The French buy Dacia for their “countryside home”, Romanians as an alternative to a used car

Re-launched on the domestic market in 2004, and in Western Europe a year later, the image of Dacia as the low-cost arm of Renault group has evolved from the cheapest car, purchased only by people lacking money for a new car, to that of a passenger car taken into account even by people having a premium car in their garages, as a car for the "countryside home". After Logan in 2004, Logan MCV in 2006 and Sandero two years later, Dacia has this year come up with the Duster SUV, an off-road that is 30-40% more affordable on the French market than its main rivals and for which there are waiting lists of as much as 6 months, similar with those for an exclusivist car. Initially designed for the East-European markets, Logan range models have boasted high demand in Western Europe as well, with over 90% of production currently exported to countries such as France, Germany, Italy or Spain. "Dacia has 'seduced' two types of clients, those who would have bought a used car, and the 'ultra-rational' ones, who prefer to invest their money in something else and see cars only as a locomotion means. Besides them, there are those already owning an Audi or BMW and buy a Dacia for the countryside home," says Vincent Carrz, a marketing manager for Dacia globally, quoted by Les Echos French daily.