Renault unveiled the Duster crossover at the 2012 Auto Expo. The Duster is Renault’s low cost compact SUV, which uses Logan’s underpinnings. Renault officials said that the Duster would be in the hands of the customers before Diwali, so a September launch looks quite likely. The Renault Duster will be manufactured exclusively in India and will have high localisation. It will be available in both petrol and diesel versions, with the k9K dCi engine powering the diesel Duster and a 1.6-liter motor powering the petrol Duster. Renault plans to lead in this niche segment but the Ford EcoSport could be launched by then, giving tough competition to the Duster. The Duster is more than 4-meters in length while the EcoSport is sub-4 meters and hence the excise duties will be different for both cars.
Renault claims the Duster to be affordable alternative to a sedan and plans to sell close to 50,000 units in right hand drive markets in the first year itself. The Renault Duster will be exported to other markets and will be produced at Orgadam, near Chennai. The Duster will be offered in 2-wheel drive version only and will be available across a slew of variants. The interiors will be revamped to suit Indian tastes as the standard interiors of the Duster are quite bland. Expect a price of Rs. 8 lakhs for the base petrol, with the top end going as high as Rs. 10 lakhs. With Maruti Suzuki too contemplating a compact SUV, based on the XA Alpha, the compact SUV segment is where the real action lies in 2012.
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{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
Faisal… How did you guys manage to get the shot from the top. Thats awesome.
Rajan, ask Javeid, he was snapping away to glory ;-)
This is what I am looking for.!! Thanks.!! Great coverage. I don’t think we get these many shots thoguth we visit the show.
Thanks a ton Anand for your kind words ;-)
duster can create lot of problems for innova…hope they putt diesel version ptices under control…its realy a good lukin vehicle…!!
I was anxiously tracking this suv for the last 2 yrs.But now I am disappointed that renault is not offering 4×4 version in India, also by launching it late, renault will lose many prospective suv buyers to other models like ecosport,safari storm etc.Such strategy may prove costly for renault.
The ex-showroom price of the basic diesel must be around 7 to 7.5 lacs for it to get the kind of response the XUV5oo did.If they price the diesel high,then they can say goodbye to India.Also no one buys a petrol SUV in India.All major manufacturers from Tata,mahindra,Toyota have tried and failed miserably.So they would be better off concentrating on the diesel which will account for 99% of the sale.Basically this car must compete with c segment sedans in pricing for it to be a hit.In India however good a product is,if it fails initially it will never be able to recover even if prices are slashed later on.Examples—Aria,New fiesta,Fluence,Koleos,sumo grande,ford fusion,etc.
D.Mohan, well said. Price the Duster aggressively and then only they can sell as many as they would want to. Else the EcoSport will come later and steal the show away.