Nissan Allegedly Looking to Clone Dacia Duster SUV, Looks Like a Mini Patrol

A pair of digitally rendered photos showing the Dacia Duster SUV with a Nissan fascia and rear end surfaced on Facebook today. According to the IndianAutosBlog site, the pictures are "3D mock-ups from a design lab" that were intended "strictly for internal circulation and study purposes", but somehow ended up on the web.

While we won't completely rule out the possibility that the renderings may have been made by someone outside the company, given the Renault-Nissan Alliance's past, there could be truth to these photos as many Dacia models are marketed under different brands around the world.

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Man Behind Dacia Logan Tasked With Creating Renault’s New US$5,500 India Car

The Indian new car market is far from negligible, accounting for 2.6 million registrations annually. Suzuki, with its Maruti subsidiary, offers cars starting below 250,000 rupees (US$5,600) and practically rules the market with 1 million sales per year.

Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn is determined to get a bigger slice of the pie than the measly 3 percent the two brands command with their models that are made at the local Chennai plant.

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Elia Brings in the Bling to Dacia Duster SUV

It seems German tuner Elia is convinced that the Dacia Duster's low starting price means that buyers will have extra cash left for upgrading their ride, so it's churning out one project after the other.

If the two-tone, orange and black-themed and the completely murder out Duster tunes that we showed you back in the summer didn't do the trick for you, here's one more proposal from Elia.

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British Magazine Masks Dacia Sandero and Asks the Public to Guess What it is and How Much it Costs

If it weren't for the Autoexpress logos, we would have sworn that this video was made by…Dacia as a publicity stunt to promote the sales launch of its new Sandero supermini, which will be the Romanian brand's first model to arrive in UK showrooms in January.

With a starting price of £5,995 (equal to €7,400 / US$9,600 at today's exchange rates), the five-door Sandero will also be the cheapest new car money can buy in Britain.

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Dacia Announces Prices for Third UK Model, the Sandero Stepway

One by one, Dacia is releasing pricing for its UK bound models. Following the announcements on the Sandero supermini and Duster compact SUV that start at £5,995 and the £8,995 respectively, the Renault Group-owned brand said on Monday that the Sandero Stepway will be available from May 2013 with prices ranging from £7,995 to £10,795, or from £600 more than equivalent Sandero models. Read more »

Dacia Offering Sandero with a Monthly Payment as Low as £69 in the UK

Dacia is looking to lure British customers into its showrooms not only with low starting prices for its two available models, the new Sandero hatchback and the Duster SUV, but also with affordable monthly payments, albeit with a high APR.

The Romanian carmaker owned by the Renault Group said that the £5,995 (equal to €7,464 or US$9,525) entry-level Sandero Access supermini, which is the cheapest new car in the UK market, can be had with a deposit of £1,845 (€2,300 or US$2,931) and as little as £69 (€86 or US$110) per month at 9.4% APR for 49 months.

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Dacia Says it has Received More than 1,000 Pre-Orders for New Duster SUV in the UK

The first Dacia model to be made available in the United Kingdom, the Duster SUV, has surpassed the 1,000 pre-order mark in the country, three months before it launches in showrooms, according to the Renault Group's Romanian brand.

Dacia said that it is essential to point out that this number has been achieved "before a single buyer has driven a right-hand-drive UK-specification car on British soil".

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Dacia Sandero is the UK’s Most Affordable New Car Priced from £5,995

If you live in the UK and are looking for an affordable means of transportation, Dacia will try to lure you away from the used car market with its new Sandero supermini that goes on sale in January 2013 at a starting price of £5,995 (equal to €7,400 / US$9,700), making it Britain's cheapest new car.

According to Renault's low budget brand, the base price of the Sandero is very close to what Ford asked for a similarly specified Fiesta 5dr 1.0-litre Popular 4-speed in 1989 at £5,736. Today, a base Fiesta will set you back £9,795, while the smaller, A-segment Fiat Panda starts at £8,900.

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VW Wants to Launch New Global Budget Brand in 2014 with Cars Priced from €6,000 / $8,000

The VW Group announced this week that it achieved a 9.7 percent increase in its global deliveries from January 1 until the end of September compared to the same period last year. More specifically, it delivered more than 6.71 million vehicles; substantially more than 2011’s 6.11 million units.

“Our worldwide deliveries grew further in September with a particularly strong performance in Central and Eastern Europe, North America and the Asia-Pacific region”, said VW’s board member of sales Christian Klinger last Friday.

You may have noticed that Western and Southern Europe are missing from Klinger’s statement. That’s to be expected, since new car markets in countries like Ireland, Spain, Portugal and Greece have slumped.

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Dacia Highlights Attributes of 2013 Logan Sedan and Sandero in New Ads

The Renault Group's budget-brand Dacia came to this year's Paris Motor Show with a host of new goods, including the redesigned 2013 Logan Sedan and Sandero five-door hatchback and its high-riding sibling, the Sandero Stepway.

The three-related models bring more modern styling touches inside and out, new standard and optional amenities such as a multimedia system with a 7-inch touch screen, navigation and Bluetooth connectivity, and a new Renault-sourced 0.9-liter turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine producing 88HP (90PS).

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Dacia Renews its Core Lineup, Reveals New Logan, Sandero and Sandero Stepway in Paris

Renault acquired Dacia in September 1999, and at the time, the Romanian brand, which was founded in 1966, has an outdated model lineup.

This changed in 2004 with the introduction of the Logan, which became one of the best-selling cars in Eastern Europe and Russia, and the Sandero hatchback that followed in 2008.

Dacia decided to revamp its core line-up at the same time and picked the 2012 Paris Auto Show for the debut of the new Logan, Sandero and Sandero Stepway.

All three models share the same newly-styled front end and new dark-carbon or two-tone (according to model and trim) dashboard that sports chrome accents on the air-vents, steering-wheel logo and gear lever and, according to Dacia, better fit and finish.

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Dacia Officially Unveils New 2013 Logan Sedan and Sandero 2 Hatchback

After proving its worth in many markets around the world for eight years, it's time for the Renault's Group's affordable Dacia Logan small sedan to give its place to a new model that will debut alongside a replacement for the hatchback version of the series named Sandero at this month's Paris Motor Show.

While retaining the simplicity and affordability that have made the Logan and its five-door sibling popular on the lower end of the market, the French group has upped the game a notch higher by giving both models a more distinct and modern look inside and out compared to their predecessors.

The exterior styling for both cars borrows design elements from Dacia's more recent vehicles such as the Lodgy minivan and Duster SUV.

"One of the main qualities behind the brand’s new styling identity is to give a sense of quality and strength," said the Romanian brand in a statement.

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First Photos of 2013 Dacia Sandero 2 Hatchback

As you may have expected upon seeing the photos of the new Logan small sedan that we showed you earlier today, Dacia has also prepared a replacement for the five-door hatchback version of the series named Sandero.

Set to make its world premiere at the 2012 Paris Motor Show alongside the 2013 Logan 2, the new generation of the Sandero follows the same recipe as its predecessor being based on a shorter version of the sedan's platform.

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New Dacia Logan Series 2 Sedan Breaks Cover

It has been eight years since the Renault Group re-launched and re-defined the Dacia brand with the introduction of the low-cost Logan small sedan that has since sold some 1.1 million units wearing the Dacia logo and more than 1 million with the Renault nameplate.

Now the time has come for the Romanian automaker to present a successor to its best-selling vehicle series with the Logan 2 to make its public debut at the Paris Motor Show.

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Two Girls, a Car and One Very Big Facepalm…

Getting into a parking accident when you are all by yourself is one thing, but to crash when a friend is helping out is quite another…

The driver inside this burgundy-colored Dacia Sandero Stepway was having a hard time figuring out how to exit a parking space so she had one of her lady friends come out of the car and steer her towards the right direction.

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Elia Presents Two Different Tuning Takes on the Dacia Duster

When it comes to tuning Dacia models or any other car from the Renault-Nissan Alliance, for that matter, Elia is one of premiere aftermarket brands in Europe.

The German tuner offers several options for owners of the Dacia Duster small SUV, including the new 'Color Concept' and the 'Darkster' programs.

We will begin with the Color Concept that dresses the Romanian 4x4's body in a matte orange foil wrap, with the wheel arch extensions, racing stripes, new alloy wheels, the roof, front grille, mirror caps, rocker panels and the bull bar all finished in gloss black.

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Spy Shots: 2013 Dacia Sandero Stepway is a Junior Duster

What we have here is next year's replacement to the Dacia- and in some countries, Renault-badged, Sandero Stepway, which is a high-riding version of the Sandero sub-compact hatchback, also due for a release in 2013.

The more adventurous Sandero Stepway is a lite, smaller sized and lower-cost alternative to the Dacia brand's Duster SUV.

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U Spy: 2013 Renault Fluence Facelift and New Dacia Logan and Sandero

Quite a day for one of our readers from Romania, Cristi H., who spotted not one, not two but four prototype models traveling together on the highway.

As Cristi rightfully pointed out to us, two of the cars are the facelifted Renault Fluence sedan while the other two are the Dacia Sandero five-door hatchback and the Logan four-door sedan.

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Dacia Duster is the UK's Cheapest SUV at £8,995 OTR

Romania's low cost Dacia brand has released final pricing for its first model to touch UK ground, the Duster compact SUV that will be available for pre-order from June 28 with first deliveries in January 2013 at a starting price of £8,995 OTR (US$14,000 or €11,300) for the two-wheel drive variant.

To put it into context, that's less than the basic version of the Suzuki Splash tall city car that starts at £ 9,325 for the 1.0-liter petrol model.

Dacia is also claiming the bragging rights for the most affordable (new) 4x4 model as the all-wheel drive version of the Duster begins at £10,995 (US$17,200 or €13,800).

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Scoop: Next Generation Dacia Logan Low Cost Sedan in the Making

The Renault Group is preparing a replacement to one of its most successful models, the Dacia Logan, which was first introduced onto the market in 2004.

Designed from the beginning as an affordable car to buy and maintain, the Logan has been sold around the world under different brands and names including Renault Logan, Nissan Aprio (Mexico), Mahindra Verito (India) and Renault Tondar 90 (Iran).

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