At a few pounds under £6K, Dacia says the Sandero is the cheapest car in Britain. Pre-crisis, no-one would have looked twice at this basic little car, but now, in the grips of stagnant wages and a glum economic outlook, post-AAA-rating UK may look upon the 6 grand Sandero as some kind of saviour.
That at least, is what Dacia, Romania’s Renault-owned carmaker, would have us believe. But the truth is that for £5995 you get the most basic version of the Sandero – buyers of which are relieved to find it comes with windows. It certainly doesn’t have a stereo.
If you want a Sandero with air-conditioning, a decent paint job, something to play Gangnam Style on and a host of other modern trickery, you’re looking at a price of nearly £11,000. Indeed, seeing the list of options for this price, it seems like a pretty decent offering.
But when you start looking at what else your £11K could buy you, you soon realise you could get your hands on something with far more pedigree, such as Hyundai’s i10 or the Mazda2. Suddenly the Tesco Value beans of the car world doesn’t seem like such a great deal after all, and looking at its credentials, you might want to invest in slightly more than Tesco Value breakdown cover if you did partake.
However, at the entry-level price, the Sandero still represents a good first car for a teenager, for instance – so long as they’re not looking to impress anyone.