Good news! The oh-so sensible value-for-money Dacia Sandero range has been expanded with a pair of new flagship trims boasting standard kit. The Journey and Stepway Extreme continue the model’s ascent into the mainstream, with the latter coming in at almost £20,000.
The Journey trim level joins the hatchback range and features the firm’s latest TCe 110 turbocharged petrol engine on selected versions. This model variation has been available on the Duster for some time, and like its larger counterpart, the Sandero comes with a whole load of kit as standard.
How well equipped? It comes with automatic air conditioning, rear parking sensors, reversing camera, electronic parking brake, Blind Spot Warning and the MediaNav infotainment system with 8.0-inch infotainment screen, DAB radio, Bluetooth, smartphone mirroring, USB-C ports front and rear, six speakers, plus Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
The crossover-themed Sandero Stepway Extreme is also available with the TCe 110 engine. The three-cylinder engine produces 110hp, delivers a claimed 45.6mpg (WLTP combined), and has an emissions rating of 125g/km CO2. It’ll get from 0-62mph in 10.0 seconds in six-speed manual transmission form.
The Stepway Extreme’s equipment reflects those of the Journey, and as well as being offered in range-topped 110 TCe form, both models are available to order with TCe 90, TCe 90 automatic and innovative TCe 100 bi-fuel (LPG) powertrains.
And for anyone spooked by the Sandero’s poor Euro NCAP two-star safety ratings, the firm is fighting back by saying the Sandero is European Global Safety Regulation 2 compliant, with all versions produced after April 2024 benefitting from enhanced advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) features that meet the regulatory safety standards. Time for a Euro NCAP re-test.
What this means for you
The Sandero Journey starts at £15,795, while the Stepway Extreme TCe 110 is priced from £18,645 on-the-road. While that sounds like a lot of money for car that was once available for comfortably less than £10,000, it is still considerably cheaper than all of its similarly-equipped rivals.
Dacia’s move up the price range reflects its value-for-money pricing, rather than going for the lowest possible numbers, as its customers demanded more equipment. This is still the case, with the Stepway Extreme in its most powerful form still coming in at less than a very modestly equipped Skoda Fabia or Renault Clio.
However, the recently-announced second-generation MG3 might just set the market on its head, with almost 200hp being offered for similar money. The new Sanderos will be available to order from 4 April.
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