Renault just made the Duster ₹2.5 lakh cheaper! Duster Turbo TCe 100 first drive review

The Renault Duster's comeback story was already looking pretty strong. The Duster with the 1.3-litre engine was launched in March and it impressed us with its ride, handling, road presence and punchy performance. But not everyone wants to spend ₹13 lakh and above for one.   So Renault has come up with a solution. This is the new Duster Turbo 100. It brings the starting price down to ₹10.49 lakh, gets a smaller 1-litre turbo-petrol engine, and comes paired with an India-specific 6-speed manual gearbox that Renault says has been tuned specifically for our driving conditions.   Normally, a smaller engine means compromises. Less performance. More gear changes. More frustration. But after driving the Duster Turbo 100 from Mumbai to Lonavala, we came back surprised. The engine may be down on power compared to the Turbo 160 and its rivals from Skoda, Volkswagen, Hyundai and Kia, but the way Renault has calibrated the gearbox makes this one of the easiest and most forgiving manual SUVs to drive. In city traffic, it might actually be the version that makes the most sense.   In this review, we answer the questions buyers are asking:   • Is the Turbo 100 powerful enough for everyday use? • Does the smaller engine spoil the Duster experience? • How good is the new 6-speed manual? • Is it worth saving ₹1 lakh for the equivalent Techno variant and choosing this over the Turbo 160? • Can it still deliver the ride and handling that made us love the new Duster? • And most importantly – which Duster should you actually buy?   The answer isn't as obvious as you might think. #evoIndia Want more #ThrillOfDriving videos? Subscribe to the evo India channel: https://bit.ly/2VfzioP Read our stories here: https://evoindia.com/ Buy #EvoIndiamagazine here: www.evoindia.com/magazine Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/evoindia/ Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/evoindia/ Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/evoindia Official merchandise on 100kmph: http://www.100kmph.com/evoindia