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Dacia, a Renault group, has literally blossomed in the last two decades and is now aiming higher. The Romanian brand recorded an excellent 2022 in Europe, as it managed to outsell Fiat, Citroen, Nissan, Opel and Seat, based on the statistical surveys of the British institute Jato Dynamic. Enough to end the year in 12th place, then climbing to 10th place in the first half of 2023, ahead of Kia and just behind Ford.
The third generation Duster is coming in 2024
To maintain this momentum in sales, the launch of the updated electric city car, the Spring, is already expected in the spring of 2024, but above all the arrival on the market of the third generation of the Duster, the model that started the phenomenon Dacha. The compact SUV, in addition to being credited with discrete non-extreme off-road skills, will pave the way for a new Dacia plan to reposition itself as an affordable alternative to historic brands such as Jeep.
A repositioning that comes from afar
After all, in the aftermath of the settlement in 2021 at the top of the Renault group, the managing director Luca de Meo had expressed the desire that the Romanian brand aspired to a more aspirational position without giving up accessibility. Given that there is still no serious competitor to Jeep in Europe, why not speculate that Dacia could play this role in the future, albeit with an adequate range and with solutions capable of making it more credible.
Dacia has embraced an outdoor vocation
The brand has long embraced the outdoor lifestyle with accessories as well as dedicated special editions and will offer an even more oriented approach to this trendy lifestyle for the new Duster. Not to mention that after the Duster the Bigster will arrive, a larger but still medium-sized SUV, sold at a higher price but lower than competitors such as Jeep. But Dacia will never reach the costs of premium models.
Dacia ready to compete with the upcoming Chinese brands
For its part, the Romanian brand is increasingly an established car manufacturer with loyal customers looking for cheap cars while other brands are launching electric vehicles that are very expensive. In short, with almost 292,000 cars sold in the first half of 2023, 30% more than in the first half of 2022, Dacia is more popular than ever. So much so that it could be able to compete on equal terms with the numerous Chinese manufacturers arriving.