Mysterious Renault Crossover For Russia Confirmed As ‘More Refined’ Duster

Renault is said to prepare a new crossover for the Russian market, which will be presented at the 2018 Moscow Motor Show, at the end of August. Now, new details about it have emerged.

The company’s chief of product planning, Bruno Ancelin, said that it’s based on the Dacia platform, which continues to be used by the Romanian automaker on all of their products since the first-gen Logan, in 2004.

“We will be offering a new compact SUV on the Duster platform, of the same size, but differently positioned”, stated Ancelin, cited by Challenges. The French publication goes on to say that the vehicle will be a “more refined” and “a bit more expensive” version of the new Duster, so we’re likely looking at trim updates in the cabin, and perhaps some tweaks made on the outside.

This version of the Duster will be sold throughout Russia starting early next year, with Renault logos. However, it’s also said to launch in different Asian markets at the end of 2019 or in early 2020, such as China and South Korea, only this model will ride on a completely new platform, “that of the future Renault Clio”, according to Ancelin. In turn, the architecture will also eventually be used by Dacia for its entire lineup.

Despite getting new underpinnings, this Renault Duster will keep the exact same bodywork of the second generation. The increased production costs that inevitably come with this move are justified, as this won’t be a low-cost model.

Surprisingly enough, the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance might not keep the Duster ‘2.5’ limited to the Asian markets. It might arrive in Europe too, probably as a Dacia, but “not before 2020”, added Bruno Ancelin, who admitted that an official decision hasn’t been made yet, and for a good reason – it could cannibalize the Captur.

Note: 2018 Renault Duster pictured