New Dacia Duster

[Bailes1992]

Update Oct 2023 Part 4

This is where it gets kind-of good. I managed to book onto a pay and play off road day which happened yesterday.

I was slightly concerned with the fact I'm still running road tyres but the car kept up with all the big guys and didn't even break a sweat!

Couple of casualties which I fully expected. I lost a mudflap/trim from the OSF front and broke the same trim on the NSF. I also lost a towing eye cover.

The good news is after the event you couldn't really see the car!

 

[Egg_Head]

At least you had the LR's to pull you out if need be. That would be a cup full of quarters over here at the local You-Rinse-it-Off for clean up.

 

[svtrit]

Update Oct 2023 Part 4

This is where it gets kind-of good. I managed to book onto a pay and play off road day which happened yesterday.

I was slightly concerned with the fact I'm still running road tyres but the car kept up with all the big guys and didn't even break a sweat!

View attachment 182657
View attachment 182658
View attachment 182660View attachment 182661View attachment 182659


Couple of casualties which I fully expected. I lost a mudflap/trim from the OSF front and broke the same trim on the NSF. I also lost a towing eye cover.
View attachment 182662

The good news is after the event you couldn't really see the car!
View attachment 182663
View attachment 182664
View attachment 182665
View attachment 182666

My Jeep Wrangler has street tires and made it through things my son in his lifted, on 35” BFG All terrains, did not. It’s more about the driver than the tires!!!

Thanks for sharing your new vehicle. It’s fun to watch from this side of the pond.

 

[Bailes1992]

At least you had the LR's to pull you out if need be. That would be a cup full of quarters over here at the local You-Rinse-it-Off for clean up.

Clean-up was a two hour affair with the pressure washer. Our drive looked like this afterwards...

I had a good look over the car late last night and there's loads of mud behind all the bumpers and wheel arch liners. It's going to be due it's annual undercoating (I use Lanoguard which is very similar to Woolwax) in the next few weeks so I'll be able to give it a more thorough clean.

It'll be 12 months old next month which is usually the interval I replace the cabin filter, wipers, undercoating and strip/clean/service brakes. It'll also be hitting 20k during the course of next month so another oil change is due. Hopefully I can get it all bundled into a one-day event.

 

[Bailes1992]

My Jeep Wrangler has street tires and made it through things my son in his lifted, on 35” BFG All terrains, did not. It’s more about the driver than the tires!!!

Thanks for sharing your new vehicle. It’s fun to watch from this side of the pond.

Not sure I can say it had anything to do with me. I just left it in first and stabbed the go pedal when I thought I needed to.

The car has ASR so whenever a wheel span it would apply the brake to it to ensure the other wheels were getting power. Guess it's a kind-of electronic LSD. It was totally effortless!

Think I have 4-6 months left in these tyres. Then I'll look at General Grabber AT3's in 235/55 R17 flavour to replace the current 215/60 R17 Goodyear Vector 4Seasons

 

[dumkid]

Some of these new little SUVs are quite impressive offroad. I saw a small Mercedes in Sedona, driving down the road that all the jeep tours use. The jeeps were bouncing around while the Mercedes with its fancy air suspension went over those rocks nice and smooth

 

[vwmaniaman]

Simplicity is what made VW's so popular in the 60-70 time frame. No US cars are simple now with all the regulations of the Nanny State.

 

[Bailes1992]

Managed to track down a few more photos of Sundays off roading adventures!

 

[Bailes1992]

Nov 2023 Part 1

So time for another update.

Car hit 20,000miles on Nov 8th which was a nice milestone.

Also nicely followed a couple of days later by a message begging for some AdBlue/DEF.


https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipNs2nfdYiHejWOS1hRkkHGxhSDthpbAZoitVMJ5
Added this to the Adblue. No idea if it makes a difference but Forte make some very good products over here so thought it might be worth a try.

20,000miles also meant it was due another OCI. Unfortunately time got the better of me and I left it a little late. So a 21,205miles oil change it is! I'll do my next OCI at 25,000miles to bring it back in line with "every 5,000miles".

I removed the undertray and found a lot more Leicestershire from the off road event than I was actually expecting or hoping for...

But more on that later. Oil drained...

I bought a Febi filter this time. It was £2.99 vs £9.99 for the Bosch I usually buy. The two end caps didn't seem like the same quality I'm used to with the Bosch filter, but the filter material looked good. Not sure if I'd buy again? Let's see what it's like when it comes back out in 3,800miles.

 

[Bailes1992]

Nov 2023 Update Part 2

The old Bosch filter that had been installed looked pretty good from it's 5,500miles interval. But considering the car is spec'd for a 2 years OCI 15,000mile OCI, I wouldn't have expected any different.

I installed a new drain plug & washer. Again from Febi and again this was £2.99...

Had to clean the oil oil filter housing within an inch of it's life because it was oily AND muddy...

Stuck the new filter in...

And stuck in 6 litres of the cars usual...

 

[Bailes1992]

Nov 2023 Part 3

Usually at this point I detail the engine bay. But as the mud situation was far worse than I thought and I decided to take the opportunity to do some real cleaning and Lanogaurd the underside. I promised myself I would Lanogaurd the underside last winter when I bought the car, but never got round to it.

The underside of the car looked something like this...

 

[Bailes1992]

Nov 2023 Part 4

I didn't go too serious with the underside cleaning. Lanogaurd is very forgiving and prep work is minimal.

I snowfoamed everywhere with Bilt Hamber Autofoam.

Then applied Lanoguard (which I think is similar to Woolwax) with a cheap HPLV spray gun and a Sealey SG19 to inject all the cavities I could.

I'd have loved to have done more cleaning and removed more of the undertrays and rear bumper but time wasn't on my side. I may (funds and time dependant) do it all again in Spring/Summer focusing more on the cleaning aspect, especially all that tar in the arches. Then I should be able to get away with a simple touch up in Autumn/Winter.

 

[Bailes1992]

Nov 2023 Part 5 Update

A few more photos from the Lanogaurding process...

 

[Bailes1992]

Nov 2023 Update Part 6

Back when the car was a few weeks old I might have bumped into my Wifes car on the drive. I damaged the 'U' shaped trim on the front bumper. I ordered a new one but never got round to fitting it. Therefore, wasn't too bothered when I damaged the trim again on our off roading day and also lost the towing eye cover. With the bumper off, it was an ideal time to get it replaced.

I decided (much to my Wife's delight) to get myself set up in our dining room...

And all fitted complete with a new pressed metal number plate in a number plate holder/surround...

 

[IndyIan]

Nov 2023 Update Part 6

Back when the car was a few weeks old I might have bumped into my Wifes car on the drive. I damaged the 'U' shaped trim on the front bumper. I ordered a new one but never got round to fitting it. Therefore, wasn't too bothered when I damaged the trim again on our off roading day and also lost the towing eye cover. With the bumper off, it was an ideal time to get it replaced.

I decided (much to my Wife's delight) to get myself set up in our dining room...
View attachment 190473

View attachment 190474

View attachment 190475

View attachment 190476

View attachment 190477

And all fitted complete with a new pressed metal number plate in a number plate holder/surround...
View attachment 190478

I'm impressed with your maintenance and clean up! I would use something as a backup to that jack though, you must be crawling around under there at times... Its just a good habit to get into.

 

[LDB]

Hate to be the bearer of bad news but somebody stole your taillights.

 

[Bailes1992]

Nov 2023 Update Part 7

Just swapped out the pollen filter as the car has just turned 1. Quite surprised by how dirty the old one is. And I'm pretty sure there is mould growing in it.

Is this white fluffy stuff mould?

My new filter is 'antimicrobial' but I think I'll replace it in 6 months and see what it looks like before going a full 12 months again.

I then ran a Bilt Hamber Air Con Bomb through the system to sanitise.

A also gave the car a quick clean and fitted some new genuine Dacia rubber mats to keep the floor dry over winter.

I was hoping to give the car a wash and fit some new wipers, but that's tomorrows job now as the heavens opened!

Oh, and almost forgot. Engine bay was cleaned after the Lanogaurding using my usual methods. Still some bits of isolated mud around, but on the whole much better. I'll try get the remainder on my next OCI.

 

[KrisZ]

Your car looks excellent, however I think all of the washing under the hood and how often you do it may cause electrical issues down the road. The various connectors are not meant to be exposed to cleaners and high pressure water. Eventually the seals may fail and it only takes one to cause a major headache. Just IMO.

 

[Bailes1992]

Your car looks excellent, however I think all of the washing under the hood and how often you do it may cause electrical issues down the road. The various connectors are not meant to be exposed to cleaners and high pressure water. Eventually the seals may fail and it only takes one to cause a major headache. Just IMO.

It's something I think about often, but have been cleaning engine bays like this since I passed my test nearly 14 years ago without issue.

I was considering spending a few hours going through each connector in the engine bay and applying Stabilant. I might still, but my Wife already thinks I'm a bit mad after the work I've put into a 1 year old car this winter.

When I rinse the engine bay down, it's on a low pressure and I move the lance quite quickly to ensure I'm never spraying any particular part for any length of time. In addition, I spray all major connections and earth points with Bilt Hamber Ferrosol afterwards to drive out any moisture.

 

[Pablo]

Saw a number of these in Italy, not one looked to be used for off road. But different form appeared smaller, but maybe different year, different models for markets. Didn't google it..........