Dacia Duster Spied on Romanian Highway

We're getting closer to the official debut of Dacia's first ever SUV and the Romanian brand is making the final preparation for this major event. The guys over at daciaclub.ro published some new photos with the Duster caught on the Romanian highway A1 that connects the city of Pitesti to the capital Bucharest.

The car will be revealed for the first time to the general public at the Geneva Motor Show next month and will go on sale soon after that in select European markets. Dacia has already started production of the SUV at its plant in Mioveni but parent manufacturer Renault will also assemble the car at other plants worldwide.

According to various sources, the Duster will be offered in two trim levels, Ambiance and Laureate. The cheapest model will be the Duster Ambiance equipped with a 1.6 16V engine - 13,040 Euros, while the 1.5-liter configuration with 86 horsepower will cost 16,630 Euros. On the other hand, the Duster Laureate 1.6-liter 105 horsepower is priced at 16,630.

However, Renault and Dacia have not confirmed these details, so more information will be released at the Geneva Motor Show in March.

Dacia's Duster is a compact SUV, with the car measuring 4.31 m in length and 1.82 m in width. It will be available in both 4x2 and 4x4 versions. The latter has three operating modes: two-wheel drive, Auto and Lock. The car has a ground clearance of 200 mm and features a 30 degree angle of attack and a 35 degree angle of departure.

autoevolution will be attending the 2010 Geneva Auto Show, so stay tuned for some real up close and personal shots of the vehicles, as well as for first-hand details of the motorized contraptions presented at the event.