Dacia

The 2021 Dacia Bigster is a concept vehicle developed by Renault for the Romanian brand and unveiled in early 2021. An SUV measuring 4.6 meters (181.1 inches) long, the 2021 Bigster concept unveils a production SUV that will compete in the compact crossover segment. The Bigster will slot above the highly popular Duster in the lineup and will become Dacia’s largest offering yet. Just like the Duster, the production version of the Bigster will probably be sold as a Renault in some markets. A new joint business between Dacia and Lada, both owned by Renault, will probably spawn a rebadged Lada model for certain Easter European and Asian markets too.

While Dacia is indeed planning to go electric, it will do so with a crossover-y model heavily inspired by the Spring concept car. So it goes without saying that a fully-blown, out-and-out performance EV wearing the Dacia badge is out of the question. But one can dream, right?

Dacia is finally joining the electric car bandwagon and to signal that intent, the Romanian Renault-owned carmaker has unveiled the Dacia Spring electric prototype which will spawn a road-legal car towards the beginning of 2021. Once that happens, the all-electric Dacia model will be Europe’s most-affordable all-electric vehicle.

Renault-Dacia unveiled the first facelift of its popular compact crossover, Duster during the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show. The Duster has been around since 2010 and was due for a makeover. Renault-Dacia has made subtle changes to the exterior keeping the original proportions of the compact off-roader intact.

With this update, not just about the aesthetics changed though. Dacia has added new features to the compact crossover that push it further up the ladder in its affordable segment of the crossover market.

Renault-Dacia has also added a new engine to the Duster range. The new turbocharged gasoline engine promises to deliver better mileage and decent performance at the same time. The Duster has tasted success in developing markets around the world, and the new model definitely has what it takes to tackle the challenges faced in highly competitive markets like India, Brazil, etc.

Click past jump to read more about the 2014 Dacia Duster

Racing season is now in full swing and as the days go by, we’re seeing more and more racing series begin their respective seasons.

One that’s scheduled to start in a month’s time is the Scandinavian Touring Car Championship (STCC) and Romanian automaker, Dacia, is preparing for the series with a new racecar in the form of a second-generation Logan that has been christened as the Logan STCC 1024.

After plying its craft in Pikes Peak with its custom Duster rally cars, Dacia wants to make headway at the STCC and it picked a pretty good car to do it, thanks to the Logan’s 400-horsepower V-6 engine that’s mated to a six-speed sequential transmission. Add that to a model that only weighs slightly north of 1,100 kg (2,425 pounds) and you have a racecar that’s ridiculously quick and can bust out of the gates with the nimbleness and power of a pouncing panther.

Hyperbole notwithstanding, the Logan STCC 1024 looks ready for competition and it will get its chance to show everyone what it’s got when the STCC season kicks off on May 3rd.

A few days ago, we brought you the first spy shots of the next Dacia Sandero and today, it’s time for a new round of testing. The Sandero seen in this images is donning new clothing, offering even more details on the upcoming Stepway version.

As promised, the new Sandero will feature a new design language, and these spy shots reveal a new headlight and grille design, as well as a more modern appearance. The interior will also be redesigned with better materials and new technologies.

The next Sandero will be built on a new platform borrowed from the Renault Fluence and will get more modern engines, gearboxes, and a new chassis.

Dacia will unveil the first concept version in September at the 2012 Paris Auto Show, while a production version will follow in March at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show. Sales will begin in late 2013.

Just a week after being out testing the next generation Logan, Dacia has already moved on to testing the second generation Sandero that looks as though it will be debuted at the same time as the Logan. These spy shots show the Stepway version, but a standard version is most likely under development as well.

No details have been offered on the next Sandero, but we believe that Dacia has shared some of the Logan’s design characteristics with it. The Sandero is built on a new platform borrowed from the Renault Fluence, more modern engines, gearboxes, and a new chassis. Both the exterior and the interior will also be significantly improved - a smart move considering both the Logan and the Sandero weren’t exactly the best looking cars available.

Just like the future Logan, the first concept version of the Dacia Sandero will be unveiled in September at the 2012 Paris Auto Show. A production Sandero should follow in March at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show.

When Dacia brought the Sandero into the picture, people forgot about the old Logan, and not because the Sandero was better, but because it looked a bit fresher. When the new Duster came out, it took the Logan completely out of the picture. This seemed to be a little unorthodox considering the Logan was the model that brought Dacia out of the shadow of anonymity and basically started the trend of low-budget cars in Europe.

Renault now seems to have recognized their error and have promised that the next generation Logan will be better than the model it replaces. It will be built on the same platform as the Renault Fluence and will get more modern engines, gearboxes, and a new chassis. It will also still be one of the cheapest cars around.

The next Logan will get a modern design to make it even more attractive. According to Renault’s design chief, Laurens van den Acker, this decision was made to coax people into buying the Logan because of its looks and not just because it is cheap. Speaking of cheap, we’re hoping that Dacia will do something about that rustic interior that facilitates the outdated stigma attached to the car.

Expect to see the new Dacia Logan launched as a concept in September at the 2012 Paris Auto Show, with a production version to follow at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show.

When Renault said that it was going to take a stab at running Pikes Peak in 2011 AND use a Dacia Duster to run the competition, a lot of people, shall we say, scoffed at that idea.

As it turns out, Renault was actually serious about the whole thing because the first photos of the Dacia Duster Pikes Peak have gone live. It seems a little ambitious for Renault to try to compete in one of the most famous - or infamous - hill climbing competitions in the world, especially considering when they’re using their low-cost, Romanian-based brand for the whole competition.

But this isn’t your ordinary Dacia Duster. While details are still limited, there are whispers going around that this particular Duster will carry a Nissan GT-R-sourced V8 engine that produces a staggering 850 horsepower. Last we checked, that’s a load of power, especially for a car that’s been stripped down to weigh just a little less than 900 kg (1,984 lbs).

The car is set to compete on June 26, 2011 at Pikes Peak, Colorado and will be piloted by Jean-Philippe Dayraut. We don’t know how competitive it’s going to be against the Imprezas of the competition, but there’s plenty of power under this Duster’s hood. And if you’ve got that covered, you stand a very good chance of being competitive.

Alain Prost, widely regarded as one of the fiercest Formula One drivers in history and the most heated rival of the late, great Ayrton Senna, is still hacking up race tracks in France these days, albeit on a much different terrain. The former Formula One Driver’s Champion’s competitive racing juices are now on full display at the Andros Trophy racing series, the national Ice Racing championship of France.

Last year, Prost raced behind the wheel of a Dacia Duster Ice Racer and proceeded to show everybody that despite his age, he still managed to finish runner-up for the season, trailing only two-time Andros champion Jean-Philippe Dayraut on-board his Fabia Skoda MKII.

This season, which is scheduled to begin on December 4th, Prost is looking to break through with his first Andros championship, and to help him achieve his goal, he’s got a brand new Dacia Duster Ice Racer waiting to be unleashed all over the icy terrains of France.

The new Duster Ice Racer underwent some engine and performance upgrades from last year’s model, giving Prost an even bigger chance to break the Skoda’s two-year stranglehold on the championship.
For one thing, the 55-year old racer is determined to prove that second place won’t be good enough this time around. “Last season, we were aware it would be tough to win the Trophée Andros with a new car, not to mention the fact that the program began at a relatively late stage” he said.

“This time round, my intention is to challenge for the title. We completed two very positive days of testing at Val Thorens last weekend. Our work on Duster has clearly paid dividends and we are convinced we have the means to make a strong start."

Head over past the jump to find out details about Prost’s new Duster Ice Racer.

The future is always a fun place to go to, that is if you have a very creative mind, an above average talent in designing, and of course, a taste in cars.

Young designer, Liviu Tudoran, has all three qualities in abundance, and he proudly showed it off with a concept design for the sports car of the future – in Bucharest.

Calling it the Dacia SHIFT Concept, the futuristic-looking two-seater is powered by lithium-ion batteries with the electric engine located at the car’s front while the hydrogen storage tanks are situated right beside the concept’s rear wheels. Aesthetically speaking, the SHIFT Concept was inspired by the local automakers, Dacia, proving that Tudoran’s inspiration has some local flavor going for it. At the same time, Tudoran also used a number of architecture buildings as a model for the design of the SHIFT Concept.

Check out Tudoran’s futuristic design interpretation of the SHIFT Concept, a car that – in the designer’s mind, at least - could roam the streets of Bucharest in the near future.

The next time you find yourself wondering why your car doors can’t seem to close properly, you might want to watch this video of how tedious a job it is for auto factory workers, specifically those in quality control, to ensure that the products they release out to customers are in tip-top shape and working in perfect order.

Needless to say, each and every measure is undertaken to ensure that fixing a potential problem remains priority number one for these factory workers and in this video taken from Dacia’s production plant in Romania, a factory worker does exactly that to correct what looks to be the car’s passenger-side doors’ refusal to close properly.

Undaunted by the problem he’s facing, the worker does everything, from slamming the doors, tapping the panels with a hammer, and even pulling the entire door down to make sure that the doors work properly. We don’t know what came out of all his efforts because the video ended prematurely, but it does show in clear-as-day video footage that no stones are left unturned in building a car.

Dacia has just launched the first SUV in the Romanian car maker’s history. Carrying the same name as the concept that made such a sensation at the Geneva Motor Show, the new Duster SUV will be released in the brand’s main markets starting in the spring of 2010.

The new Dacia Duster will be offered in both 4x2 and 4x4 versions powered by either a 1.6 Liter 16V 110 HP petrol engine or the optional 85 dCi and 105 dCi diesel engines. The SUV has a CO2 emission of less than 140g in its 4x2 format and makes less than 150g as far as the 4x4 versions are concerned. The new Duster SUV is just 4.31 meters long and 1.82 meters wide, designed to tackle all types of roads and tracks, all over the world. Showing off theie new venture’s abilities, Dacia has enlisted the help of Formula One Ferrari ace Alain Prost to campaign a purpose built modified Duster with the help of Renault Sport Technologies in the grueling Andros Ice Raceing Series.

Press release after the jump.