IT is hard to warm to a car that inflicts pain on you. Even less one that tries to knock you out.
The problem was caused by the top edge of the rear door which when swung out unfortunately lined up precisely with my forehead.
In the dark, as I leaned in to retrieve a bag from behind the rear seat, I didn’t spot the pointed edge of the door, which did its best to render me unconscious.
Yes I should have looked and it was all my fault, but the unfortunate start made me positively wary of the Dacia, that’s Datch-ya, Sandero Stepway.
The Stepway is the more macho version of the bargain basement Sandero supermini. It rides 40mm higher, boasts skidplates front and back, pumped-up wheelarches, body-coloured bumpers, satin chrome roof bars and 16-inch alloy-look wheels.
Like other models in the range, the car makes good use of Renault’s technology and under the test car’s bonnet was the French car maker’s tried and tested 1.5-litre dCi 90 turbodiesel engine.
The other engine choice is a new TCe 90 three-cylinder turbo petrol, with both serving up a blend of low emissions and high fuel economy.
In the case of the diesel, that means the possibility of 70 miles per gallon and paying no road tax in the first year and just £20 from then on.
Both versions come with a gearshift indicator and an eco mode that can save as much as 10 per cent in fuel.
On the move, the Stepway, with its five-speed manual transmission, happily zips along.
The Dacia's interior
The interior is rather plastic-heavy and the test model came with an irritatingly intermittent rattle from the left-hand side of the dashboard, which I managed to disguise with a liberal dose of volume from the four-speaker audio.
The cabin is flexible, with 60/40 split folding seats and a boot that starts out at 320 litres, but which can swallow up 1,200 litres with the rear seats folded. The top-of-the-range test car, which is expected to account for up to two-thirds of sales, has an equipment level to match, with air conditioning, four electric windows and electric heated door mirrors.
As the flagship of Dacia’s small car line-up, it also comes with a seven-inch touchscreen multimedia system with satellite navigation, AUX and USB inputs, cruise control, speed limiter and rear parking sensors.
Getting comfortable is easy thanks to a height-adjustable steering wheel and driver’s seat and leather trim for the steering wheel and gearknob.
A seven-function trip computer is also part of the package and if you want to push the boat out, for an extra £600 you can specify dark carbon leather upholstery, with leather-effect side bolsters.
Smart car
Ironically for a car that tried to inflict harm on me, safety equipment is top notch, running from anti-lock braking and traction control, to driver and front passenger airbags, plus front side airbags.
In short this is a smart looking, competitively priced, affordable crossover that packs a mean punch.
AT A GLANCE
- Cost: £10.995
- Insurance group: 10A (1-50)
- Fuel consumption (Combined): 70.6mpg
- Top speed: 104mph
- Length: 408cm/160.6in
- Width: 173.3cm/68.3in
- Luggage capacity: 11.3 cu ft
- Fuel tank capacity: 11 gallons/ 50 litres
- CO2 emissions: 105g/km
- Warranty: Three years/ 60,000 miles
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