Renault Duster AWD Long Term Report: March 2016

The Duster was one of the first SUVs that I drove for an extended period of time. However, before I sum up my five-month experience of driving the Duster, I have a confession to make, I had never been a fan of SUVs in the past. Belonging to a slightly old school enthusiast mindset, I have always preferred traditional sedans and hatchbacks because of one reason, dynamics. The bigger, taller SUVs never had any dynamic appeal and I used to avoid them.

However, that has changed massively with the latest crop of SUVs and they have now become dynamically pretty competent. One of the first small SUVs, which was actually quite pleasing to drive, the Duster contributed significantly to changing my opinion about these big leviathans. In addition, the other factor that contributed was the practicality of driving an SUV. The main advantage is that given their size, most other vehicles don’t try and cut you off in traffic, and the taller height allows better visibility, which makes driving easier.

The Duster served me quite well on both highway and urban driving, and I was quite fond of the short-ratio gearbox in urban settings, as that meant I could pootle around in third gear in heavy traffic. The big glasshouse also provides excellent all-round visibility, which is becoming rarer to find in cars today. Add to that the excellent suspension, and it made the Duster the jack of all trades, but one with a fair amount of off-road ability, courtesy of its selectable all-wheel drive system.

However, there were a couple of things about the Duster that Renault needs to work on. One, the cushioning and side bolsters of the seats are lacking and need to be improved. In fact, on longer drives, my back would hurt after a couple of hours in the driver’s seat. Secondly, I think I’ve mentioned this multiple times, the steering kickback when the car goes through bumps or rough terrain is simply too much and gets quite annoying on long journeys. Hopefully, with the facelifted Duster round the corner, both these issues can be addressed.

But, all good things eventually come to an end, and it is time for us to say adieu to the Duster. Having spent 5 months and driving it for almost ten thousand kilometres, I must say, this is the first affordable SUV that I actually enjoyed driving for an extended period. Hopefully, the new version of the Duster will build on that further.