The French site, Worldscoop forum, specialized in spy photos has published the first photo of the interior of the Dacia Lodgy. The photos were made in a winter landscape, during the recent tests made by the Dacia engineers.

More details on www.dacialodgympv.com

The characteristics of the new commercial model are also a mystery, the only statement that the Dacia officials give about the new vehicle being: "it will meet the demands of our fleet customers", customers that are very important to Dacia.

Most likely, the new commercial vehicle will receive the front from a new Dacia model, along with a number of common components. The most likely hypothesis suggests that the new Dacia commercial vehicle will take the front of the Lodgy and will have dimensions close to it, like the other models from the Dacia range, the Logan and the Logan MCV. The launch of Logan’s successor has not been confirmed by the officials of the Romanian brand, a sign that the Logan 2 debut could take place in 2013, at the Geneva Motor Show.

The Dacia Lodgy will be the future MPV model of the Romanian car manufacturer. The Dacia Lodgy will be launched at the Geneva Motor Show in 2012 and has a design that fits in the Mioveni manufacturer lines, but has a distinct personality.

The Dacia Lodgy will be produced for the Western European markets, because in Romania and other Eastern European countries, the MPV models have not found  a segment. The Lodgy will be the first model in the history of Dacia that will not be produced in Pitesti, the Dacia MPV will leave the assembly lines of the Tanger factory in Morocco.

The competition version of Dacia Lodgy, presented last week in France, will be the first MPV in the history of the Andros Trophy. The model (officially called Dacia Lodgy Glace) will take some technical elements and the chassis from the Duster ICE and will have the same V6 engine with 355 HP and 360 Nm and a mass of 950 kg.

Eric Pasquier, director of the entry range declared for Automarket that the Dacia Lodgy will have two versions: with 5 and 7 seats. Regarding the price, Pasquier declared: Like the Duster and the Logan models, the Lodgy will be a pleasant surprise. Wait until March and will be pleasantly surprised. The Dacia Lodgy will not be a conventional MPV. It will have a clever design that will break the pattern, and that will keep the price difference of around 3000 euros to the rivals.

More details about Dacia Lodgy on www.dacialodgympv.com

The new colors of the Dacia range will be available around the Paris Motor Show, so the fans will have to wait until late September 2012 to see new Dacia shades. The Renault officials said, the designers and the marketing specialists will take into account "all the missing colors in the range", with several interesting options for every market.

"The introduction of new colors is a very important step, since the preferences in this matter differ from one country to another. For example, if in Germany the yellow cars are very popular, in Spain is very hard to sell this color," said Norman.

Now, Dacia offers cold colors of the spectrum or non-colors. There are however two interesting shades of red – "Rouge de Feu" and "Rouge Passion", and the Logan range includes a non-metallic shade of yellow "Jaune Turnesol".

Some voices suggest a starting price of 13,000 euros for the petrol version while the diesel version will have a starting price estimated at 15,000 euros. The production will take place in Morocco (because the Mioveni factory has already reached the maximum capacity) and the components will be taken from the X90 platform and other platforms of the Renault-Nissan Alliance.

The future Dacia Popster is the Renault proposal for the emerging markets and promises to have a big influence in the seven-seater MPV market in Europe. According to some estimates, the model has a length of 4.5 meters and the seven seats could be offered as standard. If Dacia will offer this model at a price close to the values ​​stated above, the Popster will be the cheapest seven-seater MPV in Europe, which should ensure its success in this market.

Source: L’Automobile

After the Renault design chief, Larens van den Acker said about the new model, which was codenamed X52, "it will have a German look", the French magazine "La Revue Automobile" presented recently, several images. Of course, we are dealing only with a design study.

"The new car is seen as somewhere between Renault Fluence, Skoda Octavia, VW Passat, Ford Focus and Chevrolet Cruze. At least from a visual standpoint. In other words, the Logan 2 will be low-cost with a "human face". I do not want people to feel ashamed that they are driving a Logan" said Larens van den Acker, the head of design at Renault.

According to the French from "La Revue Automobile", the new Logan might have more in common with Renault Fluence. The Logan2 Will measure 4.60 meters in length, will have a giant 500-liter trunk, and will powered by the new Euro5 engines: H4 and H5 of 1.4-and 1.6-liter, with lower carbon emissions and that consumes less fuel. It is not excluded that the next generation of Logan will bring the first "eco" built exclusively for the developed markets.

The new Dacia Logan 2 will benefit from a range of top class facilities like automatic box, and LED lights, of course for the version models. The French will also bring new colors, from red to yellow and other lighter colors. Currently, Dacia is characterized by gray, black, blue and brown.

The main strengths will be, as with the current model, the competitive price, the large interior and the luggage space, luggage and the road holding.
The French magazine speculates that the standard price of Logan 2 will be 13,000 euros for the 1.6 and 110 HP version and 15,000 euros for the dCi with 85 HP.

According to an official announcement made ​​by the Indian company, the Logan will be renamed Mahindra Verito and will have the Mahindra logo on the grid (so far, the sedan was exclusively sold under the Renault brand). Moreover, Mahindra will restore some subtle design elements of the model, but without violating the values ​​and technical instruments that define the Logan in the Indian market.

While preparing the rebranding of the Logan model, Mahindra is planning to develop a shorter version of the model now borrowed from Renault. This will be under four feet and will have a shortened trunk, the Asian manufacturer expecting better sales because the Indian market is built more for models with such features. The new Logan with small dimensions  will be launched in India until the end of the year.

"Renault will get a Latin, more emotional design, while the Dacia brand will remain  robust, more northern, focused on reliability. We will have two brands that are not threatening to cannibalize" said the designer.

Referring to the first-generation of Logan, Van den Acker said: "The Logan was a model with a utilitarian side, and people bought it primarily for its price and the space provided. In the future we could offer the model more attractiveness. We do not want people to feel ashamed of their car".

Van den Acker spoke about the next generation of the most important Dacia model: "Not long ago, when we offered to test a few prototypes of next-generation of Logan, the people said that the model is no longer a low cost. This is the evidence that we no longer relate to Logan’s successor as a low-cost model. We will change the name of the platform because we don’t want confusion. The model will provides a perception of quality. Even the interior will be a better one. I think that the proportions will improve and even the design theme. If in case of Renault we need something spectacular, in Dacia we need evolution, because the recipe works".

The Dutch designer has referred to the  Duster when it came to the design of the Dacia Logan: "Currently, the Duster is indeed the most advanced form of the Dacia design. It is a car that is bought not only because of its price. People like his design, so for me it is a good starting point. Therefore, the future Logan will be inspired by the Duster’s line and not the old Logan model" concluded van den Acker.

The first experiments of Dacia regarding the online sales will take place in 2012. The Renault officials did not specify exactly the beginning of the program and what Dacia models will be involved. Also, the first countries to be involved in this marketing strategy remain a mystery.

"I always assumed that Dacia will not be bothered for four or five years, at most, before the rivals will become stronger. I knew I could not keep this market segment only for  us" said Gerard Detourbet , the head of low cost division.

In 2010, a quarter of Renault deliveries were Dacia models. In 2007, Dacia deliveries accounted for only 15% of Renault deliveries, so the Romanian brand has grown significantly in just three years.

Source: automotive news