• Diesel is most efficient but most expensive
• Turbo petrol the best choice overall
• No Logan Stepway is particularly economical

There are only two engines available for the Dacia Logan MCV Stepway – a 0.9-litre turbocharged petrol or a 1.5-litre diesel. Of these, the diesel naturally returns the best fuel economy and carbon dioxide figures.

A claimed 61.4mpg, 103g/km of CO2 and 6.4 - 7.9 mpp (miles per pound) are quite impressive, though rival diesels will best this.  You can thank the Logan MCV’s lightweight construction for this, as even the heaviest models don’t weigh much more than a tonne.

The 0.9-litre petrol will return 51.4mpg and 125g/km.

However, both of these engines – the petrol especially – need to be worked quite hard, so we’d expect the figures to be quite a lot lower in daily driving.

Despite the diesel’s impressive figures, it’s certainly not the engine we’d opt for, purely as its purchase price is around £2,000 more than the petrol. That’s a difficult sum to justify unless you’re doing the very highest of mileages.

Insurance groups are 7 for the petrol and 11 for the diesel, which are much higher than the city cars that the Logan MCV competes with on price, but far lower than most rivals of a similar size.

Is it reliabie?

The reliability of French cars is somewhat notorious, and though Dacia is a Romanian brand the Logan MCV uses mostly components from the Renault Clio. But don’t let that put you off. The engines and powertrain are all exceedingly well-proven over their many years in service, and the car’s sheer simplicity means there’s less to go wrong.

Some owners have reported issues with the car’s cheap construction – namely, thin paint, which can lead to corrosion. The cheap trim inside isn’t impervious to squeaks and rattles either, and the diesels require regular long runs in order to keep their particulate filters clear. Generally, though, the Logan MCV Stepway should prove relatively dependable, though it’s a shame that Dacia only offers a basic, three-year warranty. Budget rivals such as SsangYong and MG offer seven years of cover.