Headlining the new third-generation Duster range is the Hybrid 140, priced from £24,245. It pairs a naturally aspirated 1.6-litre petrol engine with two electric motors – as also available in the Dacia Jogger – for a combined output of 138bhp. Its 1.2kWh battery is topped up by regenerative braking and is said to allow 80% of city driving to be completed on electricity alone.
As well as a technological overhaul, the new Duster brings the most significant styling change since the Mk1 was introduced. It’s essentially a smaller version of the 2021 Bigster concept, transposing the SUV’s wide haunches and Y-shaped lighting signatures onto a much smaller silhouette.
These cues will be shared with the production version of the Bigster, due in 2025.
The Duster’s underbody, wheel-arch and bumper claddings are made from a material called Starkle, a hardwearing plastic composed of up to 20% recycled material. It’s unpainted, revealing its black and white finish.
Dacia claims that around 20% of the plastics in the new Duster are recycled – an 8% improvement on the old one.
The new Duster is 4.34m long, exactly the same as before, but sits marginally lower, at 1.66m tall, and slightly wider, at 1.81m.
