[ampere]

Originally Posted by suchit23

Hi @penpusher. Have you faced the injector problem later again till date?

Good to see you on this thread after a long time (I may have missed too)! How has your ride been? I remember yours was one of the first few ones on the forum. Hence curious to know about the status.

[SinghP09]

Hello Friends

Need a bit of help, advice and peace of mind( hate new launches )

• I am approaching 40k mileage on my 31 months old 85 PS 2014 RXE Duster. I have faced following issues so far:
  
• Brake pad changed 3 times so far and I am almost certain they will be changed again come next service.
  
• Some clutch components were changed last year( at around 30k) which costed me around 20k.

I had a 1200 km trip Bangalore-Kodai-Ooty-Bangalore last month, I made the mistake of filling up from a petrol bunk at Kodai and after that, it felt like Duster wasn't ready to climb any hills. I hope I am right to think it was the bad diesel because, thankfully it did fine on Ooty Ghats after refilling the tank. Overall Fuel consumption average for the trip was around 17-18 which is great considering it involved a lot of ghat roads.

Other than this, I am a bit of spirited(bad on bad roads and good on highways but a little accelerator happy) driver and absolutely love the Duster, specially the ride quality(or only because of its ride quality and how it over takes my friend's Honda City on bad roads ) and I am actually very impressed with its highway manners on long drives( 2500 km Delhi-Bangalore was just amazing and want to do Bangalore - Leh - Bangalore Next year).
I don't have much to complain but still have some questions about whats in store for the future.

Few questions where I need your help and suggestions:

1. What Next? How is the life with duster after 50k, specially between 50k-80k. I am almost certain I will change/upgrade after 80k. Service costs, Part replacements: Does it need a lot of those and how costly can that be?
   
2. I have Apollos and they look alright at the moment. Will they hold till 60k.
   
3. I understand the resale value is not great, but I am worried about the cost of keeping it down the line. Also, the price change of new cars because of GST(although nothing great) is messing up my mind.
   Will it be good to sell it at 50k(another 6 months) or keep it till 80k (about a couple of years)
   
4. If I keep it, I will spend 20k on upgrading the ICE( still on stock and impossible to live with anymore). Any suggestions where to get it done in Bangalore(as close as possible to E city)
   

Thanks

[allidzrused]

Hello Fellow Team-BHPians!

Need a bit of advice

I haven't had my duster serviced at it's second service interval and the car's odometer is nearing 20,000 km. I was abroad on deputation for the past 16 months and had to keep it at a relative's house during this interim.

I want to get it serviced now and would like to know what all should i be aware of that need to replaced/serviced.

Which service center in hyderabad has good customer service. Please recommend based on your experience.

Thanks

[bluevolt]

It's been 5 years since the current gen Duster is on sale. When we are expecting a total revamp? I believe it is the time to get an all new duster in India.

[SinghP09]

Originally Posted by allidzrused

Hello Fellow Team-BHPians!

Need a bit of advice

I haven't had my duster serviced at it's second service interval and the car's odometer is nearing 20,000 km. I was abroad on deputation for the past 16 months and had to keep it at a relative's house during this interim.

How much have you driven the Duster after coming back, or not at all? How was the experience now? Also, was the car parked in the sun ( tyres? )?

I am not an expert, but I guess general checkup and normal service should be fine. There could be replacement required of some rubber parts.
I am not sure service will be free though. They generally allow about 2k km window.

[mh09ad5578]

Originally Posted by SinghP09

[/list]
Thanks

[*]strange, mine lasted 50k kms. Have heard a few needed change at 20k kms but thrice is too much. The sa will overload if you are willing
[*]30k clutch wear is premature again I think sa just scammed you.

17-18kmpl is good milage and shows an engine in good shape.
[*]unless you listen to the sa and change parts irrationally I don't see significant costs post 50k kms
[*]I've seen my friends apollos dusted at 40k kms so I doubt yours will do 60
[*]I am 100k on my duster and didn't see any major expense once I sifted to the fng I think I can really use it for another - 100k without any major expense (maybe a clutch replacement) I don't see why you can't use it to 80k kms
[*] no idea about the ice mate!

[allidzrused]

Originally Posted by SinghP09

How much have you driven the Duster after coming back, or not at all? How was the experience now? Also, was the car parked in the sun ( tyres? )?

I am not an expert, but I guess general checkup and normal service should be fine. There could be replacement required of some rubber parts.
I am not sure service will be free though. They generally allow about 2k km window.

Thanks so much for the reply

I have driven the Duster for a couple of days now and do not see anything alarming. The tyres look good, need balancing and alignment. The car was mostly parked under partial shade.

What could be the cost of the service if i am not offered the free service.

Thanks in advance

[xjosephjacob]

Originally Posted by SinghP09

1. What Next? How is the life with duster after 50k, specially between 50k-80k. I am almost certain I will change/upgrade after 80k. Service costs, Part replacements: Does it need a lot of those and how costly can that be?
   
2. I have Apollos and they look alright at the moment. Will they hold till 60k.
   
3. I understand the resale value is not great...
   Will it be good to sell it at 50k(another 6 months) or keep it till 80k (about a couple of years)
   
4. If I keep it, I will spend 20k on upgrading the ICE...
   

Based on your inputs, approximate maintenance expenses for keeping your the car in good shape from 50,000 Km to 80,000 km would be:

Service Cost- 50,000 km- 6,000 Rs
Service Cost- 60,000 km - 16,000 Rs
Service Cost - 70,000 km- 6,000 Rs
New set of Tires- 30,000 Rs
Brake pads- 3,500 Rs
Brake discs- 7,500 Rs
ICE- 20,000 Rs
Insurance- 15,000 Rs

Total damage: 1 lac Rs approximately

My policy is to consider the car for sale when either when it's close to major scheduled service or if it starts throwing up problems. If you're planning to sell it off, I suggest selling it at 50,000 km (or rather 60,000 km) and not 80,000 km as is obvious from the figures above. Financially it makes much more sense retaining a car with not-so-good resale value as long as it serves you well.

Your Apollos would hopefully last till 60,000 km, since you said the tires look alright to 40,000 km. I changed my stock Apollos at 70,000 km when it probably had another 5,000 km useful life in it.

Changing brake pads 3 times in 40,000 km and a clutch service sounds unreasonable- something's seriously wrong here. Pads normally lasts 30,000 km. Clutches are good for 1 lac km and more. I know Dusters that have crossed 2 lac km, logans with 4 lac km that are still holding up really well.

[penpusher]

Originally Posted by suchit23

Also have a look at this link http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...tor-issue.html





Hi @penpusher. Have you faced the injector problem later again till date?

Hi, sorry for the delay. Fortunately, that issue has never again cropped up in my Duster.

[suchit23]

Originally Posted by ampere

Good to see you on this thread after a long time (I may have missed too)! How has your ride been? I remember yours was one of the first few ones on the forum. Hence curious to know about the status.

Yo, sorry for the late reply. Yes I am very irregular here. My Dusty is reaching 1 lakh and no issues at all except for small things here and there. Looks like I am good for another lakh

How is it going at your end?

[ampere]

Originally Posted by suchit23

How is it going at your end?

Pretty much likewise! Hitting close to 90K for now. And the car munches miles as if its a new one. FE remains a consistent 17-18 right from the start. For the first 3 years, I was doing close to 20k/year. It trailed off slowly. But still the highway and city drives continue to happen.

[josephrmathias]

Originally Posted by Falcon_blr

You can also request for the armrest top surface to covered with the same material as the seat covers.
Here are a few designs from them:
Attachment 1390332

Here is the design from my White Duster, nappa black with silver stitching:
Attachment 1390335


Go for an armrest colour which matches your seat covers.

Hey there @Falcon_blr,

The seat job looks super.

Could you please guide me regarding where you purchased / installed teh Center Arm Rest for your Duster. I have a 2016 AWD 110ps version which comes with a flimsy arm rest only for the driver seat.

Any guidance regarding installation will be much appreciated.

Thanks,

JM

[Repsol]

My first car was a Hyundai Santro Xing 2009, bought on 29-Nov-2009, and has served me well for 8 years and 97K kms. And I really loved it due to fact that it was my first vehicle, and also has never ever let me down. Though I have always been particular about getting it serviced regularly at H.A.S.S.

Come Mar 2017, I relocated from Delhi to Bangalore, and since we were new to the place and did not want to invest in a new car immediately, as our beloved Santro was doing great, we took the decision of taking it along. As my relocation expenses were paid by my company, it didn't hurt either to tranport it via Agarwal Packers safely to Bangalore. We had decided to keep it for another year or two, so initiated the RTO formalities of paying the LTT for Karnataka. But at the back of my mind was this constant itch to upgrade and I started the plans by taking with my family on the same. Since our hometown is Kerala, there will regular travels of 1200+ kms and family was also convinced on getting a better vehicle in terms of safety and space.

The search begins:
With a budget of 12 lacs, we started our search and narrowed in only on crossovers, as I do not like sedans, and SUVs were out of reach. Shortlisted S-Cross, Brezza, Duster and Creta. Dropped Ecosport altogether as somehow I didnt the overall looks and size, though my wife was very much interested in this.

Took test drive of S-Cross first and we were impressed with the overall space and comfort. But we both didn't like the looks at all.

Then came in the Brezza. Though the test drive was almost similar to the S-Cross in terms of power, the wife liked the looks and overall package. We were looking at the ZDI+ variant with all the bells and whistles which came to 12.8 lacs for the dual tone RED+BLACK variant (ridiculous that the dual tone variant commands 80K additinal just for the colour theme). But the biggest let down was the waiting period. Every other dealer in Bangalore was quoting 4-5 months of waiting period. Then I got a call from Kataria Automobiles and they commit 1.5 months. I clearly told them that I am going ahead with the booking only because I want the vehicle by mid of June as I will be travelling to Kerala on 1-July. They were very confident and assured me that the vehicle will be delivered by mid of June. So, on 28-Apr-2017, I went to Kataria showroom and booked the Brezza ZDI+ Red-Black by paying the booking amount of 21K.

Now the wait begins, and I was constantly in touch with the SA, though there was no proactive communication from their side. By first week of June, I still don't have any information of allotment. I started checking every alternalte day, but everytime I get one reason or other, but no information of the car.

In between, we took a look at the Duster and Creta. Creta was ruled out due to the following:

• Firstly it was out of budget
• Still I tried to strech a bit more as I really liked the looks, but even the top-end model didn't have cruise control which is a must have for me as I will doing regular drives to Kerala which is 600+ kms one side.

Then came in the Duster. Eventhough I heard bad reviews about the bland interiors, somehow for me they were not such a big deal. As soon as we took the test drive, I just forgot about any other bad reviews. I just fell for the ride quality. And the family was impressed with the space and comfort too. We decided to check on the deal and then finalize.

Had some discussions with my SA (Thushar) and came to know that Renault was offering close to 1.1 lacs discount on the Duster (in terms of Insurance - 45K, Exchange bonus - 35K, Cash discount - 15K and some carnival discount). But since I already went ahead with the exchange of my Santro with the True Value people at Kataria, I could not avail the exchange bonus part. So, the final quote came out to be 14.25 lacs OTR for 85PS RXZ MT model.

Finally after lots of discussion with family, went to Renault Silk Board, and booked the Duster 85PS RXZ in Slate Grey on 11-Jun-2017, with a promised delivery of 19-Jun-2017. On the 15-Jun-2017, went to Kataria and cancelled the booking for Brezza and got the full refund within a week.

Delivery:
As promised, got the delivery of my new Dusty on 19-Jun-2017.



Now, coming to my thoughts about the vehicle after taking delivery

Interior design & quality
As stated earlier, the interiors are not much to talk about, but serves my purpose. Somehow, I ;have started liking the dual tone Black+Brown colour combintaion, though I initial wanted all black

Interior space & comfort
Duster offers plenty of space in the front seats. The rear seats are supremely comfortable as well. But the seat are not up to the mark. They could have done a better job here.

Driving position, ergonomics, controls & MID
The driving position is definitely commanding and give a good feeling while behind the wheel. I am still getting used to the control stalk layout, as its the opposite in Hyundai.

Air conditioner cooling & effectiveness
Since the RXZ model has ACC, its quite powerful. Cools the cabin in no time even in the hot climate which I experienced in TN during my trip to Kerala.

Audio system & sound quality
The built in Media-Nav system is quite good and has everything which one would need. Though I still wish if it could have Android Auto/Apple CarPlay. The rear camera quality is also very crisp and clear

Interior storage, practicality & boot space
The one big complaint on the pre-facelift model was that the Duster did not have enough spaces for knick-knacks which has been unfortunately carried over to the 2016 facelift. It simply cannot hold any bottles in convenient locations. For that matter, it doesn’t have any bottle holders on the doors. The only bottle holder present is in between the front two seats which is covered anyways by the aftermarket hand rests that people put up anyways.

Boot space
If you need a car/SUV for boot space, Duster is your answer. It can gulp huge loads of luggage even with the parcel tray in position.

Engine performance & Driveability
85ps K9K is known for its low speed drivability. If it is city runabout with occasional highway trips and you are a sedate driver, I would happily recommend the 85ps. Saying that the 110ps is much more comfortable at highway speeds and also it does have a 6th gear for a smoother cruising at highway speeds with lower rpms. 85ps would obviously do highways speeds but it isn’t at its smoothest best at those speeds.

Gearshift & clutch
The 5-speed Gearshift on the 85ps version Dusters has sort of a mid-ranged throw and you could probably call it notchy. The clutch is much lighter on 2016 Facelifted Dusters now. You wont have to do a leg workout in stop-go traffic.

Overall NVH levels
Pre-facelift had below average NVH insulation and the same unfortunately seems to be the case with the 2016 facelifted version. That wind noice is present >110kmph and the engine is fairly audible inside the cabin at anything above 2000rpm.

Fuel efficiency: City and Highway
I have so far completed 2500 kms and currently getting aroung 15 kmpl in City and around 18kmpl in Highway.

Suspension & ride quality
Well, suspension and ride quality is what makes a Duster what it is and how many it sold. It is extremely comfortable and pliant both in the front seats and rear seats. Nothing comes even close to beating it. You can nonchalantly dismiss road irregularities.

Handling, on-road behaviour, grip levels, stability, body roll & turning radius
Duster inspite of its tall boy SUV looks has tremendously low body roll. Handles and turns pretty good. Turning radius also I believe is slightly lower than the Ecosport. My Duster came shod with Apollo Apterras, but I am satisfied with the grip levels.

Visibility & size of mirrors
The ORVMs are decently sized and offer a good view of the rear but a size bigger would have definitely helped as well. The IRVM has a clip on display in my Duster for the aftermarket rear view camera. It is pretty wide and offers the view of the entire rear windshield. I wouldn’t be able to comment on the OEM IRVM’s view as I have never used it. The visibility outside is great due to the large window area. There is slight blind spot due to the A pillar but it isn't as bad as the Ecosport.

Steering
The facelifted Duster does not seem to have the aggressive turn back of the steering that the pre-facelifted Duster seems to have had. I remember holding on pretty tight when going through the Chickmagalur ghats on the pre-facelifted Duster. Steering feedback from road undulations has also reduced a bit which is good. Duster’s steering has always been a little on the heavier side which is good and this seems to be the same with the facelift as well. Parallel parking sure does take a little more effort than say a Creta or Ecosport.

Braking
I have no complaints on the braking capability on the Duster. It has enough bite and the pedal has a nice feel.

Ground clearance
You get 205mm on the regular and 210mm on the AWD which remains the same in the 2016 facelift versions. That is more than enough for any road in my view.

[Tgo]

Hi everyone,

Tried my hand at plastic welding for my Duster. Results are very satisfying mainly due to the DIY process. Could save some money which I would have to shell out for a new set of mudflaps.

-The Incident-
While driving in a narrow gully, I had to take the vehicle over a covered drain. The concrete slab failed and the Left Front Tyre fell into the drain. The vehicle on the LHS was resting on the sub-frame. Tried slotting it in reverse and got the vehicle un-stuck but the spinning tyre somehow caught the mudflap and ripped it apart. Picked it up and kept it thinking it was salvageable.

-Service Center Episode-
The duster went for its 1,10,000 km service last month and I asked for the mud flaps to be replaced as a set. I was told they would cost about INR 1,700/-. Later after the service was over thhey said they only had stock of the New Generation (>2015 manufactured) model mudflaps.

-Resourceful Youtube Video-
I have subscribed to this channel Moonfleet41 putting up videos by the name Delboy's Garage. They guy there has a lot of resourceful videos on how to work on motorcycles and do metal working and using power tools to do your garage projects. You all might want to check this video which I watched before the next step:

https://www.google.co.in/url?sa=t&rc...1G6v9_QhKjy2hg

-Soldering Iron-
As per the video went on to buy the lowest wattage soldering iron available on amazon. Got hold of a Stanley branded soldering iron delivered free for INR 210/-
http://www.amazon.in/Stanley-69031B-30-Watt-Corded-Soldering/dp/B00ICIIS5Q?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_ =oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00

Apart from this used a bit of steel wire for making a sort of staple for added strength and used old zip-ties as a filler after completing the welding process for a somewhat flush finish.

-End Result-

Back


Front - You can see the tyre rubbing marks in this picture which ripped it off.


Back where it belongs

Using the same process and a little improvisation repaired the rear mudflap as well which had a broken tab.

[ampere]

Congrats on the car! Looks like you are all set for the road.

Originally Posted by Repsol

Air conditioner cooling & effectiveness
Since the RXZ model has ACC, its quite powerful. Cools the cabin in no time even in the hot climate which I experienced in TN during my trip to Kerala.

This is definitely good. The first generation Duster has pretty weak AC. We need to push it way high to get good cooling for the cabin. Looks like this has been fixed? Or do you still experience the unit putting in more effort even for mildly warm scenarios?

Audio system & sound quality
The built in Media-Nav system is quite good and has everything which one would need.

How is the audio quality? Again for Gen-1 it was nothing worth talking about. I got it changed within a week of getting the car.

Boot space
If you need a car/SUV for boot space, Duster is your answer. It can gulp huge loads of luggage even with the parcel tray in position.

The dual folding parcel is a neat idea!

Engine performance & Driveability
85ps K9K is known for its low speed drivability. If it is city runabout with occasional highway trips and you are a sedate driver, I would happily recommend the 85ps.

Very true. You stay at just about triple digits on the highway and the car works wonders for you. Beyond that the engine strains and so does your FE.

Overall NVH levels
Pre-facelift had below average NVH insulation and the same unfortunately seems to be the case with the 2016 facelifted version.

If you dont do too much rough roads (I dont mean Bangalore roads! ) next change of tyres you can try Micheline Latitude. A softer tyre but definitely gets the tyre noise down. Wind noise will persist. I could feel this change.

Fuel efficiency: City and Highway
I have so far completed 2500 kms and currently getting aroung 15 kmpl in City and around 18kmpl in Highway.

Again this is what even I have seen. But some have reported 20+ too. I could never get that levels of FE. Its always been 16-18.

Suspension & ride quality
Well, suspension and ride quality is what makes a Duster what it is and how many it sold. It is extremely comfortable and pliant both in the front seats and rear seats. Nothing comes even close to beating it. You can nonchalantly dismiss road irregularities.

Do I even need to say anything? !