The Dacia Duster is one of the cheapest 4x4s you can buy
The Dacia Duster is designed to compete with family-friendly 4x4s, yet it's much cheaper than all its rivals, costing less than most small hatchbacks.
Given the amount of space it gives you for your money, it look like a very appealing option on paper. And both two and four-wheel-drive versions are available.
Space 7/10
Big, but rear seats could be more flexible
Six-footers will find they have plenty of space in both the front and the back of the Duster, while the boot is also big.
Sadly, it isn’t clever. Elderly dogs face quite a jump to get in, and the rear seats don’t lie completely flat when you fold them forward to extend the load area. In fact, they don’t even fold in two separate pieces if you go for the cheapest version of the Duster; this means it can carry rear passengers or longer items of luggage, but not both.
There aren’t many storage cubbies in the front of the car, either.
Comfort 4/10
Limited adjustment; good at soaking up bumps
Some people will struggle to find a comfortable driving position in the Duster, because its steering wheel doesn’t adjust for reach and the cheapest version of the car misses out on seat-height adjustment.
The seats are very soft, too, which can cause you to cramp up on long journeys. Fortunately, you also get soft suspension that’s good at disguising lumps and bumps in the road surface.
You can choose from two engines - a 1.6-litre petrol and a 1.5-litre diesel - but these are both noisy, and the diesel transmits vibrations into the car. All Dusters let in a lot of wind and road noise on the motorway, too.
Book a free Dacia Duster home test drive
Dashboard layout 5/10
Fiddly stereo and plastics feel cheap
The standard stereo has too many fiddly buttons, although these are replaced with a touchscreen that’s much easier to use if you specify satellite-navigation.
The rotary heater controls that are fitted to every Duster are also clearly labelled and user-friendly.
Sadly, there’s no disguising the fact you’re sitting in a budget car because the dashboard is built from plastics that look and feel cheap.
Easy to drive 6/10
Diesel is stronger than petrol; parking could be easier
You sit high in the Duster, which gives you an excellent forward view. Unfortunately, parking is trickier than it should be because the rear windows are small and it takes a lot of turns of the steering wheel to get the wheels to turn from extreme right to extreme left.
The petrol engine struggles to pull the car when there are several people on board, too. But the diesel makes it easy to get up to motorway speeds.
No version of the Duster is available with an automatic gearbox, but both engines can be specified with four-wheel drive.
Fun to drive 2/10
Vague steering and little grip
The Duster’s soft suspension might make it comfortable over bumpy roads, but it also means it leans over dramatically when you turn into a bend.
To make matters worse, the front tyres runs out of grip quite quickly, yet you don’t get much warning that they’re about to slide because the steering barely feels like it’s attached to the wheels.
Reliability 5/10
Based on cars with a below average record
The Duster is too new to have been included in the JD Power customer satisfaction survey. However, its engines and technology are borrowed from Renault, which finished only 21st out of 26 manufacturers in 2014.
Fuel economy 7/10
Fine if you go for the diesel
The most efficient version of the Duster is the front-wheel-drive diesel, which returns an official average of 61.4mpg, compared with the four-wheel-drive diesel’s 56.5mpg.
These figures are comparable with those of many rivals, although the most efficient version of the Nissan Qashqai manages more than 70mpg.
In the real world you can expect to get high-40s out of the front-wheel-drive diesel Duster and low-40s out of the four-wheel-drive diesel.
The alternative is a petrol engine that will struggle to do 30mpg in a mix of town and country driving.
Affordability 9/10
Want to lease this car? For more information, click here >>
Very cheap for a car of this size
In its cheapest form, the Duster costs less than £10,000, which is a tiny amount for such a big car. And while the most expensive Duster will set you back more than £15,000, it still undercuts the most basic versions of the Nissan Qashqai and Skoda Yeti.
Servicing and insurance costs are also low, and you shouldn’t lose a huge amount in depreciation, simply because the Duster is so cheap to start with.
Safety 4/10
Performed poorly in crash tests
Front seat occupants are protected by front and side airbags. However, the Duster doesn’t come with the window airbags that are standard in most rivals, and it was awarded just three stars out of five when it was crash tested by car safety specialists Euro NCAP.
True, the Duster did score quite well for child occupant safety, but many rivals offer the driver greater protection, and the Duster was rated poorly for pedestrian protection.
At least every version of the Duster comes with a stability control system that’s designed to help you regain control if the car starts to slide.
Standard spec 4/10
Basic model doesn't even get a stereo
The cheapest version of the Duster is the Access, which comes with remote door locking and electric front windows, but little else; the only colour available is white, and you don’t even get a stereo unless you upgrade to the Ambiance model.
The Ambiance also brings front fog lights, a lockable fuel filler cap and a Bluetooth hands-free phone connection. However, you have to go for the range-topping Laureate model if you want alloy wheels, cruise control, electric rear windows and air-conditioning.
Four-wheel-drive versions of the Duster come with a spare wheel, whereas two-wheel-drive models make do with a tyre repair kit.
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire