Car: What the Suzuki Vitara can be afraid of: the very cheap brand new Dacia Duster on test

We wrote 2010, when Dacia’s first real leisure car, the Duster, appeared on the scene, which was updated 3 years later:

The second generation debuted in 2017, and the facelifted version of it in 2022:

In the last 14 years, more than 2.4 million Dusters have been sold worldwide, and the third generation, which has been completely renewed from the first to the last screw, has now arrived from the excellent price/value model sold in Hungary in quantities of around 40,000 so far.

Cheeky Romanian

The SUV of the Romanian brand of Renault has always had a cool exterior, and the design of the latest Duster has become downright super cool. There is no secondary sense of shame here, not a single crappy detail solution anywhere, the new Duster is absolutely eye-catching.

The horizontal Y-inset headlights perfectly harmonize with the minimalist radiator grille featuring the new brand logo and the masculine front bumper. The rectangular wheel arches are characteristic, the hidden rear handle and the dynamically curved belt line at the back have a sporty tone, and the unique upper spoiler and the rear lights also look great.

Small particles can be discovered in the unvarnished black plastic elements, which the manufacturer refers to as Starkle and refers to the 20 percent recycled plastics in a spectacular form.

The test cars that arrived for the Spanish road test were fitted with cool 17-18-inch alloy wheels, but the 16-inch black steel rims of the low-end base model, which we only saw in the photo, also carry some unique off-road, commercial vehicle charm.

Knock Knock!

The designers who designed not only the exterior but also the interior are to be praised, the new Duster has a spectacular passenger space. It is another matter that, in accordance with previous traditions, this time too we can encounter knocking hard plastics everywhere.

The hardness of the dashboard is not that disturbing, but the elbow pads on the doors are even more so, you almost don’t have to touch them to hurt your bare forearms. Another negative is that although the seats of the Extreme version look great, they are unfortunately quite sweaty in the heat.

The steering wheel with traditional push buttons could be a little smaller, but the 7-inch digital instrument cluster behind it is just as high-quality as its 10.1-inch counterpart sitting in the middle of the dashboard and facing the driver at 10 degrees.

The software running the Android 12 operating system is much more puritanical than the user interface of the Renaults, but in return it is excellently clear and basically quite fast. The only complaint is the Here navigation, which was not only slow but also unstable during the test drive, but this will probably be fixed soon.

What else do you know?

While the excellent circular central controls recently arrived in the latest Skodas, Dacia has unfortunately just done away with them. The temperature can be controlled with a rocker switch below the display, and the volume with the buttons above the screen.

Unsurprisingly, the basic model with manual air conditioning has analog instruments and no display in the middle.

In this case, the radio has four speakers, and we can’t go without the basic price cruise control, lane keeping and reversing radar. Better-equipped models include automatic climate control, six-speaker hi-fi, wireless mobile charging, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay support, and fog lights.

The YouClip system features several small attachment points in the passenger compartment and the luggage compartment, to which various creative accessories, such as drink holders or LED lights, can be applied with a single loose movement.

The dimensions have basically not changed compared to the predecessor model, but you can still fit better inside, and you can’t complain about lack of space either in the front or in the back. The size of the luggage compartment has increased from 430 to 517 litres, and after folding down the rear seatbacks, nearly 1.7 cubic meters of cargo space is available.

The tank of the all-wheel drive version is a little smaller, 450-1635 liters. An additional set can be purchased for the new Duster, thanks to which the passenger compartment can be transformed into a sleeping place for two people in seconds. It is almost a must for anglers, and according to the promises, it won’t cost much.

Driving force

As with much more expensive cars, there is no longer a diesel engine under the telescopic hood, even though the 1.5-liter 4-cylinder turbodiesel engine had a market share of 46 percent within the model until now.

Those who want a 4-cylinder engine can only find their solution in the new normal hybrid Duster based on a 1.6-liter intake unit, and those looking for an automatic transmission can only choose this version.

The 94 gasoline and 49 electric horsepower finally make up a total output of 140 horsepower, which enables a 0-100 km/h time of 10.1 seconds and a top speed of 160 km/h.

The system based on a battery with a capacity of 1.2 kWh promises an average consumption of 5 liters, but we got a value of 6 liters in practice, which of course is still not bad, but the sometimes strangely revving engine definitely takes some getting used to.

The 1.2-liter 3-cylinder turbo gasoline engine, which promises a consumption of 6 liters and which we asked for about 7 liters on average, has a slightly wartburgish sound, but provides a more traditional driving experience, among other things, just because of the well-switchable six-speed manual transmission.

The 130 horsepower and 230 Nm torque of the mild hybrid technology featuring a 0.8 kWh battery allows for full-on driving, although the 0-100 sprint in 9.9 seconds and the top speed of 180 km/h do not exactly make the Duster a racing car. .

To the chagrin of many, the 1.33-liter 4-cylinder gasoline unit capable of up to 150 horsepower is no longer available, but there is a 1-liter 3-cylinder turbo engine that produces 100 horsepower and 170 Nm.

The interesting thing about this basic model with a 0-100 level time of 13.2 seconds and a top speed of 168 km/h is that it can carry 50 liters of gasoline and 50 liters of LPG, and its range can reach up to 1,300 kilometers.

What’s it like to drive?

The steering is quite direct with its 2.8 steering wheel turn, and although the steering feel is quite synthetic, there is no complaint about the 10.86 meter turning circle. According to our experience, the passenger compartment has clearly become quieter, wheel noise is below average and wind noise only starts to become disturbing at highway speeds.

Braking power is okay, despite the fact that the rear drum brakes are sad in the default position, and only the more serious models with electric parking brakes have a rear disc brake. Of course, you don’t need a very serious brake, since this time you don’t have to stop a 2.5-ton electric destroyer, but a compact crossover with a base weight of just 1,276 kilograms.

The front-rear terrain angles of 24-36 degrees are correct, and if we vote for the all-wheel drive that can only be combined with the 130 horsepower mild hybrid “heart”, we get values ​​of 31-36 degrees. On the center console of the 4WD version, we can pay attention to a unique driving mode switch, which can be used to switch between the following modes: eco, auto, snow, sand-mud and off-road.

A special information panel informs about the angles of the body, and with the help of instructors, we tested that the new Duster is capable of much more in practice than what an average driver would ever dare to try with it.

In some stages, you can even slowly creep forward without accelerating, on uphills the revs automatically increase so that the engine does not stall, and on downhills the fixed-speed downhill control provides effective assistance.

The ground clearance of the all-wheel drive Duster is 21.7 centimeters, compared to 20.9 centimeters for the base model. During the test, we didn’t even come close to getting stuck, even though all the cars were equipped with completely ordinary tires.

Conclusion, prices

The new Dacia Duster came, saw and won, at least based on the first test drive.

Of course, you can get attached to the painfully hard plastics and the poor equipment of the basic model, as well as the lack of a diesel engine, but the excellent interior and exterior design, the sense of quality that has moved in the right direction, the spacious passenger and luggage compartment, and the modern drivetrains weigh much more. .

And then there is the seemingly good price: the opening price of HUF 7 million originally set by the Hungarian importer was unfortunately not achieved, but the 100-horsepower LPG base model still opens at a very friendly HUF 7.2 million.

The 130-horsepower petrol Duster with higher equipment starts at HUF 8.4 million, the all-wheel drive costs HUF 800,000, and the 140-horsepower hybrid pleasures start at HUF 9.8 million.

By comparison, the latest facelift version of the 10-year-old Suzuki Vitara with 129 horsepower starts at HUF 600,000 higher. The S-Cross, which is slightly larger than the Vitara, is at least HUF 1 million more expensive than the cheapest Duster, but if we compare models with around 130 horsepower, the Japanese model with significantly older technology has a price advantage of HUF 200,000.

For rivals, the larger Dacia SUV coming next year, the 4.6-meter Bigster, available with up to 7 seats, will be the next serious challenge.

Stock copies of the discontinued Duster are still available for a while, the basic 90-horsepower gasoline model is priced at HUF 6.5 million and the 130-horsepower model at HUF 7 million, and for a short time even the diesel with a starting price of HUF 7.5 million is available.