2025 Renault Duster review

Good news! Top Gear × Dacia Duster references are now easier to make than ever – don’t forget Renault though.

That’s right: the Renault Duster is finally on sale in Australia, and it’s a significant departure from the artistically named (and ageing) SUVs the French brand has sold here in recent years.

Renault, Dacia’s parent company, has stamped its mark on the Duster before wheeling it out locally, following the formula it’s set for the small Romanian-made SUV in most markets outside of Europe. The Dacia name is only really used in Europe, but the Duster is currently on sale in more than 100 countries.

Separating it from the rest of Renault’s Australian lineup is the headline-act manual transmission which, uniquely, is only available with all-wheel drive. Want an automatic? You’ll have to settle for front-wheel drive.

The automatic is also paired with a 1.3-litre turbo-petrol four, while the manual downsizes to a 1.2-litre turbo triple that adds a mild-hybrid system. If that wasn’t unexpected enough, the manual also takes top spot in the Duster pecking order.

Already, the Duster sounds like one of Renault Australia’s most interesting vehicles in years. It also boasts some off-road capability, which means it’s aimed squarely at the fan-favourite Suzuki Jimny and the understated Subaru Crosstrek.

Whether or not the Duster proves more popular than them remains to be seen (to July this year the Jimny is Suzuki’s best-seller with 4921 sales, while the Crosstrek is Subaru’s second most popular model behind the larger Forester with 6762 sales), but it is likely to become Renault Australia’s best-selling model, even if that isn’t a particularly high bar.

Its current sales leader is the large Master van with 1121 deliveries in 2024, while its best-selling passenger vehicle is the aged Koleos mid-size SUV, which chalked up 694 last year. Pricing was announced on July 1, but even before its official launch the Duster found 56 new homes last month, placing it third behind the Koleos (164) and Master (136).

Renault invited media to the old Holden proving ground at Lang Lang to put the Duster through its paces last week; does it have what it takes to be a Jimny killer?

How much does the Renault Duster cost?

The unusual four-variant Duster lineup comprises two powertrains and two equipment grades. It starts at $31,990 before on-roads and extends to $37,990 before on-roads at the top of the range. Uniquely, the most expensive variant comes with a manual transmission and all-wheel drive.

Small SUV rivals, at least those with some off-road credentials, include the Jimny and Crosstrek. The three-door Jimny range is priced between $30,490 and $34,490 before on-roads, and available with both a five-speed manual and a four-speed auto.

The five-door Jimny XL range, meanwhile, is priced at $34,990 and $37,490 before on-roads for the manual and automatic variants respectively. All Jimny vehicles offer four-wheel drive with low-range gearing.

Meantime, Subaru’s all-wheel drive, automatic-only Crosstrek ranges from $35,990 to $46,090 before on-roads. There’s also the Hyundai Kona, which is available in front-wheel drive, all-wheel drive, and hybrid guises, priced between $32,700 and $48,700 before on-roads.

To see how the Renault Duster stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

What is the Renault Duster like on the inside?

Basic, but it won’t leave you wanting more.

The beauty of the Duster is that it nails the basics without going over the top, which is what has kept its prices down. In fact, most of the cabin can be fittingly assessed as “yeah, that makes sense”.

Standard across the range is a 10.1-inch touchscreen infotainment system. It may look small by modern standards, and appear to be haphazardly glued to the dashboard, but it’s as functional as you could want – not to mention larger and nicer looking than the 7.0-inch unit in a Jimny.

Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are both wireless as standard, and the screen reacts promptly to inputs. There’s also a plethora of different menus and screens to flick between, encompassing apps, economy ratings, and vehicle settings, to name a few.

At the bottom is a digital climate control readout, but this doesn’t mean it’s a screen-only setup. Below the air vents – which feature the Duster’s signature ‘Y’ motif that’s found elsewhere – is a physical array of switches, which all feel solid.

The screen and climate control combo make for an arrangement that’s very tidy and easy to use. We also appreciate that none of this changes between the Evolution and more expensive Techno grades.

Other standard gear includes a digital instrument cluster which, among the Duster’s rivals, is something only found in the pricier Kona. Granted, the Duster’s screen isn’t quite as crisp as the Hyundai’s, but the theme continues its no-nonsense interior functionality.

Only the most basic information is displayed by default, but there are three different display settings you can scroll through using a button on the right of the steering wheel. The position of the white light bars on either side indicates which display is selected.

Our only minor complaint is that the screen takes up a small portion of the cluster housing. Still, it all fits nicely in front of the squashed-circle steering wheel, which doesn’t block any parts of the screen unless you have an abnormal seating position.

The wheel itself is leather-wrapped, but its square-ish proportions might take a second to get used to. It still slides nicely through the hands, and it boasts a range of physical buttons finished in dull black plastic – oddly, volume controls have been moved to a separate stalk to the right of the wheel instead of on the wheel itself.

While this is common in a number of Renault vehicles, it will take a second to find for anyone that hasn’t experienced the French brand’s products before. Besides that, we like the fact that Renault has almost entirely avoided piano black plastic in its material selection here, with brushed metal-look accents used instead.

Although it may house a lot of hard, scratchy plastics, the Duster is pitched as a budget-friendly, durable all-rounder. In that context, its interior design is visually cohesive and nothing feels out of place.

Importantly, the key touch points are all soft. The seats are comfortable and offer a broad range of adjustment, and the seat upholstery is one of the only defining features between the Evolution and Techno grades, with the former fitted with cloth and the latter with a curious, wetsuit-like material.

Above: Duster Evolution (left) and Duster Techno

This exposes one of the car’s only major omissions, which is seat heating. The neoprene-like trim can get quite cold, and we imagine that could be fairly unpleasant on a chilly morning.

Otherwise, differences across the range boil down to the gear selector, which is either a small switch in automatic vehicles, or a massive shift knob in manuals. The top of this knob is glossy and decorative, which looks nice but could scratch over time.

Nearby are two USB-C outlets, a 12V outlet, two cupholders, and a wireless phone charger, regardless of the variant. There’s also a large drive mode selector in 4×4 vehicles, and above the wireless charger is a small storage tray that’s ideal for wallets or phones.

The Duster is also fitted with a series of YouClip accessory points, which allow for the fitment of items like phone holders, for example. Locations for these points are the same in both variants, though the Techno adds one to the right of the infotainment display.

Climbing into the second row reveals a surprising amount of space. Head and toe room are good, while legroom is surprisingly generous unless you’re sitting behind tall front-row occupants.

Unsurprisingly, it’s a fairly stripped-back area, with the only real amenities being dual USB-C outlets and rear-facing air vents. There is no fold-down armrest, and the bench seat is generally a case of function over form.

But you will find more of those YouClip points on the back of the centre console and front seatbacks, the former of which can hold a goofy-looking single cupholder if you so choose.

Generally, though, it’s a case of what you see is what you get, which isn’t a bad thing at all.

Finally, there is the boot, which is as large as possible given the Duster’s diminutive proportions. Even in 4×4 guise, there’s considerably more quoted space here than in a Crosstrek, which offers a claimed 291 litres in five-seat mode.

The load floor is almost perfectly square, and you have the benefit of an optional rubber mat to keep your carpets protected. Two additional YouClip points are found on either side of the cargo space, and while the jack’s exposed storage location seems awkward, there’s a very good reason for it.

In what feels like an impossibility, both 4×2 and 4×4 versions of the Duster come standard with a full-size spare wheel – sort of. While the Evolution gets a 17-inch wheel and the Techno a lower-profile 18-inch rim, the spare is a 16-inch wheel with a high-profile tyre to make up the difference.

It might be smaller than those on the car, but we’re all for a spare wheel that isn’t a space-saver, and of course a now-common tyre repair kit would be even less appropriate on a model like this.

To see how the Renault Duster stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

What’s under the bonnet?

Two petrol powertrains are available for the Duster. One is a 1.3-litre turbocharged four-cylinder, exclusively available with an automatic transmission and front-wheel drive, and the other is a 1.2-litre turbocharged three-cylinder mild-hybrid with four-wheel drive and a manual gearbox.

The mild-hybrid system brings automatic idle stop/start, while the all-wheel drive system brings a hill descent control feature plus terrain drive modes.

We didn’t get enough time in any one car to record a representative real-world fuel economy figure on Renault’s media launch, so we’ll have to test how accurate the Duster’s reasonably frugal consumption claims are when we get one through the CarExpert garage.

To see how the Renault Duster stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

How does the Renault Duster drive?

We were excited – perhaps too much so – to drive the manual Duster, so let’s start there.

The only manual version currently available is the base-spec Evolution (first local deliveries of the Techno aren’t due until December) and it has a traditional turn-key, which we’re not used to seeing in most new cars these days.

And because the manual is exclusively paired with a mild-hybrid powertrain, the engine doesn’t crank over before it starts up and instead fires into life the instant you turn the key, which will take some getting used to. The DCT-equipped Techno is fitted with a more modern push-button starter.

Once it’s time to go, you’ll realise the clutch pedal action is quite light, but not too light to feel flimsy. In fact, it’s almost perfectly weighted for easy and manageable daily driving.

The only downside is that its bite point is pretty vague but, as with any manual, spending a little while driving around will help everything feel natural. Then there’s the shifter itself, which is similarly vague but still direct enough to keep you from missing gears.

Again, we expect this would make the manual Duster an easy commuter, at least as far as manuals go. A notable quirk is the unexpectedly strong ‘clutch boost’ effect, where a slow release of the clutch as you change gears causes the car to power forward before settling back down once it’s fully disengaged.

This leaves you with a false sense of power, and it becomes less pronounced as you warm to the car and start shifting more quickly. The Duster – especially in manual form – doesn’t offer much power but it should be enough for most, unlike the underpowered 75kW/130Nm Jimny.

The Duster barely made a fuss about accelerating up to 140km/h – on private roads, of course. And gear shifts can be as snappy as you like, though we did notice the centre armrest getting in the way on occasion.

It’s a similar story with the automatic, minus the intrusive armrest, which offers more power than the manual but isn’t quite as engaging to drive. There’s no issue getting up to speed here either, but we’ll be interested to see how well the dual-clutch auto behaves in stop-start traffic when we take one home for a week.

In normal driving, the automatic is composed and shifts smoothly at the correct points. You can take control yourself using the paddles on the steering wheel, but it’s disappointing there’s no 4×4 auto mode.

Getting up to speed in the Duster reveals a composed suspension tune. Renault assured us that, as in any significant market, there was some local tuning involved with getting the Duster ready for Australia, and it seems to have hit the spot.

This is still a cheap small SUV and can feel light at higher speeds, but the way it handles large undulations and minor surface imperfections puts it far ahead of a ladder-frame Jimny. Even hitting a huge, car-sized dip at 80km/h didn’t buck the Duster in any significant way.

Similarly, it remained planted at 100km/h-plus speeds, staying mostly comfortable aside from slight bounciness over harsher bumps. The steering is also direct and nicely weighted, making it feel substantial yet easy to live with, and there’s an acceptable amount of body roll around tighter turns.

Road noise is on the louder side, particularly in Techno variants with 18-inch wheels. This is to be expected, but it might get tiring suring long stints on the move.

Beeps and bongs are kept to a minimum in the Duster, with the only real warnings coming from the lane-keep assist system. Even then, it isn’t intrusive, and there’s good outward visibility to make positioning the car easy.

However, the reversing camera is relatively low-quality and it’s disappointing there’s no adaptive cruise control here. For a car touted as a practical light-duty off-roader, it’d be nice to have a more sophisticated cruise function to make highway stints easier during weekend getaways.

In a similar sense, it seems like a missed opportunity not to import the full-hybrid Duster that’s available overseas. Small Renaults may be relatively efficient anyway, but we assume the Duster hybrid would be better for city drivers while also lowering the French brand’s overall emissions amid the government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES).

When to comes to off-roading, the Duster excels. It may lack low-range gearing and locking differentials, but the AWD system fitted to manual variants seems to be reasonably clever in deciding how to distribute power.

Any moments of wheel slip are quickly rectified, and you can feel the system working itself out. For the launch, Renault brought a ‘concept’ Duster kitted out with chunky aftermarket all-terrain tyres, which made it possible to get through a soggy, muddy track without any issues.

It’s reasonable to expect Duster owners to want to do the same, so Renault offers a range of off-road-oriented accessories including everything from roof racks to weather-proof floor mats. All-terrain rubber isn’t on the list, but that doesn’t mean Renault won’t encourage you to fit your own.

Bolstering these capabilities are the Duster’s incredibly short front and rear overhangs, which create impressive approach and departure angles. That boggy track had countless spots where most other cars would scrape their undercarriages, but there were no such hiccups here.

Mind you, the Duster’s off-road angles aren’t nearly as generous as the more utilitarian Jimny, which offers approach and departure angles of 37 and 49 degrees respectively, making it much more of an off-road mountain goat.

Subaru’s Crosstrek can’t match either model though, with approach and departure angles of 18 and 19.7 degrees respectively. Renault also claims the Duster’s exterior plastics – which we’re told are made from recycled materials – are immune to scratches.

However, it’s worth noting that front-drive Dusters have slightly different front and rear bumpers, which means their off-road angles aren’t quite the same as 4×4 versions.

While they should have no issues with mild off-roading if you keep up the momentum, we’d steer clear of serious mud. That said, the Duster 4×2’s auto transmission would make the 4×4 versions even more versatile and give them broader appeal.

To see how the Renault Duster stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

What do you get?

There are two Duster equipment grades available, but even the base model comes standard with a range of features.

2025 Renault Duster Evolution equipment highlights:

• 17-inch diamond-cut ‘Adventure’ alloy wheels
• Continental Cross Contact 215/65 R17 tyres
• Spare tyre (215/70 R16)
• Rain-sensing wipers
• Automatic LED headlights with halogen high-beam
• Rear fog light
• Grey door mirrors
• Fixed roof rails
• Electric parking brake
• 7.0-inch digital instrument cluster
• 10.1-inch touchscreen infotainment system
• Apple CarPlay and Android Auto – wireless, wired
• DAB digital radio
• Wireless phone charger
• 2 x front USB-C outlets
• 2 x rear USB-C outlets
• 1 x front 12V outlet
• 1 x boot 12V outlet
• 6-speaker Arkamys sound system
• Cruise control and speed limiter
• Dual-zone climate control with rear air vents
• Leather-wrapped steering wheel
• Height and reach adjustable steering wheel
• Power windows with one-touch auto up/down
• YouClip accessory points: 1 x rear centre console, 2 x boot, 1 x inside of tailgate
• Remote central locking

Duster Techno adds:

• 18-inch diamond-cut ‘Exploration’ alloy wheels
• Continental Cross Contact 215/60 R18 tyres
• Rear privacy glass
• Automatic high-beam
• Smart key card
• Proximity entry with automatic walk-away door locking, approach unlocking
• ‘Premium’ cloth upholstery
• Keyless start
• Split-level boot floor (4×2 only)
• Additional YouClip accessory point: Dashboard, right of infotainment screen
• Modular roof rails

To see how the Renault Duster stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

Is the Renault Duster safe?

The Renault Duster has yet to be tested by ANCAP, though the European-market Dacia Duster received a three-star safety rating from sister authority Euro NCAP based on testing conducted in 2024. It has yet to be confirmed whether ANCAP will also apply a three-star rating for the Renault Duster sold in Australia.

Standard safety equipment highlights:

• Autonomous emergency braking
• Pedestrian detection
• Cyclist detection
• Driver attention alert
• Lane-keep assist
• Traffic sign recognition
• Front and front-side airbags
• Curtain airbags for both rows
• Reversing camera
• Rear parking sensors

Duster Techno adds:

• Blind-spot monitoring
• Multi-view camera
• Front parking sensors

To see how the Renault Duster stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

How much does the Renault Duster cost to run?

The Renault Duster is backed by a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, while servicing is required every 12 months or 30,000km, whichever comes first.

Renault is also offering five-year, pay-as-you-go capped-price servicing plans, which are priced at $2475 for 1.2-litre vehicles and $2685 for 1.3-litre vehicles.

For context, the Jimny XL costs $2265 to service over five years, while the Crosstrek costs $2373.19.

To see how the Renault Duster stacks up against its rivals, use our comparison tool

CarExpert’s Take on the Renault Duster

This is the most refreshing new Renault in years, at least in Australia.

Beneath that chunky look is a car that’s certainly basic, but still feels modern. It has all the standard gear you would want – except heated seats – and it won’t break the bank.

It also feels much more substantial than a Jimny, with much more power to boot. A manual all-wheel drive small SUV that can go somewhat off-road was always going to be a solid rival for the five-door Jimny and, given Suzuki’s current stop-sale on the XL, it seems the Duster has arrived facing an open goal.

However, the Renault brand doesn’t have the greatest appeal in Australia these days, as evidenced by its recent sales performance.

But if it can attract Aussies into showrooms and onto its driver’s seat, the Duster has a very real opportunity to become Renault’s new sales hero and potentially even a smash-hit Down Under.

It deserves to take the French brand’s sales crown from the Master van, and it’s already off to a good start by outselling the Arkana and Megane E-Tech last month.

Yes, an automatic AWD variant would open the Duster range up to those who want the extra capability but can’t be bothered with a manual or don’t know how to drive one – as evidenced by the overwhelming popularity of the Jimny XL auto. And a hybrid wouldn’t go amiss either.

But as the first Dacia vehicle to be sold in Australia, the Duster is a mighty fine effort and a much-needed kick into gear – pardon the pun – for Renault’s ageing local model lineup.

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