Dacia Duster

Until recently, the last Romanian car company had little exposure outside the country. But after a merger with the French giant Renault, the relatively small company became a household brand on the continent, with Dacia cars being spotted anywhere from Morocco to Sweden and from Bulgaria to France.

 

Since it’s birth, the car manufacturer focused on family vehicles and small utility conversions but, as it grew with the release of the Logan and Solenza models, it began to consider entering other markets. 2010 brought with it the release of a new line of vehicles, producing a model that almost nobody could have predicted a few years back: the Dacia Duster SUV. With the aid of the Regional Manager, Mr. Adrian Stefanescu, we had the chance to test the yet unreleased 4x4 version of the Dacia Duster.

We decided to take the Duster out in the country for a little bit of off road although I must admit I was a little reluctant regarding it’s off road abilities. The car has no axles, and thus attacks the terrain with individual suspension on each wheel. On the road, the small 1,3 ton SUV behaves very well, powered by it’s 1,6 110bhp petrol engine – for the particular model that we tested. It’s performances on tarmac are close to those of more expensive SUVs in it’s class such as the Nissan Quashqai or the Subaru Forrester.

Off road, the independent suspension insures a comfortable trip on dirt roads while also doing a great job of keeping the car steady at all times. We did however feel the need for a better ground clearance since the little SUV sometimes hit the ground with the underbody protection. Like any decent SUV, the Duster had to be tested on the water as well. We managed to find a decent size puddle and tested it out first in our Land Rover Defender 110, equipped with BFGoodrich tires. It is at this point that I should mention that the Duster was running on some relatively small on road tires and we were a little worried that we might have to tow it out from the puddle.

 

Surprisingly, with just a little bit of throttle, the Dacia sped through the mud and water with unexpected ease. After we made sure that it can actually do more than we expected it to, we spent a bit of time going back and forth in the mud trying to get it stuck. It was at this point we also “activated” the 4WD and Autolock. By default, the Duster is 2WD, with the front wheels driving the car forward. In off road situations, the 4WD can be activated at the touch of a button and the car immediately changes it’s driving style, from a road only car to that of a good off road vehicle, while also considering thr 1600dm3 luggage space. With a comfortable interior, CD-Radio player and many other options, the Duster is sure to become a successful model.