New Dacia Sandero Stepway review: £10k less than a Fiesta!

[Music] this is the new dacha sandero which is still officially britain's cheapest car what we've got here is the stepway version but the regular hatchback currently starts at 8 000 pounds you have to pay more than twice that to buy an entry-level ford fiesta [Music] now obviously here at car buyer we love cars but we also appreciate the fact that there are some people that just aren't as passionate as we are so if that's you and you're just after a simple run around gets you from a to b with minimal fuss that you don't have to spend any more money than you absolutely have to then i will not take no for an answer that this should be at the top of your shortlist now before i tell you why should we go over the hat trick like it subscribe it bell button it bosh while we liked the previous sandero dach's no-frills approach was very easy to identify before you'd even got inside that's changed for the new model while it still isn't the most stylish super mini on the market it's much less frumpy than before the design is sharper overall and new headlights incorporating y-shaped daytime running lights play a big part in modernizing the look of the car the stepway is essentially a crossover style range-topping version of the sandero that comes with some extras including roof rails body cladding and a raised ride height it starts at a still very reasonable 11 000 pounds dacha is owned by renault and the sandero has historically been based on older versions of the clio this time around it uses the same platform as the latest model which is a sound base to start from it also means there are plenty of shared parts in spite of the difference in price between the two now a couple of obvious things that you'll notice from the clio things like the gear stick or these dials here for the air con i mean it's not as nice as an actual clio in here but just like the outside of the car the design of the inside is so much better than datches of old i mean in the past the dash was just like one continuous vast textureless plastic meh but now look we've got some different materials some different shapes it doesn't feel as dowdy or as basic anymore i mean admittedly as soon as your eyes tend to wonder a little bit lower than say the air vents then the plastic used is like hard wearing scratchy stuff you also get it on the doors now i know that i complained about that in other cars but when you consider the price of the dacha sandero you cannot assume or expect plush materials in here this is a smart simple solid interior that actually is going to do the job for most stature buyers now the range topping versions of the sanderos come with this 8-inch touchscreen with apple carplay and android auto but lower down the range you're going to have to make do with this smartphone holder and it's very conveniently placed usb socket although most people using their smartphones rather than the infotainment system anyway you might be fine with that if it's gonna save me some dosh now as well as the touchscreen you've also got a nice little list of luxuries here in the prestige spec you've got all-round parking sensors rear view camera oh and for once i don't have to talk about digital dials because the sandero has the good old analog version which i think look adorable it's got all the information that you need and lord knows we need to cut back on our screen time the regular sandero is available in three trim levels called access essential and comfort the entry level model is extremely basic in order for dacha to offer the headline starting price and with no radio or air conditioning and black plastic bumpers it's worth moving up to the essential trim this only costs a thousand pound more and also allows you to upgrade from the sluggish 64 brake horsepower engine in the access model the stepway version also comes in three trim levels but is better equipped to begin with so there's no access model instead you can choose from essential comfort and prestige now the prestige model which is the spec of our car is the range topper so is the only sandero model to feature alloy wheels an electronic handbrake and climate control it still starts at just under fourteen thousand pounds the only options for the sandero are a full sized spare wheel and metallic paint now another way which this new sandero is an improvement on the old one is here in the back because the car has actually grown a little bit so me i'm five foot six plenty of leg room back here there's also more shoulder room if you want to get three people back here plus the extra space means that getting a child seat on either of the outer seats where the isofix points are is much easier this stepway version because it's higher off the ground as well also helps with that so that is worth considering if you have young children but overall i'd say here in the back feels sturdy rather than sumptuous i mean we've got more black plastic molding here on the doors but oh prestige spec we've been treated to chrome door handles yeah thatcher knows how to treat a girl and how to treat her right with the seats in place both the regular sandero and the stepway version offer 328 litres of boot space which is not far off the best in its class top spec stepway models come as standard with modular roof bars which can be used as a roof rack for up to 80 kilograms of gear if you've already filled up the boot all models apart from that basic access version of the regular sandero get a 60 40 split folding rear seat there are no fancy sliding rear benches or hatches but folding the seats down does free up a very useful 1108 liters of space now another thing that's quite noticeably different between the dr sandero and the more expensive super minis like the clio for example is this seems a bit more noisy inside however that is just the tyres on the road the wind over the car and the engine just bouncing off the plastic i don't know but i suspect it's just less sound insulation which again is just another way to keep costs down you've got three engine options the one underneath this bonnet is the 89 brake horsepower tce 90 one liter which is actually the one that we would go for now the regular hatchback does have a 64 brake horsepower petrol version available which blimey i know it's cheap but my god that's slow like really slow like crying tears of frustration because you're trying to overtake anybody kind of slow does not to 62 in 16.7 seconds so yeah we'd say best to upgrade to this one i mean this is by no means lightning fast but it's punchy most of the time there's also a more powerful 99 brake horsepower version that runs on petrol and lpg and both of those will do north to 62 in 11.5 seconds much more acceptable dacha claims around 53 miles per gallon in official fuel economy for all three engines which is very reasonable co2 emissions of around 120 grams per kilometer place all versions of the sandero in a benefit in kind bracket that makes it fairly unappealing as a company car and hybrid tech to lower the official emissions figure would make the car too expensive to produce so this won't change the tc 100 by bifure model has an lpg tank under the boot floor and can run on either gas or petrol lpg is considerably cheaper than petrol to buy so this model could ultimately be the most affordable to run if you do plenty of miles and have somewhere local for the regular lpg top-ups not all fuel stations sell it so other than avoiding the entry-level engine if you can afford to because seriously a mobility scooter will beat you at traffic lights what else is there to say about how the dr sunderer drives well i'm assuming you're not expecting me to say that this is a deceptively thrilling hot hatch i'm not about to surprise you it's an unassuming competent run around well the fact that it shares a platform with the current clio means that it doesn't lean as much in corners as the old sandero did but the softer suspension that it's got other than some rivals means that it still does do that oh but the softer suspension means that it's a very comfortable drive especially in this stepway version so slightly higher off the floor so you don't feel the lumps and bumps in the road as much unless they're absolutely terrible the steering's pretty light but feels accurate enough doesn't feel like it's going to wander around the road too much also not too bad this six-speed gearbox we wouldn't recommend getting the cvt auto unless you absolutely have to have one all in all i would say this is a very reasonably nice drive although it doesn't take you too long to notice the sanderos shortcomings in terms of handling so when you're driving quicker on twisty turny roads i mean if that's the kind of thing that you're after then you're going to have to splash the cash i'm afraid get yourself a ford fiesta or a high-end ir20 while you check out how much money is in your piggy bank allow me to run through the sanderos deal makers and deal breakers the sandero is officially britain's most affordable car but it's actually incredibly good value in all trims even the range-topping versions there's more space inside than ever before and the boot is one of the biggest in this class the sandero is comfortable rather than sporty and that's especially true of this jacked up stepway model the starting price grabs all the headlines but the entry-level sandero is so slow and basic that very few people are likely to buy one the car is certainly better to drive than before but it still feels relatively sedate even with the more powerful engines i think it's safe to say it's very unlikely you're going to have a picture of the dacha sandero as your desktop background it's not exciting it doesn't really have bags of personality it's not futuristic it's not retro it is however fantastic value for money and for many people that's the most important thing when they're buying a new car dacha constantly undercut the sanderos rivals in terms of price and they have still managed to do that even considering this new version is so much better than the old one and this stepway version for example that's a bit more expensive is still 10 000 pounds less than a ford fiesta active and a honda jazz cross star which remains the most compelling reason why this should seriously be considered if you're after a new small car it is practical it is economical it is reasonable to drive but most importantly it is the most affordable way to buy yourself a very competent new car if you found this video useful then why not watch our hyundai i-20 review or our small cars and super minis playlist thanks for watching you

Channel: Carbuyer

Views: 483,972

Keywords: Carbuyer, Carbuyer review, Carbuyer UK, Carbuyer YouTube, new car, best car, car driving, car show, Richard Ingram, Nicola Hume, Dacia, Sandero Stepway, Dacia Sandero Stepway, Dacia Sandero Stepway hatchback, Dacia Sandero Stepway 2021, 2021 Dacia Sandero Stepway, 2021 Sandero, 2021 Dacia, Dacia test, Dacia review, new Dacia Sandero Stepway review, Dacia Sandero Stepway review, supermini, crossover, Dacia Sandero Stepway test, new Dacia Sandero review, Dacia Sandero hatchback

Id: eUk7MA3yEpw

Length: 11min 46sec (706 seconds)

Published: Tue Jun 29 2021