You might not know of this, but one of Dacia’s few older in-house-designed models that were not a licensed copy of some Renault was a car called the 500 or Lăstun.
It was a very light and efficient car, very similar to Fiat’s early 1990s Cinquecento model, albeit even smaller and lighter, powered by a front-mounted two-pot 500 cc engine that returned 3.3 l/100km or 86 mpg UK / 71 mpg US; only 6,532 were built and it was by no means successful.
Now, a rumor from Germany announces the possibility that the Renault-owned brand could build a successor to that model, based on the same Smart-derived underpinnings as the new Twingo (pictured).
German magazine Autobild suggests that the proposed model would undercut the Twingo considerably, costing in the region of €5,000 (~$7,000), but still being equipped with all the safety kit and tech you’d expect from a modern car.
However, since Renault’s Russian partners at Lada have production capacity to spare, it may very well be built there alongside the Largus estate (rebadged old Logan MCV), Kalina 2 hatch and Granta small sedan.
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