Dacia Duster 4X4 (2023) Review – Can do everything an expensive off-road vehicle can do
Dacia Duster
With a Dacia, you have long since ceased to be embarrassed on the road. Thanks to a new logo and brand identity, Dacia has undergone a complete transformation. Off the road, too, you’ll be comfortable in a Dacia. So it is not for nothing that the Forestry Commission has relied on the Dacia Duster for years. AutoRAI.nl took the Duster 4X4 out for a week and dove into the sandbox in the Sallandse Heuvelrug National Park. Here are 5 reasons why you don’t immediately need a heavy off-road vehicle in our country, but can get along just fine with a Duster.
1. Off-road capabilities
With a gasoline engine of 150 hp and 250 Nm of torque, the Duster effortlessly braves the Salland Hills. Even after two months without rain, it plows effortlessly through the loose sand. Thanks to sharp slope angles and a ground clearance of 21.4 centimeters, it can handle almost any terrain – especially in the Netherlands. He doesn’t shy away from a solid puddle of water either. It has a maximum wading depth of 35 centimeters. You can easily switch from 2WD to 4WD via a circular dial in the interior.
2. Comfort and versatility
Whether you are driving along rugged forest trails or covering long distances on the highway, the Duster provides a pleasant driving experience. The interior is ergonomically designed and offers quite a bit of space for passengers and belongings. With 478 liters of luggage space, the Duster offers plenty of room for all your weekly shopping or vacation luggage. Folding the rear seats forward creates 1,600 liters of storage space. The Duster’s towing weight is 1,200 pounds. The car is full of cameras all around, which come in handy while offroading, but also definitely while parking at the neighborhood grocery store. 360-degree cameras on a Dacia, who would have thought it a decade ago?
3. Tough design
As of mid-2022, all Dacia models feature the new brand logo and font. The new logo consists of the letters D and C that interlock and are inspired by the links of a chain. The logo has a prominent place in the center of the grille, which has also received a new design and is white in color. All models – including certainly the Duster – have been revamped considerably by Dacia’s new design language. With the Duster there is no gray Eastern Bloc car in your driveway, but a hip offroader.
4. Reliability:
You may have read it before: Dacia uses Renault technology. Under the hood in the Duster is not the latest from the Renault stable, but it is proven technology. It is functional and does exactly what it is supposed to do, even under demanding conditions. There are not dozens of sensors and functions, which can only break down and cause an extremely expensive bill, as is often the case with expensive off-roaders.
5. Affordability
It is well known: Dacia offers competitive prices, making all models accessible to a wide audience. The Duster 4X4 is an exception, being perhaps the most expensive Dacia we have ever driven. Because of its relatively high CO2 emissions, the BPM penalty is hefty: nearly 10,000 euros. Add another 3,600 euros in VAT and you have a Dacia of almost 32,000 euros. Oy, that’s a bit of a gulp. On the other hand, just find a car with these capabilities for that money. For a Defender, Wrangler or G-Class, you can buy a garage full of Duster’s. But the hefty amount is still one of the reasons why you rarely see a Duster 4X4 driving in the Netherlands. A Duster on LPG is a lot more attractive then, thanks to a starting price of 23,250 euros.
New to the stable at Dacia is the Duster Extreme. We recently got behind the wheel of the extra adventurous Duster in Austria. You can see how that went here:
