Car Talk with Melinda Ferguson: Renault Duster

Car Talk with Melinda Ferguson on weekend Breakfast with Sarah Jane mcquali king.

All right, time now for our regular motoring feature. For a Saturday morning, City Press motoring journalist Melinda Ferguson with us until just before nine o'clock to give us the lowdown on what she's been cruising in this week, which is the Renault Duster, which has been given something of a face lift.

Mel Right, No, brand new generation. Oh okay, the whole brand new Duster, third generation. Hello Darling, Hello, good morning. Okay, I thought you might hear Joe in the background. He spluttered a squirrel. Oh I am in good that is what her squirrels are in abundance. Okay, yeah, so this look, I mean, let's just go back to a bit of history, because the Dust is I mean, it's a small compact suv. It's been very close to my heart since it launched in about twenty ten. I was a really green, kind

We'll get to those just now.

But I think one of my sort of longings is that I wish they'd been able to have put a diesel option end, but with all the emissions regulations, especially in Europe, they just aren't in a way allowed to make those engines anymore.

I'm just having a bit of a google as I'm as I tend to do at these things. And you you mentioned that the looks of the original Renoduster in it being a bit boxy, I'm going to say, and no offense to any Renoduster owners out there, it is it has historically been, in my mind, one of the least attractive and least appealing cars on the road. And I'm sure it's it's always dog doggy people. Doggy people have always got a renou Duster. There is nothing, there's

Yeah, but are you looking at that?

Because the second generation definitely headlust all of their doggie no or all of.

Them never And yet as I look now, as I look now now, yeah, definitely a step in the right direction.

Definitely, it's actually damn good looking in the metal flesh this new generation. I was like, it came and got parked in front of my home and I was like, oh my gosh, it's got a more tanky kind of look. More it's got I think, yeah, it's gone more muscular. It's in fact not very much bigger than the previous generation, but it looks bigger, and it looks more planted, it looks more sort of I'm here for some serious business. But it's also got I think, a pretty attractive edge.

Agree. I agree with all of that. I agree with all of that. And it's a good thing too, because you know that the fact that it's a French brand, you kind of think, oh, come on, does you know where's which has been missing? But now they've they've got it. They've they've they've got it, and I am going to be interested to see just just talk a little bit about what segment this is in. Who's this going up against?

Oh well, this is interesting. So it's built on there and with this might mean absolutely nothing to everybody. The CMFB platform, which is a kind of the compact suv, and you'd see immediately you'll know what I'm talking about because the Toyota Corolla Cross, which I reviewed last week is kind of in that segment, the Cherry Tiko seven Pro, the Kiirs Sealtas, the mghs.

You'd even think of.

The Ford Ecosport I think is probably like the closest in a way rival. The thing is is that they might have similar body looks and even engines. But the Reno Dusta there is one of the models does have four bar four capability.

Now none of those others do.

The only other one I would think is maybe you could look at as a Jymney, a Suzuki Jimney kind of in this price range.

But then the Jymney wouldn't.

Be as nice to on open roads, would It would definitely beat the Renau Duster having to do insane or for road things. So it's kind of almost now in a class of its own, this Renau Duster.

So I'm trying to think about other products from Renot. So we've got the Kiger, which is that very popular crossover, that the Quid, which the lesson said about that Quid the Quid, and the is it the Triber, the Renault Triber, Yes it is.

And then of course you've got Cleo's and you've got captures. You know, you've got all of those kinds of the capture. In fact, the clear and Capture platform. They've used the same platform for the Duster.

Just for a bit of trivia.

Okay, that quit I went and looked at some numbers before I started the show, and that quit is still the best seller for Reno along with the Triber. Is it the Tribe or the Kiger? I mean, listen, it's one of the two. I always get mixed up. I know there's a Nissan. I think it is the Reno Triber.

Okay, yeah, yeah, all right? And then inside, what have we got going on? Any new tech features, safety features that people need to be aware?

I think that yeah, I think there's quite a lot going on inside. Look, it was never the most like plush inside ever. No, it always felt quite utilitarian to me. So we still have obviously we've got these hard but durable plastics, but all of the ones in this segment do. There's no like leather and ebony wood in this segment, so it feels very sturdy. I felt like there's no cheap feeling about it. And the entertainment system has definitely

Well maybe I am a child person, and it's not it's not too dissimilar a thing. Honestly, the amount of time I spent, you know, taking milk stains and sour milk and biscuit crumbs out of my car, maybe maybe rubber rubber mats is exactly what I need.

Sour milk is my worstful, it's awful.

Okay, let's go to the boot. I mean you always want to know about that, Yeah, yeah, okay, So there is a full size spare wheel.

Great news, and there is.

We'll get to those two types of engines because we have actually skipped over that. But in the four bar four you've got four hundred and forty four liters and in the four by two variant you've got four seventy two liters. But if you put the rear seats down and squash the kids, you've got one thousand, six hundred and ninety six liters. So it's a really lovely big boots with rear seats down. Should we get to those two engines?

I'm sure yes. One thing, why are we not talking about that? Okay?

So, as I said, no, turbo diesel. I'm very sad, but anyway, it is what it is. We've got two turbo petrol engines. There's a one point three liter turbo for the four x two that gives one hundred and thirteen kilowatts and two fifteen newton meters of talk, and that is two wheel drive.

Okay. And you have got an auto gearbox. I think, well I have.

I've been driving that one, and I think there's a manual in that as well. But the one for the four the four bar four strangely doesn't have an auto gearbox. You just get your manual, although that might be quite nice to be doing more careful driving. And the one point two litera turbo, where the four by four has ninety six kilowatts, so slightly less than its other counterpart, and two thirty newton meters of talk.

Okay, I know that I've sound. I'm not convinced by this. I think I need to. I think it's about mindset. Actually, I think I've always had such a attitude towards the Renaudusta that you could tell me it's got, as you know, a Porsche engine or something, and I probably wouldn't be that impressed, which is terribly unfair because you know.

This, you know what, Sarah, Yeah, Sarah, yeah, as your mother would call you.

Yes, me and me and your mom are the only people who get to call you Sarah.

Sure.

You know, I don't think you are crazy about going four by four driving and driving on sand dunes and.

Taking rocks for it. You know you're not. So you're more of an urban mom.

This isn't Yeah, you're an urban mother ic or just urban mother who needs to take kids around and go, you know, on little dates and do whatever you.

Do in your life. But I think the market, you're not the target market.

And I think that for those people that really do love taking for me, I'm like very interested in terms of taking it out on ruts and muddy, slippery things because that's kind of my lifestyle right now. So I think the big appeal is that this car it comes in having four by four capability and at a price point where most all of the other competitors is none of them have that. And also I have to just add that there is a forty eight volt hybrid assist in the four by four version, so you do have

All right, Okay, we need to talk about money, don't we.

Yeah, yeah, I mean we could have a little insight on how it is to drive. I did feel that it was very solid, very comfy. There no not a lot of wind noise, no sort of road noise while you're driving.

It felt well put together.

Did you put foot in this?

Yeah? I mean it's not look with the with the what are the kilowatts?

I mean it's not exactly going to be to golf GTR, but at one hundred and thirteen kilowatts, and conversely the ninety six kilowatts. Luckily is the turbo in there so that it doesn't feel laggy. It's not a laggy car.

Okay, did you put Joe in the car?

I did?

How did Joe line?

And it was Joe? I mean, Joe's reviewed more cars. I wish I could get.

Joe For people who are not regular listeners to the show. Joe is not human and therefore is not capable of giving any sort of opinion on these cars. Joe is Melinda's dog, who goes everywhere with her. Okay, I mean he was. He was happy in there, jumping in and out with his you know, slobber all over rubber matts and things. Good.

He's not a slubberer, he's he is a dirty mud poor Yeah. And I do have to tell you that that one of the good things is with these cars is that you need to have one of those buttons that push the windows to lock. It wasn't in the duster, but the other day he somehow managed to open the window after I'd parked the car.

And the next thing he was running around really no stop. I mean he was screaming. I thought, why are people screaming?

And the next thing came bounding the beautiful meat section at will Wards and everyone was in total like this array because no dog is allowed in Willies.

Yeah, well, that is absolutely that's the story. I hadn't been expecting. That's hilarious. But also, I mean, I'm sure there's people listening. It's not hilarious, s J. I think it is quite funny. I love the fact that he opened the window himself and was like, I'm coming in right, Okay, that's really funny.

So you want to go do you want to guess?

Yeah, I do, and I'm not going to be terribly specific, so I'm just going to go I'm going to go on the nose, six hundred thousand round.

Gez, you can get the Reno Dusta one point three turba, the Zen four by two for four eighty nine nine ninety nine.

Pretty good. Christ Hey, you were almost two hundred arms.

Then the mid range intense the four by two is five nineteen nine nine nine, and then the four by four, the one I would probably go for is five point forty nine nine ninety nine.

Gosh, all right, yeah, so I was over by Okay. I mean that's I mean, I don't know how that compares to I mean, you said the chimney, but it's not really. I mean, it isn't it isn't. Isn't it comparable?

But it's much more comfortable than the chimney, I have to tell you that. And it doesn't have exactly the same spider crawling up the mountain nobility. I just always think of the chimney as the spider that can like crawl up everywhere.

It's just insane what that little car can do. But also that jimney comes with the jimney.

The jimney is trendy, isn't it. I know so many sort of young people who are who love the chimney because you know, it's like, we're so young and trendy in our in our chimney, which is the in my mind, the exact opposite of the Duster people. But listen, I could be wrong. I'd love to see who the which, who it is that's going to end up getting on board with this new I think that's men.

I think, honestly, men are more desper orientated than women. I think the women would probably like as you saying, is like they want to have like this kind of stylish little you know, not a car that maybe gets associated with dogs.

That's really even though I.

Say that because in my mind's eye, when I think of Duster owners, it's usually a woman in a k Way jacket of about sixty with a couple of labradors. That's that, in my mind, is who the Duster drys. Barbara's exactly, That's exactly it. I'm thinking of Barbara Woodhouse.

Well, I'm definitely I think I might be going into my Barbara wood stage because I am definitely a target market person for this car.

Definitely.

Oh that is so funny. All right, what are we giving it out of ten?

If it had that diesel, I would have given it an eight out of ten. But I have to say I'm still like tearing up my clothes in grief, so I'm giving it a good, good seven and a half out of ten today.

Okay, seven and a half out of ten for the renaut dust up, Mel, thank you very much. Indeed, we'll chat to you again next week.