Cheapest new vs most expensive used: which Dacia Duster should you buy? 

The Dacia Duster is one of our favourite SUVs. It looks cool, drives nicely and is really affordable, but if value for money is your top priority, should you buy a used example of the previous model instead?

For a few grand less than a basic new Duster, you could have a top-spec version of its predecessor. I’m going to compare the two cars to help you decide which is best.

Remember, you can buy a brand new or used car right here on Carwow. And you can sell your car, too. We’re here to help you through every step of your car-changing journey.

New vs used Dacia Duster: prices and standard equipment

One of the Duster’s biggest selling points is value for money, so let’s start by talking about costs.

The new Duster starts from £21,845, but with Carwow discounts you can get one for £20,725 at the time of writing. That’s why it’s important to compare prices before buying your next car – you never know how much you could save.

Even this basic Duster comes with a decent amount of standard kit. You get a reversing camera, cruise control, and a 7.0-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

I had a quick look on Carwow, and found this 2024 Dacia Duster with 16,500 miles on the clock. It’s the top-spec Extreme version as well, and it’s listed for £18,600. That’s around £2,000 less than the cost of a new one, but you get heated seats and blind spot monitoring on top of all the features you get on the new car.

This is also the four-wheel drive Duster, so it has off-road drive modes to take you further off the beaten track if you want. It looks very tempting, but what about running costs?

New vs used Dacia Duster: cost of ownership

It’s all well and good saving a few grand when buying a car, but it’s pointless if you then have to fork out a load of money to run it.

Insurance is one of the biggest costs associated with a car, but the quotes I got to cover these Dacias were very reasonable.

Insurance prices vary massively depending on your personal circumstances, but as a 28-year-old man holding a clean driving licence for 10 years and no accidents on record, I was quoted £360 to insure the new Duster and £385 to cover the used car.

That’s a negligible difference, and it’s a similar story when it comes to fuel economy. The new Duster has a 1.2-litre, mild hybrid petrol engine, whereas the used car I found has a 1.5-litre diesel.
Coincidentally, both will return 52mpg according to official figures, but diesel is more expensive than petrol at the moment.

I cover around 15,000 miles per year, and some quick maths shows that I’d use 1,309 litres of fuel to cover that distance. Petrol currently costs 162 pence per litre on average according to Fuel Finder, meaning my yearly fuel bill would be £2,120 in the new Duster.

Diesel is currently averaging 184 pence per litre, so 15,000 miles would cost £2,409.

Of course, you can get around this by getting the 1.2-litre petrol version of the old Duster, but that car does 47mpg according to official tests. The new Duster is cheaper to run, but not by any considerable margin.

New vs used Dacia Duster: Which is the better car?

The previous-generation Dacia Duster is a good car for the money. It’s spacious, comfortable enough and it’s cheap to run. However, it was never all that desirable thanks to the plain-Jane styling, and the interior looks and feels cheap.

That’s understandable seeing as it’s a cheap car, but the new Duster’s cabin is a huge improvement. It’s still packed with hard plastics, but it feels more solid and the design is more interesting. It also has a better infotainment system than the laggy one you used to get.

The new Duster also has a bigger boot, with 472 litres of space to the old car’s 411 litres. Rear seat space is generous in both cars though.

Out on the road, the new Dacia Duster is also the better car. It’s smoother over bumps than the old one, and you get less wind noise at speed. It’s still not as refined as something like a Volkswagen T-Roc, but for the price it’s still really impressive.

New vs used Dacia Duster: which should you buy?

There’s a pretty easy conclusion to be had here. The new Dacia Duster is nicer to drive, more practical and has a nicer interior than the old one, and it’s only a few thousand pounds more expensive to buy.

There’s also nothing in it in terms of running costs, so I reckon you should buy a new, base model Duster over a top-spec version of the old one.

Car change? Carwow!

Looking for a new set of wheels? With Carwow you can sell your car quickly and for a fair price – as well as find great offers on your next one. Whether you’re looking to buy a car brand new, are after something used or you want to explore car leasing options, Carwow is your one stop shop for new car deals.

Want to see the latest car content first? Add Carwow as a preferred source here. Click here to follow us on Reddit, where you can keep up-to-date with all the latest news, reviews, advice guides and videos.