, not too heavy. I hardly noticed it. Handling is on point, and this is a SUV that you'll love to drive hard and fast. Braking is sharp, with good pedal feel. Visibility is good but a 360 camera should have been offered at 13.49 lakh (for the Techno 1.0 trim). Reverse camera is on offer but quality is poor. Just too grainy. Needs changing immediately. Also, no spare wheel though there's space to keep one in the boot.
Driver's seat is height adjustable and you get tilt and telescopic steering. Outward visibility is good. And the best part is the sculpted hood. This feels like a proper SUV. And this makes driving in tight streets quite easy due to the edges of the bonnet being clearly visible.
17 inch alloy wheels with taller tyre sidewalls means the ride quality is actually better than the top end 1.3 trims (that gets 18 inchers). This is another happy surprise. AC performance is strong, and the Max AC button on the dashboard is very helpful to cool the cabin rapidly.
The car is big on features. Panoramic sunroof. LED headlamps and DRLs. Wireless charging. USB type c charging. Adjustable arm rest with storage. Keyless entry. 6 airbags. One touch up and down function for all windows. Rear AC vents and twin usb type C charging ports for the rear seaters. Center armrest with cup holders for the rear seat. An enormous 700 liter boot with 60:40 split rear seat. An electric boot release. Driver MID is TFT and legible while the driver orientated touchscreen infotainment unit gets wireless android auto and apple carplay. Easy to connect. As for features, this is a loaded car.
It looks very good. To my eyes, this is one of the best looking mid-sized SUVs, along with the Sierra. Beautiful proportions. In black, the new Duster looks very similar to the Jeep Compass. Take out the Duster logo and you could easily mistake it for a Compass. Nice design!
Space at the rear is good for two. Knee room and headroom are adequate. If you want a chauffeur driven SUV, this clearly is not it. It's a squeeze for three thanks to the tall transmission tunnel and the limited shoulder room. The upright seat back doesn't help.
The Duster 1.0 Techno MT is the one to pick if you're on a budget and want a Duster mainly for city driving. It's very drivable and feature-rich. I can't comment about mileage. On the MID, I saw about 9.5 Kmpl with AC on all the time, and plenty of monkeying around. So, this can't be taken as an accurate figure for normal driving. Hence, I'm not getting into mileage. If driven smoothly, it should offer decent mileage considering the fact it's a triple. The driver MID has a helpful green zone (marked on the digital tacho) that you can stick to if you want the best efficiency.
PS: Driving enthusiast? Pick the 1.3 DCT with paddles! The Duster is an out and out driver's SUV. It's the benchmark of its segment. It's the kind of the SUV that you drive hard and fast, across all kinds of surfaces. Feels tough, goes fast and is big fun even on twisty roads. But paddles are critical. Paddles will make sure you get around turbo lag, even on steep mountain roads.