Dacia has privately unveiled the 2018 Dacia Duster in its top-spec configuration. Here's IAB's rendering artist Shoeb Kalania's depiction of the entry-level 2018 Dacia Duster based on it.
Dacia may boast how much more sophisticated and premium its all-new Duster is, but that's a story for the high-end configurations only. The Dacia Duster is still a budget SUV and will likely continue to sell in a stripped-down configuration priced below £10,000 in the UK. To put things in perspective, the aim is once again to offer a C-segment SUV for a mouth-watering price.
The base-spec 2018 Dacia Duster will likely feature black bumpers, black ORVMs, black door handles and black roof rails. It shouldn't have LED DRLs or fog lamps either. While the top-spec 2018 Duster sports 17-inch alloy wheels, the base 2018 Duster will likely settle for 16-inch steel wheels lacking wheel caps. On the inside, the base Duster should have black cloth upholstery, front power windows and driver, front passenger and side airbags. Features like air conditioning, cruise control and satellite navigation are unlikely.
Like the first-gen Dacia Duster, the second-gen is based on the Logan/B0 platform. Dacia hasn't released the specifications yet. Reports suggest that the 1.2-litre TCe petrol and 1.5-litre dCi diesel engines will continue. The base model could continue having the 1.6-litre SCe petrol engine paired to a 5-speed manual transmission.
Also See: 2018 Dacia Duster (2018 Renault Duster) interior leaked in fresh images
The second-gen Dacia Duster will debut at the 2017 Frankfurt Motor Show (IAA 2017) on 12 September. First markets should welcome the all-new Duster later this year or in early 2018. UK sales launch is scheduled for Spring 2018, while the Renault-badged version will reportedly arrive in India in H1 2019.