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| Cheap and cheerful |
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| Thursday, 16 October 2008 | |
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Brian McCulloch is favourably impressed with Renault Dacia’s new Sandero The Sandero is the last of the current series of ‘low-cost’ vehicles to come from Renault’s Romanian subsidiary, Dacia, and will probably be even more successful than the two versions of the Logan launched before it. Shorter than the Logan by 23cm, and with a hatchback to the boot, its cabin feels slightly smarter and above all, more colourful. Most of the Logans seen on the roads, and there are now a fair number of them, have coloured seat covers added to cheer up the mass of grey inside, which comes as standard. One vehicle in every five sold by the Renault group globally is now a Logan; the profit margin on each is said to be 6%, double that of most other Renaults. In the Sandero, the seats have jolly upholstery with matching cloth inserts in the door panels, and the dashboard has been re-designed using plastics with a different finish, giving a slightly more up-market feel.  The car’s looks will not cause anyone’s jaw to drop in envy but it is stylish in a bland sort of way, the closest description probably being a slightly bloated, second-generation Clio. It costs less in its fully equipped form than the cheapest third-generation Clios, while giving the sort of space found in a Mégane. With the back seats up, it has a boot of 320 litres and when they are folded the space jumps to 1,200 litres. The seats do not fold completely flat but the bump is not too big. Five adults can be carried with ease, although those in the back will appreciate the driver and front-seat passenger moving the seat forward a little. One of the side effects of the French government’s bonus/malus tax scheme for vehicles is that demand for small diesel engines, most of which earn a bonus this year, has rocketed. So far this year, 85% of new cars sold by Renault in France are diesels. For Dacia this means that there are not enough diesel engines around to include a diesel in the Sandero launch line-up, and Renault bosses say it will be January 2009 at the earliest before they are in the showrooms. Details are still to be finalised but the diesel engines are likely to be the same 1.5 70HP or 85HP models found in the Logan, which cost €600 more than the petrol equivalents. In the meantime, the Sandero had two petrol engines in its line-up: a 1.4- litre 75HP and a 1.6-litre 90HP. Both are well proven Renault units dating from the late 1990s, with electronic, multipoint injection. As in the Logan, they are laid out under the bonnet making them easy to work on, even in out-of-town garages in less developed parts of the world. Of the two, I strongly recommend the 90HP. It is not that the 1.4-litre motor lacks punch but rather that the punch comes high up the rev counter, when the engine is starting to sound harsh. Its pick-up-and-go from stop is slow, even with only the driver on board, unless the engine is revved and the clutch dropped. The 1.6-litre is noticeably more responsive. Official figures are of a 0 to 100kph time of 13 seconds for the 1.4-litre and 11.5 seconds for the 1.6-litre. Once up to speed, both motors cruise at legal limits in an unfussed way, although the bigger one will make overtaking slightly less of a chore. Noise levels are slightly higher than in most new cars, reminiscent of the driving sounds of the early 1990s. The 1.4-litre has a figure of 165g of CO2 emission per kilometre, which gives it a malus of €200, while the 1.6, with a figure of 170g, has an extra €750 of tax slapped on. Mixed driving fuel consumption figures for the two versions are 7 litres per 100km for the 1.4 and 7.2 litres per 100km for the 1.6. During the test, only the better equipped 1.6-litre model was fitted with a trip computer, which showed an average figure of 9.8 litres per 100km, although test cars are driven harder than most ordinary cars. The Sandero, with a ground clearance of 15.5cm fully laden, continues the Logan tradition of wellsprung comfort and of being able to cope with bumpy roads with ease. Prices before the addition of the malus (presumably because Renault is expecting the taxes to rise next year) start at €7,800 for the basic 1.4-litre model without power steering, €8,500 with power steering (Ambiance equipment level) and €9,300 for the top model (Lauréate), which has things like electric front windows and remotecontrol central locking. Many buyers will want to add air conditioning (€890) and a radio (€260). The 1.6-litre starts at the Lauréate level at €9,800 and goes on to Prestige level at €10,900 which includes air conditioning, leather-covered steering wheel and a radio. All the cars have a three-year or 100,000km guarantee. It is a lot of car for the money and its nearest competition is a two- or threeyear- old secondhand car, which will probably be more comfortable and prestigious, but have miles put on it by an unknown driver, or drivers, and a limited guarantee. The low-cost approach to the Dacia cars in France extends to the way in which they are sold. Renault dealers get a flat fee, reputed to be €100, for every car sold, instead of the higher margins found on other new and secondhand cars. As a result, there are tales of customers in Renault showrooms finding and filling out the order forms themselves after being ignored by commission-hungry sales staff. In spite of this lack of sales enthusiasm, Dacias have been flying out of the sales rooms and it is now the 10th most popular new car in sales figures in France, accounting for 3.2% of the French market. With the Sandero adding to the appeal, the numbers are likely to continue to rise. |
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