Official: Facelifted Dacia Duster to be introduced at 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show

Dacia has announced it will unveil the facelifted Duster compact SUV at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show that is scheduled to begin on the 10th of September.  It has already been spotted on multiple occasions testing in and around Europe and features cosmetic changes both inside and outside. 

Exterior changes to the Dacia (Renault in India) Duster include revised headlights and tail lights, grille, bumpers. It is believed that inside, the facelifted Duster will get most of the upgrades that were shown on the 2013 Dacia Logan sedan. A slightly revised version was spotted testing in Romania five months ago and featured a revised instrument cluster and cruise control. 

The engine line up and underpinnings is expected to remain the same as the current model – 1.6-litre petrol and the 1.5-litre K9K diesel engine. While the former produces 102PS and 145Nm of torque, the diesel is available in two power outputs 85PS and 110PS. Power is transmitted to the front wheels via a five-speed manual gearbox. Globally the Duster gets a four-wheel drive as well as an automatic gearbox in some markets. When comparing both features it seems likely that the former is more likely to be brought to India.

Now, the big question, when will the facelifted car come to the Indian market? We believe that they (Renault) may introduce it in the early part of next year, probably once the hype around the Nissan Terrano dies down a bit and the attention can focus once again on the Duster. Since the Duster is manufactured in Chennai for all RHD markets, the production of the facelifted version should be there soon and we might get to see the test vehicles outside the factory closer to the introduction date.