America has fallen in love with compact, unibody pickup trucks all over again, thanks to Hyundai and Ford’s audacity to imagine their Santa Cruz and Maverick models will be (hugely) successful. But the truth is affordable little utility vehicles have been all the rage everywhere, and since (like) forever.
Some automakers even use rebadged versions of other brands just to join in on the action. Such is the case with France’s Renault and their Dacia Duster SUV-based four-door compact pickup truck called Duster Oroch. It has been offered primarily for the South American market since late 2015 and just last month got a major update to make sure of its undying popularity.
However, the company again deployed a little trick, and the refreshed version, now simply dubbed Oroch, did not switch generations to gain access to even more upgraded technology and features. Unlike the European Dacia Duster sport utility vehicle, which has not only reached its second iteration in 2017 but has also gone through its mid-life update process in the meantime.
Well, these real-world shenanigans are certainly not going to stop an intrepid virtual automotive artist from having a Dacia Duster pickup, something that has only been available under special circumstances (fleet special orders, Romania-exclusive version, etc.). And there is a logic behind taking such a course of action if you ask us.
Recently, Tesla’s Model 3 was crowned as Europe’s top-selling car and that was to the detriment of Dacia. So, perhaps the Renault subsidiary should heed this virtual artist’s advice and start preparing a strategy to conquer the compact pickup truck market on its own.
The pixel master better known as Theottle on social media, has decided to tempt our imagination with an affordable little pickup based on the latest Duster SUV iteration, so no one could argue that it’s “old and decrepit underneath.” Plus, while Renault’s Oroch is decidedly rugged, this one mixes in some digital style with ample flair…
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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