These are said to be pictures of Dacia's coming crossover, caught in a Dacia facility in Romania. Said to be based on the Nissan Qashqai platform and using four wheel drive tech from the Nissan X-Trail, this is another in a line of vehicles with which Dacia wants to take its brand to the world. Names mentioned include Duster and Steppe, and production plans call for one million units per year at a price of €12,000. It is expected to be officially unveiled at next year's Geneva Auto Show. You can have a closer look at it in the gallery of high-res photos below. Hat tip to Ironick



[Source: Dacia Club via Automarket]

If Britain follows Germany's lead and adopts a scrap-your-old-car incentive, it looks like the first company to pounce will could be Romania's Dacia. Renault, which owns Dacia, had planned to launch its brand in the U.K. last summer, but then backtracked.

Thankfully, the bargain brand's fortunes improved when Germany's car scrapping incentive took effect yielding an industry-wide 21 percent jump in February sales. But Dacia didn't just manage to achieve that increase, their sales mushroomed by something like 900 percent, going from less than 100 Logans per week to more than 1000.

According to Autocar, the company thinks it may be able to realize similar results if Britain, making outsized returns on its plucky, cheap-as-chips Sandero – but only if Britain's politicians green-light the initiative.

[Source: Autocar]

Say "Duster" to most auto enthusiasts and you're likely to conjure up images of 1970's Plymouth Valiant-based muscle cars, or perhaps the P-bodied Chrysler buzzbins of the Eighties. What doesn't usually come to mind is the very first concept car from the Romanian low-cost transportation experts at Dacia.

Initially shown at the Geneva Motor Show earlier this month, word from Autocar now suggests that a production version of the showcar is on the way. According to the UK publication, the Duster will hit the ground running at next year's Geneva show, and it will launch with a choice of four-cylinder gas and diesel engines, as well as available all-wheel drive.

Interestingly, Autocar suggests that the production crossover will likely retain the concept's trick reconfigurable seats, including a passenger seat that can slide under the driver's seat for extra room. Check out the jump a video that shows the Dacia's trick disappearing seat, as well as the high-res gallery below.



[Sources: Autocar; Dacia]

Renault's low cost Romanian brand, Dacia, will be unveiling its very first concept at the Geneva Motor Show this week. Called the Duster, the concept features a crossover-style body with some very interesting styling elements like headlights that trail off across the front fenders and rear tail-lights that stretch forward across a flying buttress of sheetmetal above the rear wheels. Kudos to Renault designers in Romania and France for penning such an interesting shape. Contained within is an equally useful interior with a neat modular trick: The front passenger seat slides underneath the driver's seat on rails, creating enough room to carry a mountain bike inside the car rather than on top of it. Of course, there are those concept car elements that have to be included like ridiculously large 21-inch wheels, an all-glass roof and rear-hinged back doors, but the Duster's powertrain is anything but fanciful. The concept is powered by Renault's 1.5L dCi four-cylinder diesel engine that produces 105 hp and 177 lb-ft of torque. Dacia says that's enough to push the Duster to 62 mph in 9.6 seconds while returning 44.4 mpg (U.S). Check out the official press release from Dacia after the jump, our high-res gallery of images below and keep an eye on our live coverage of the Geneva Motor Show by clicking here.


[Source: Dacia]

If Dacia has managed to establish a name for itself, it has been on no-frills, low-cost vehicles. But Renault's Romanian budget brand is preparing to unveil a new concept car at the Geneva Motor Show that looks poised to blow the doors off its lackluster image with some show-stopping forms.

The leaked teaser images shown here preview the new Dacia concept, but no details have emerged to go along with them. Although some sources suggest that Dacia is poised to launch a new crossover, big wheels on low-profile rubber sheltering Brembo calipers and the two-door format suggest a sportier model in the works. We'll be keeping our eyes open as we get closer to Geneva in March for more details on the shapely Dacia concept. In the meantime, we'll just have to ponder the renderings in the gallery below.


[Source: Carscoop]

Click above to view more of the Dacia Sandero F1 edition

Oh, this is just precious. We have no problem with Renaultsport rolling out F1-themed versions of its hot hatches because, well, they're pretty hot. Some of the hottest hatches around, actually, it's worth re-iterating. But we can't help but feel this is pushing things a little too far.

Renault's Dacia division is supposed to be a budget-oriented, no frills sub-brand. And while F1 may be working on the budget orientation, spec'ing out some low-cost econo-boxes with go-fast bits is a little much. But that's what they're doing at the Sao Paulo auto show soon to kick off in Brazil. To compound the issue, the pair of F1 Team editions of the Dacia Sandero and Dacia Logan receive no mechanical upgrades whatsoever, just a fresh coat of paint and some decals. So while American driving enthusiasts may look longingly at F1 Team editions of the Clio and Megane, this is one we can do without.

[Source: Argentina Auto Blog (no relation)]

Click for a hi-res gallery of the Renault Symbol/Thesis

As Russia develops into an increasingly important market for many Asian and European carmakers, the Moscow Motor Show is becoming a more important venue. Alongside such new launches as the Lexus LS460 AWD, Mitsubishi Pajero Sport and Audi RS6 sedan, Renault will be unveiling a new version of its simple Symbol sedan. The car will be sold in such markets as Eastern and Central Europe, Russia, Turkey and North Africa, labeled alternatively as the Symbol or Thalia. The styling is rather uninspired, and the mechanics are nothing to write home about, with power anticipated to come from the same range as found in the new Dacia Logan unveiled by Renault's budget subsidiary just last month. Hard to believe we almost didn't notice this one.

You know the drill: Follow the jump to read the press release, and click on the thumbnails below to view the images in our high-resolution gallery.

[Source: Renault]

The Dacia Logan is the Go Go Gadget economy car of Eastern Europe. First there was the Logan, then there was the Logan race car, then there was the Logan pickup, and next up is the Dacia 4x4. It has the mien of a scrappy little guy who'll take on anyone and anything. If it could talk, it would say "Yeah?! Who wants some?!" in Romanian.

The pictured car, though, is merely a mule. The finished product is expected to look much more... finished. Even so, it'll be a tiny little thing riding sky high on little wheels, but we don't doubt it will look pretty cool (Lada Niva, anyone?). Although if you were thinking about getting a Dacia off-roader for your jaunts around the Transylvanian hinterlands, the spy shooter cautions "It's not going be the safest and best looking SUV out there, but it will sure be the cheapest."

[Source: Winding Road]

Click photo for a gallery of the Dacia Dracula Logan

Who knew the Prince of Darkness was into Eastern European econocars? After all, he is immortal, so you'd think he'd want something that'd probably last him a little longer than a Dacia Logan. Then again, Transylvania was part of Dacia in ancient times, so maybe this is how he cheekily shows his sense of nostalgia. In any case, there's no accounting for personal taste, and from the looks of things, Dracula's is pretty bad. Look at those airbrushed scenes on the bodywork; the wall-to-wall Alcantara interior; the red LED "starlight" headliner; the custom "Dracula" badging; the coffin-shaped amp housings; the 8-million-speaker audio system -- clearly, this was a project he eagerly sunk his teeth into. From the looks of things, chicks dig it, too. At least until he sinks his teeth into them. Still, the thought of eternal life with a Dacia Logan -- particularly this one -- makes a stake through the heart seem like a pretty good option.


[Source: The Car Fanatic]

Click on the pic above for more images

Want a cheap racing car? Using one of the cheapest cars on the market would be a good place to start. That's the idea behind the Dacia Logan Cup, a series of racing mods available for the budget automobile.

The Logan Cup clearly draws on the expertise from its parent company's in-house motorsports and tuning shop Renaultsport, applying the same formula used on hot versions of the Clio and Megane, but to a much smaller scale. The Dacia Cup is available in three different versions for track, road rally and off-road rally racing. The running gear remains stock to keep the ease and cost of acquisition and servicing down to a bare minimum. Depending on the version, the Logan Cup is then fitted with all manner of racing-spec equipment from roll cage to Bilstein shocks and from rear wing to racing harness.

The packages will be available from Renault and Dacia dealerships wherever Logans are sold – that counts out the American market, for one – and can be used in a variety of low-level racing series, and the manufacturer is organizing regional one-make racing series around the world. The idea is so simple, it just might work.

Check out logan-cup.com for more info and gallery below for more small pics of the small racing car.