Test drive a Duster and you’ll never ever buy one🤣
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I wouldn’t even test drive one in the dark and wearing a ski mask.
A Trabant has far more street credibility mind.
What’s even worse is there’s a lot of old Renault in them, which doesn’t bode well for long term reliability.
I think I read that Dacia have the highest MOT failure rate at 3 years old (first mot) which doesn’t surprise me given the typical demographic of Dacia buyers.
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Honest John doesn’t share the hatred of Dacia and the MOT numbers are better than many.
I test drove a Sandero when my FIL was looking for a run around, basic, nippy, adequate, fit for purpose.
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Not sure hatred is the right word. I’ve driven a number of them, and it’s obvious they’re a car from a few generations ago both in the way they drive and the interior trims etc, although current Citroen’s aren’t any better.
Just my opinion after driving thousands of different cars over a number of years.
Personally I’d rather have a used something else than a new Dacia, but maybe my priorities are different to others.
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Nice reply
The new Dacia is based on the chassis of the current Clio, so they have made advances.
They are considerably cheaper than many comparable cars and come with a fresh 3 year warranty, which many will find a good point.
However having had a few Renaults all of them with some problems, I would not buy another and if a Dacia is a “cheap” Renault, then I would not risk it personally…
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…as above, friend had a Duster and they are not good, would be better to buy a better brand second hand IMHO…
Skoda didn’t really deserve the reputation they had. The problems with them were that they were old technology and many owners didn’t know how to, or couldn’t be bothered to, maintain them properly.
I wonder how many here bad mouthing the Dacia have any actual experience of owning one. A relative of mine bought one to replace a Nissan X-Trail and he is very pleased with it.
“I think I read…”?
I’d be happy to read what you think you read, if you can think where you thought you read it.
The latest “What Car” review points out that Dacia has outshone a significant number of other mainstream manufacturers when it comes to reliability, including Renault (!) and Ford. They came joint 15th out of 31 manufacturers, equal with Suzuki.
Again, personally, Kia have what is probably the best driving/extremely reliable range of cars at the moment, and have a cast iron 7 year warranty on all of it.
Albert Biermann, who headed up BMW’s M division for years was poached by Kia a few years ago, and brought a number of key personnel with him.
It certainly shows in the way the current normal cars drive, and has resulted in the Hyundai i30N and more recently the i20N for those who like a hot hatch.
I’ve not driven either yet, they’re both real competition for the usual suspects.
Finally from me on the subject.
(As it’s not really giving advice on the OP’s choice of vehicles).
I think quite a few people around the world including the Czech’s (and my son and family live there) would disagree with you on the ORIGINAL Skoda (Pre 1991 VW Group) front and they were not good, well maintained or not. My friend was ALWAYS fixing his and asking for advice. My neighbour also.
His troubles were finally over once he sold it.
Dacia’s.
Also, stubod has already stated “They are not good”.
I guess you haven’t owned one and your experience/opinion is from 3rd party’s opinions of owning them.
To put it quite simply, I would never own one, even if it was given to me.
Which is my personal choice and opinion.
Like I said at the beginning “Each to their own of course…”. 
Happy driving when allowed of course. 
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I bought the Suzuki Vitara to replace my 2014 BMW X5 and I thoroughly rate them and hardly miss the 1600cc engine difference.
I’m lucky enough to have a petrol version without the hybrid, so I managed the auto gearbox as well. It’s a reasonably well made car with no problems to date and some nice features such as Appleplay compatibility. The auto 4WD also gets Sport and Snow mode, the latter includes a diff lock (which I assume will be on the manual as well). I easily get close to 40mpg around the houses which is impressive considering I’ve done less than 6k from new (MX5 gets the most use).
You should find some low mileage or pre-reg non hybrids kicking around.
For Paul-W1
Sorry, I’ve looked and I can’t find where I read it, and after trawling the net I’ve come to the conclusion that every source has a different answer - the only consistency being that Dacia, (along with JLR as usual) are in the bottom 1/3rd for most things, including MOT fails at 3 years old, and Lexus are usually placed 1st or 2nd.
A great deal of the content of this forum is about repairing MX-5s or asking advice about them, yet no-one seems to mind.
Another agreement on the modern skodas in a long time (think old aircooled) VW guy and had a few modern vdubs but after my recent skoda experience I’d not hesitate to buy one. Interior is nicer, better spec and they are subjectively styled better.
The yeti on paper is everything I hate but somehow the design just works for me and it’s totally different.
I’d be tempted to hold on or buy a last of the line yeti in the right spec 
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Blimey! I am glad I am not in the market for a new car. I wouldn’t know where to start. Most look so dull though. It’s a good job you have MX5s to compensate. Or is that a bit harsh? 
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If you are looking for an Auto be very careful of the VW range. Make sure you test drive it first. A friend had a VW Tiguan Auto and it was the most dangerous thing I have driven. If you come off the brake at a roundabout to nip into the gap the throttle response is temporarily blocked by the software to protect the gearbox. This results in a hesitation when you need it to go NOW! VW said there was nothing wrong it. This was all over the VW/Audi forums
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We have a now 6 year old Roomster with the DSG and we have never had that problem - I suspect driving style comes into it, although you could argue that one shouldn’t have to drive round the quirks of a well designed car. Any auto can be caught in the wrong gear, and a DSG has the ‘handicap’ that the next gear is pre-selected by the software. If it’s the wrong one, there is a hiatus while it sorts itself out.
That said I wouldn’t ever buy a second-hand car with one. Lots of people who have had autos long term will use creep in various ways including holding the car on the accelerator at junctions. The handbook for the DSG tells you not to do this, but who reads the handbook? Unlike a traditional auto that has a fluid torque converter, the DSG uses either a multi-plate friction clutch in oil, or a single dry plate clutch if it has the DQ200 version fitted to lower powered cars. Software controls the clutch. Using the creep to hold the car means the clutch slips, creating excessive wear and heat, which is death to these gearboxes. They cost a fortune to fix.
We use ours with due regard for how it works and have had no bother with it. We’ll keep it until it or we break. On the move, it is astonishingly good at being in the right gear, provided your anticipation is good and you drive without randomly slowing and speeding up.
That said, I dislike it (it’s the boss’s car). Manoeuvring is painful. When you put it in gear there is a pause while the clutch is brought to the biting point. If you are on the accelerator too soon it will come in with a ■■■■. Once moving the car wants to let the clutch right in so you might touch the brake. This fully disengages the clutch and you have to start again. Inching up to a wall is a very irritating process that you soon learn to avoid. I much prefer my Outlander with its torque converter, I can manoeuvre as slowly as I like and stop inch perfect.
