• Jogger shares its interior with the Dacia Sandero
• Basic but comfortable
• Tech levels more than acceptable for a budget model

How is the quality and layout?

User-friendliness, simplicity and sturdy build are the best words to describe the interior of the Dacia Jogger. Luxurious it isn’t. It’s not an expensive car, nor does it pretend to be one, but like most Dacia models it’s reassuringly honest and doesn’t feel bargain-basement.

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The front cabin is shared with the latest Sandero Stepway, which means it gets a fabric strip across the dashboard to lift it a little bit. Clear instrumentation and a glut of real, physical buttons and switches make for a refreshing change now that more and more cars are moving towards all-touchscreen interiors. Base models with their plastic steering wheels and no centre touchscreen will feel a little spartan, but from the mid-spec models up you get enough equipment and nods to comfort to keep most happy.

Infotainment and tech

Three infotainment set ups are available. Base models do without a touchscreen – instead, there’s a sturdy phone mount intended to be used with a dedicated smartphone app or your phone’s own Car Mode. A handy USB port sits next to this to keep your phone topped up.

Mid-spec models come with an 8.0-inch infotainment screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, while top-spec cars have the same set-up but with built-in navigation. It’s not the most crisp or responsive of displays, but the software is simple to use.

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Other technology is rather minimal, and you won’t find the likes of swoopy digital dashboards or seventeen-zone climate control here.

Hybrid models get a 7.0-inch digital instrument cluster that you can’t specify on the pure-petrol model. It displays data like your fuel economy, remaining battery capacity and speed. There’s also a little graphic that shows you how the powertrain switches between petrol and electric power.

Comfort

• Seats are rather flat
• Light and airy inside 
• Jogger’s interior is comfortable for all seven passengers

The Jogger’s driver is reasonably well looked-after. The front seat only has basic fore/aft, backrest and height adjustment, but it’s got a lot of range for drivers of all sizes, and the steering wheel moves in two dimensions too.

The seats are rather basic and lack back or under-thigh support, but they’re soft and fairly comfortable for all but very long trips. They’re also set up theatre-style, with the third row set higher than the second, and the second set higher than the first. This ensures all passengers can see out of the front. 

All five rear passengers get a good view out courtesy of big windows. Those in the third row even enjoy retro-style pop-out windows for a bit of fresh air – sorely needed when fully laden, we suspect, as there are no climate control vents that far back. 

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