Renault Duster earns 5 Stars in BNCAP for Adult and Child Occupant Protection

Renault India has marked a significant milestone with the all-new Duster securing a 5-star safety rating under the Bharat New Car Assessment Programme (BNCAP), underlining the brand’s commitment to making high levels of safety accessible as standard. The development comes at a crucial juncture, as the Duster prepares for a much-anticipated return to the Indian market.

Tested across EVOLUTION (Turbo 160 MT), TECHNO (Turbo 160 DCT), and ICONIC (Turbo 160 MT) variants, the certification extends across the entire range, reflecting Renault’s approach of eliminating safety disparities between trims.

The new Duster delivered a notably competitive performance across both key parameters:

• Adult Occupant Protection: 30.49 / 32
• Child Occupant Protection: 45 / 49

These scores position the SUV among the more robust offerings in its class when it comes to occupant protection.

From the outset, the Duster was engineered to meet stringent 5-star safety benchmarks. Built on the RGMP platform, the SUV benefits from enhanced structural integrity, ensuring consistent and predictable protection across varied crash scenarios.

At the same time, the Duster retains its longstanding strengths — composed ride quality, assured handling, and adaptability across diverse Indian driving conditions. As Francisco Hidalgo-Marques, VP, Sales & Marketing, Renault Group India, noted, “Since the moment of its reveal, the Duster has appealed to Indian customers with its strong SUV design, outstanding ride and handling, and confident performance.” He further added, “With this latest achievement, the Duster now also makes a compelling case for rational buyers combining one of the best fuel efficiency figures in the segment with a 5-star BNCAP safety rating for adult and child occupant protection, and the added reassurance of a best in-market 7 year warranty.”

Renault equips the new Duster with 35 safety features as standard, ensuring uniformity across variants. These include:

• Electronic Stability Program (ESP)
• 6 airbags
• Hill Hold Control and Hill Descent Control
• Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)
• ISOFIX child seat anchors
• Three-point seat belts for all occupants
• Seat belt reminders for all passengers

Further elevating its safety credentials, the SUV features 17 Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), including Adaptive Cruise Control, Lane Keep Assist, Autonomous Emergency Braking, and Blind Spot Detection, enhancing both active safety and driver awareness.

Highlighting the depth of development behind the result, Dr. V Vikraman, Chief of Renault Engineering, India, explained, “This result is rooted in engineering execution on the ground. The Duster was subjected to extensive simulations, physical crash tests, and system-level validations, with a strong focus on real-world Indian driving conditions.” He added, “From body structure performance to restraint calibration and electronic safety systems, every element was engineered, tested and refined to work together. The 5-star BNCAP rating reflects the rigour of that end-to-end engineering and validation process.”

Aligned with Renault’s global Human First Program, this achievement reflects a design philosophy where safety is embedded from the earliest stages of product development.

With its 5-star BNCAP rating now firmly established, the all-new Renault Duster returns to India not merely as a familiar nameplate, but as a significantly evolved SUV that brings together safety, performance, and everyday usability in a cohesive, well-rounded packag