Dacia reveals All-New Duster

MORE DUSTER, STILL DUSTER

• Dacia presents the third generation Duster – the next chapter in the iconic best-seller’s story
• All-New Duster’s design is tougher and more assertive
• Innovative CMF-B platform enhances the in-car experience
• All-New Duster’s 4x4 version takes off-road capabilities to new heights
• Introducing more sustainable materials and hybrid powertrains
• Packed with new technologies to further increase safety and comfort
• It is all new, except for what matters most – Duster remains a family SUV providing the best value for money in its segment
• The British public can register their interest by visiting www.dacia.co.uk

The All-New Dacia Duster opens the next chapter in the story of a model that has grown into a standard-setter in its market. It is an all-round icon, encapsulating everything the Dacia brand stands for: ‘Robust and Outdoor’, ‘Essential but Cool’, and ‘Eco-Smart’. Duster was born in 2010, overhauled for the first time in 2017, and rose to the top by rewriting the SUV rulebook.

Duster is a proven success story. In its 13-year-long career, it has been awarded more than 40 accolades, production stands at 2.2 million units and counting, and it is steadily increasing in popularity, ranking as Europe’s best-selling SUV across all segments in the retail market in 2022. Around 1,000 Duster SUVs roll off the production lines at Dacia’s plant in Pitesti, Romania, every day – about one every minute!

STRONGER AND MORE ASSERTIVE DESIGN
Dacia has reinvented Duster’s design. It still has the striking looks that propelled the previous generations to the top – especially its solid, sturdy SUV character – but pushes them further with Dacia’s new, distinctive design.

David Durand, Dacia Design Director, said: “Before even starting work on All-New Duster’s style, we honed its proportions, to find a strong, balanced posture. When you get the proportions right early on, you don’t need artifices to tweak style later.”

Dacia’s philosophy of providing all the essentials applies to the All-New Duster’s design as much as every other model.

The design team started simply, by looking at the cabin, bonnet and wings. Then they assembled them into the whole car to give the model a modern, well-built style, with deliberately taut, self-confident lines.

The simple shapes and volumes add to the design’s power, including the sharp, vertical face, chamfered wheel-arch guards, large tailgate and side windows reaching seamlessly from bow to stern.

The All-New Duster is shielded with a stylish belt wrapping all the way around it. The side underbody shields connect to the hallmarks, then to the wheel-arches, which in turn connect to the front and rear bumpers, making the All-New Duster more robust and ready for the outdoors than ever.

The All-New Duster’s design is consistent, it moves with the times and combines its adventurous character with a more sustainable edge.

• The front and rear skid plates are dyed in the mass, meaning the plastic is already coloured when it is injected to make the part. Not using paint is both good for the environment and for customers, as scrapes and scratches won’t alter the original colour
• The side underbody shields, wheel-arch guards, hallmarks, triangles on the front bumper, front and rear skid plates and rear shield tail are made of a sturdy material called Starkle®. Designed by Dacia’s engineers and LyondellBasell’s chemists, the material, which was unveiled on the Manifesto concept car, is up to 20% recycled. Its composition includes white particles that give it a mottled look, which Dacia decided to flaunt instead of painting

NEW HYBRID POWERTRAINS

• All-New Dacia Duster HYBRID 140: This powertrain, which Dacia adopted for Jogger in early 2023, is now available with All-New Duster. It is built with technologies that Renault Group has tried and tested, and comprises a 4-cylinder, 1.6-litre, 94 hp petrol engine, two electric motors (a 49 hp powerplant and a high-voltage starter generator), and an electric automatic gearbox (with 4 engine ratios and 2 motor ratios). This combined technology is possible because the system is clutchless. The regenerative braking, the 1.2 kWh (230 V) battery’s high energy recovery capacity and the gearbox’s efficiency make it possible to drive in all-electric mode up to 80% of the time in cities, which reduces consumption by 20% (mixed cycle) to 40% (urban cycle). The engine always starts with electric power.
• All-New Dacia Duster TCe 130: This is the first time Dacia has used this powertrain, which provides an initial degree of electrification. It combines a new-generation 3-cylinder, 1.2-litre turbocharged petrol engine using the Miller cycle (reduced pump losses optimise efficiency) and a 48 V mild hybrid motor. This motor aids the internal combustion engine when the car starts or accelerates, reducing average consumption and CO2 emissions by about 10% compared to an internal combustion engine with equivalent power. It also provides more power during acceleration than the existing TCe 130 model, making the vehicle more responsive and smoother to drive. The regenerative braking system charges the 0.9 kWh battery without making a noticeable difference for the driver. The TCe 130 powertrain is available with a 6-speed manual gearbox in the 4x2 and 4x4 versions.
• All-New Dacia Duster TCe 100 Bi-Fuel: Dacia, the unchallenged LPG leader in Europe, is the only carmaker to provide a dual fuel (petrol and LPG) option on all its internal-combustion models, under the Bi-Fuel label. The All-New Duster comes with this built-in tried and tested technology that guarantees safety and reliability. When running on LPG, the All-New Duster TCe 100 Bi-Fuel on average releases 10% less CO2 than a comparable petrol engine. It can drive up to 1,300 km (WLTP) with its two tanks holding 100 litres between them – 50 litres of petrol and 50 litres of LPG (the latter is under the boot floor, so it does not affect cargo capacity). A button built seamlessly into the dashboard switches the engine from one fuel to the other instantly and imperceptibly.

MORE SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS
All-New Duster is the first production model to use Starkle®, a new material invented by Dacia’s engineers. It is 20% reused polypropylene and entirely paint-free, meaning the carbon footprint from its production process is smaller. The side underbody shields, wheel-arch guards, hallmarks, triangles on the front bumper, (add-on) front and rear skid plates and rear shield tail are made of Starkle®. And making the front and rear skid plates with a dyed-in-the-mass material also limits the amount of paint used in the process.

• Overall, roughly 20%* of the plastic in All-New Duster is recycled, which is considerably more than the usual ratio in the segment and an 8-point gain on the previous generation
• Dacia has decided to stop using leather and decorative chrome in all its models, in both cases for environmental reasons
• The user manual is smaller, to use less paper. The full version is available online, from the MyDacia application

* In the polymer category as proposed in the future regulation on end-of-life vehicles (ELV)

EXTRA-HEAVY-DUTY SHIELDING AND MATERIALS

• Exterior: the entire area around the body is now protected from light bumps and scratches. The flank shields connect to the wheel-arch guards and front and rear bumpers, forming a protective belt. The large skid plates under the bumpers protect the underbody
• Interior: the cabin is heavy-duty. This is especially apparent in the Extreme trim, coming as standard, which comes with washable TEP MicroCloud upholstery, and rubber mats in the front, rear and boot. The mats are 20% recycled

TOUGHER MATERIALS
As mentioned, by dyeing the front and rear skid plates in the mass, the plastic is already coloured when it is injected to make the part. The colour, therefore, is unalterable (unlike paint). Inevitable scrapes and scratches may leave marks, but they will be practically invisible, as they will not alter the colour.

The shields around the car are made of Starkle®, a new material created by Dacia’s engineers. It is not painted, so scrapes and scratches will not leave conspicuous marks.

The All-New Duster also introduces more InNature accessories:

• Sleep Pack, first introduced on the Jogger, will now also be available for the All-New Duster. A bespoke design for the All-New Duster, it is a simple, removable and affordable 3-in-1 box containing a double bed that folds out in less than two minutes, a tray table and storage space. The Sleep Pack measures 1.90 metres long and up to 1.30 metres wide
• A new roof rack, which is extremely handy for outdoor activities and can hold up to 80 kg (maximum dynamic weight). It fastens effortlessly onto the modular roof bars in the transverse position, or to aftermarket roof bars.

ECO-SMART: MORE SUSTAINABLE AND AS AFFORDABLE AS EVER
True to Dacia’s values, the All-New Duster provides an affordable alternative for more sustainable driving, combining new hybrid powertrains and more recycled materials.

THE ALL-NEW DUSTER CONTINUES TO DELIVER UNRIVALLED VALUE

• The All-New Duster will continue to fulfil Dacia’s value-for-money pledge. It will combine the most affordable prices in its segment with a larger passenger compartment than ever before into the best bargain on the market
• It will feature more technology, including a new 7-inch digital dashboard, new 10.1-inch centre touchscreen and new infotainment system
• The All-New Duster will be smarter than ever, with modular roof bars and the introduction of the clever Dacia YouClip accessory system

ESSENTIAL BUT COOL: MORE TECHNOLOGY AND MORE GOOD THINKING
The All-New Duster illustrates Dacia’s philosophy for technological progress. It must be sound, smart, affordable and make life easier for its users.

A MORE DIGITAL AND MORE CONNECTED INTERIOR
A new infotainment system with a 10.1-inch centre touchscreen is included as standard in the Expression and up, and available with both multimedia systems from Duster, namely Media Display and Media Nav Live:

• Media Display, which will be factory-built into the All-New Duster Expression models, includes four speakers and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity
• Media Nav Live, which will come as standard in Journey and Extreme models, includes all the above plus a connected navigation system providing real-time traffic updates and a six-speaker Arkamys 3D Sound System

Media Control, featured in the Essential trim, is a complete infotainment system you can control from the steering wheel. It displays media-related information on a 3.5-inch screen next to the analogue cluster on the dashboard. It has four speakers, a Bluetooth connection, a USB port and a smartphone stand built into the dashboard. When you connect it to the free Dacia Media Control app, you can control the radio, other media and several other features from your smartphone screen.

Native connectivity meeting new European GSR2 requirements and, in the vehicles with Media Display and Media Nav Live, provides even more connected services including:

• Firmware Over The Air (FOTA) so you don’t need to visit the Retailer Network for software updates
• Connected maintenance, which you can check on the MyDacia smartphone application

The All-New Duster is the first to feature a 7-inch customisable colour digital dashboard, where the driver can display the information they find most useful in the layout they prefer. This digital dashboard comes as standard with Expression trim and up.

The versions with Media Display and Media Nav Live also include two USB-C ports at the front and two at the back, to power up to four devices. All these ports are backlit.

All trim levels feature a dedicated phone slot. Versions equipped with Media Display and Media Nav Live feature a YouClip smartphone holder, two USB-C sockets at the front and two at the rear to power up to four devices.

There is a wireless smartphone charger in the centre console, within reach for both passengers at the front. It comes as standard in all upper trim levels.

NEW DRIVER ASSISTANCE SYSTEMS
Cruise control/Speed limiter is now standard on all trims. Automatic low-beam headlights are available in all trims. Moreover, automatic switching between low-beam and high-beam headlights comes as standard in All-New Duster Extreme and Journey models.

New driver assistance systems, added to All-New Duster to meet the latest European safety requirements, such as automatic emergency braking (in urban and suburban areas, including detection of other cars, pedestrians, bicycles and motorbikes), traffic sign recognition and speeding alert, rear parking assist, emergency stop signal, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, driver attention alert, and emergency calls (eCall). And, to make its customers’ life easier, Dacia is adding a clever button, My Safety, for drivers to quickly configure their favourite driver assistance systems.