[DieselLover]

Just came back from an approx. 1000kms road trip. Did Kochi-Madikeri-Kochi over the last 3 days in my Duster 85. The car amazed me yet again with its ability to tackle bad/uneven roads. We can comfortably cruise over bad/uneven roads and need to slow down only for large potholes. It's a breeze to drive on ghat roads due to negligible turbo lag. We were 4 adults + a child with boot full of luggage and the car returned average FE of 17.8 for the entire trip, which is more than what I got when I travelled the same route an year back in my swift D !

[Esu Junior]

Mine is a duster 110ps sep-2014 model.Battery spec is 50AH,420A EXIDE.Is this spec same for both 85&110ps models right from launch?Can any of duster owners comment on this?

[Falcon_blr]

Originally Posted by Esu Junior

Mine is a duster 110ps sep-2014 model.Battery spec is 50AH,420A EXIDE.Is this spec same for both 85&110ps models right from launch?Can any of duster owners comment on this?

Duster 110ps used to come with a 60AH, 600A Exide earlier. Not sure what would be the specification on newer 110ps models. 110ps owners can throw some light on this.
I have a October 2014 model 85ps and it came with a 60AH, 510A Exide battery.

[HillMan]

Originally Posted by Esu Junior

Can any of duster owners comment on this?

Mine is a 85PS June 2013 model. Came with a 60Ah 600A

[xjosephjacob]

So I gave my Duster for the 20,000 km service. Apart from the general service, I gave them a lost list of complaints to fix- all squeaks, creaks and rattles- the holy trinity of a Duster. From the base of the seats to the roof, everything makes unnecessary sounds. Have ordered a set of Duster AWD's additional door weatherstrips, for research purposes

I always had this urge to play around with 'Clip' (the tool that they use to diagnose the cars) to see if speed sensing autolock can be enabled in Duster 85. Keep your hopes low, as the end result was disappointment.

I got in touch with the diagnosing personnel in the service center, who was very supportive and eager to help. We went for a quick test drive in which we checked out the various settings of the BCM (Body control module- the electronic module that controls the central locking, immobilizer, power windows etc).

We found out that the everything related to auto-locking is already enabled in Duster by default, however speed sensing door autolock somehow doesn't work. We tried out all the possible options , but the efforts went in vain. He said that the BCM settings are same in regular Dusters and Duster AWD (which has speed sensing autolock), however the BCM versions were different in both.

So, there ends my research to enable this thing in my Duster.

Only for those of you who haven't seen the Clip:

[Rigid Rotor]

Originally Posted by himadrimondal

My highest fill was 74 liters after the low fuel indicator went on. The next day I drove to Delhi, non stop from kolkata in a little over 20 hours. Stopped only once for a fill after Kanpur, after crossing 1000 kilometres. That's why I say, no car in this segment offers such value for money in terms of ride quality, mileage and reliability. Mine is a 110PS RxZ

• Just to re-open the topic of the Duster's fuel tank (aptly called a 'Black Hole' by another member in an earlier post):
• I second Himadri da's observation made some time back. I also have an initial batch 110PS and in a recent trip to Nilgiris, it took an additional 28 litres after the 50 litre mark to top the fuel absolutely till the brim. Which means the max capacity is around 74-78 litres, which in turn translates into an effective range of around 1000 km for the 110 PS version - which is frankly amazing!
• The advantage - we can limit and cherry-pick our refueling points on long trips and choose reliable CoCo pumps on the highway.
• The fact is - I drove from Bangalore via Mysore to Bandipur, climbed the ghats via Gundlupet, drove through Ooty to Coonoor, did 3-4 local trips at Coonoor (including Ooty & back), drove down via Metturpalyam, crossed Avanashi and then refueled at the IOC CoCo pump on NH-47 before Chengapalli. I could have easily skipped this refueling since the fuel gauge was only two bars below max at this point. The Duster could have easily done the round trip back to Bangalore without refueling.

[Shanmd]

Back from a 2000+kms trip Bombay-Chitradurga-Mysore-Gudlur-Pattambi-Trissur-Kozhikode-Sultan Bathery-Mysore-Sira-Bombay. Over 8days. Brand new 85(O). 600km in city stop-go traffic before the trip began. Rest on straight highways, some sections on moon craters, a bit on absolute dirt road, two laners in Kerala, car killer bumps in Karnataka, in the company of two adults, two kids and a boot 2/3rds full.
Fantastic ride. Went over everything without us feeling much. After a point just stopped reducing speeds at all but the bigger bumps. Rode on straight highways with tyres at 34. Moon craters and others at 30. Speed bandwidth at 80-110kmph. Max 2500rpm. Returned 18kmpl.
Ghats were a bit tough during bus crossings as I had to consciously shift gears to not go above 2500rpm.
The only grouse was about dust coming in. Heater worked nicely through Pune nighttime. Had to remember to keep it at non-internal circulation mode to not feel stuffy inside. Warmed us up in no time. Overall, I remember I kept grinning like a nutcase through the drive.

[h.s.r]

Hey Guys, i was offline from Tbhp from almost a year,a lot has changed since then specially with Duster most important bring AWD.Recently i got 3rd service done and noticed rust on body near door beeding close to roof.I never expected this & very upset with this issue.All the goods things about Duster vanished from my mind when i noticed it last month. I have posted detail in the Duster Rust thread & will post pictures of the Vehicle.I have taken Duster to some extreme places in India such as Leh.Duster always came back with flying colours.Any one else who's going through same issue.I believe if something is not done about this problem,then Renault India is digging its grave in India for sure.

[anilntny]

Originally Posted by h.s.r

Hey Guys, i was offline from Tbhp from almost a year,a lot has changed since then specially with Duster most important bring AWD.Recently i got 3rd service done and noticed rust on body near door beeding close to roof.I never expected this & very upset with this issue.All the goods things about Duster vanished from my mind when i noticed it last month. I have posted detail in the Duster Rust thread & will post pictures of the Vehicle.I have taken Duster to some extreme places in India such as Leh.Duster always came back with flying colours.Any one else who's going through same issue.I believe if something is not done about this problem,then Renault India is digging its grave in India for sure.

It is sad indeed.I too am worried now.
With the launch of AWD ,it seems like they have updated their body treatment and painting quality.We,early buyers ,are a lot of unlucky people.

[Waxeloquent]

I just got my 3rd service done for my Duster. The paint has started peeling just below the beading over the rear door on one side, in one stretch. I could also see some rust. I pointed this the service advisor at Whitefield Renault who immediately said "damage". I asked him to elaborate. He said that he would take photo and send to Renault and wait for the reply. I also informed the Service Manager about this issue. He said that I could expect a response in 3,4 days time from Renault.

Btw, they changed all the filters, engine oil etc. As I get my wheel alignment, rotation, balancing at Madhus I skipped that. Still cost me Rs 7k.

I will post some pictures separately.

Cheers

I have uploaded 3 photos; paint peeling just beneath the beading on left front door all the way back. In between some patches the paint is holding as of now.
I noticed it couple of months back as I do my own cleaning and detailing but waited for the third free service (20K). Not happy how the Whitefield Renault responded but will wait for Renault to respond.Though Whitefield renault said they would send the photo (or sent already) to Chennai, should I email directly?

Cheers







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[Rigid Rotor]

Originally Posted by Waxeloquent

I just got my 3rd service done for my Duster. The paint has started peeling just below the beading over the rear door on one side, in one stretch. I could also see some rust. ..

Originally Posted by Waxeloquent

...Though Whitefield renault said they would send the photo (or sent already) to Chennai, should I email directly?

Originally Posted by anilntny

...With the launch of AWD ,it seems like they have updated their body treatment and painting quality.We,early buyers ,are a lot of unlucky people.

@ anilntny - Hey, my colleague and I both have initial launch 2012 110 PS RXZ vehicles. We recently went though the complete 15-20 point inspection checklist given in the UK "Rusty Duster / Ruster" forums - both our vehicles are still on date - in pristine rust-free condition (includes under-surfaces, under door beadings and drive-shafts, etc). So I doubt whether they changed anything in terms of processes - I believe its related to fluctuations in QA, especially as I am given to believe that a large number of assembly processes of the Duster is manual (not automated).

@ Waxeloquent - I would advise also writing directly to Renault, with your photos, quoting the exact correspondence / reference with R- Whitefield. These guys at Whitefield would have e-mailed Renault through internal channels - if possible quote their internal reference, else the reference number they have given you on your complaint.
Also - you may wish to refer to the UK "Rusty Duster / Ruster" forums - the problems on body rusting seemed to be linked mainly / only to White and Blue colour Dusters: in this context from your pics, it appears your Duster is White.

[Waxeloquent]

Rigid Rotor and others who responded to the issues of paint peeling and rust I reported her; just a quick update. I uploaded the same pictures and wrote an email to Renault India customer care copying Whitefield Renault. I just received a call from Whitefield Renault that they have got a favourable response that they would fix the issues both paint as well the beading. I need to drop it there Monday morning and they need 2 work days. I shall post pictures post the rectification work.

Thanks to everyone for the support!

Cheers

P.S. Yes it is a White RxZ Duster 110 PS Diesel

[Rigid Rotor]

Originally Posted by Waxeloquent

Rigid Rotor and others who responded to the issues of paint peeling and rust I reported her; just a quick update. ... I shall post pictures post the rectification work...l

That's good news.

In the UK, the rectification work was limited to removing the beadings, scraping and re-painting the rusted portion and replacing the beadings with a new piece. Apparently, the beadings metal clips had rusted first, affecting the paintwork.

All the best and keep us posted.

[h.s.r]

Guys,an update on rust issue, i have left my vehicle at service centre yesterday,i was told that technical team will look into it & will do the needful like scrapping,repainting,changing the beeding with new ones.
It seems that there is problem with the metal part of the body on which beeding is placed or fitted,it is prone to the rust & it is in the same area in all vehicles.So there is slight relief that problem is with certain area only.It is more prominent with white colour as also pointed by rigid rotor.The vehicle will be returned on monday. Posting from mobile,unable to post pictures of the rusted part.
Another update on rattling door issue, i reported this to SA,which resulted in change of Door Strickers.So whosoever is facing door rattling issue,(i know there will be many)report it to service centre,Renault is changing them free of cost,but only for those who are reporting it.Apparently older door strickers are smaller in diameter which result in rattling with the door lock machanism.
I firmly believe Renault should announce recall regarding rattling & rust issue.

[Neil Roy]

Just now found this on the net. Sorry if it was posted earlier. The legendary Kimi Raikkonen driving a Duster on ice during his Renault F1 days. Some of his comments are epic. Hope you enjoy them. Here is the link.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yOEexmjLN4

Hope it is not out of context with our forum rules.