Dacia still hasn’t reached the UK yet but that’s set to change in 2013.
The company is the budget brand of Renault and makes low-cost and reputedly durable cars.
The first car on the Dacia stand, which could also be making its way to these shores in 2013, is the Lodgy MPV.
Parkers Pick – Lodgy
- What is it? It’s an MPV available with five or seven seats. Yep, it has a dodgy Lodgy name, but don’t hold that against it.
- Vital stats and facts: The Lodgy’s major boast is that has ‘outstanding’ space and, for larger families, that will be most welcome. It has a loadbay that’s one of the biggest in the segment. It’s not particularly fast but it’s frugal and with a decent diesel engine at its disposal it’ll be cheap to tax. There are two petrol engines: the 1.6 MPI 105 and the new, turbocharged, 1.2 TCe 115 with direct fuel injection. There are also two diesels, both based on the 1.5 dCi Renault engine.
- Why would you buy it? You’ll have a sizeable family and the Lodgy – although an embarrassing name – will be perfect for the job. Plenty of space, economical and cheap to buy. See what Car Magazine thinks here.
- Why wouldn’t you? You might be put off by the ‘budget’ nature of the Dacia brand, and Renault-based products don’t have a wonderful history in terms of reliability, but they have focused on build quality in the past few years and that has paid off.
- Prices and launch date: 2013 at the earliest and we expect it to be cheaper than a Renault Scenic.
What else is on the stand?
There’s a limited edition Duster SUV called the Duster Delsey and there’s also the Sandero Stepway – an evolution of the Sandero, apparently.
For more coverage from the Geneva Motor Show click here
