So massive is the gravitational pull of the C-SUV – of which the new Dacia Bigster is the latest exponent – that it’s now quicker to list the car makers that don’t compete in the segment it than those that do.
You will know the biggest of the mainstream hitters: Ford Kuga, Skoda Kodiaq, Nissan Qashqai, Kia Sportage, VW Tiguan, Hyundai Tucson.
Automotive household names. Some of these cars are propping up the company that makes them, so insatiable is the appetite for Goldilocks crossovers that aren’t awkwardly big but still offer plenty of space and don’t cost a lot more than £30,000 when you’re sensible with trim.
It’s doubtful that any CEOs of the C-SUV incumbents will have been overjoyed to learn that Dacia is now entering the fray with the Bigster. It’s a bit of a silly name, but the decision to make this car was anything but.
In terms of design, pricing and drivability, the Renault-owned Romanian brand currently finds itself in a formidable vein of form.
The cars are great value but also, thanks to the dash of Germano-Scandi design injected during the brand’s 2021 revamp, quietly desirable too. Last year, the Sandero hatchback was – and was by a country mile – the best-selling car in Europe, with the Duster, its crossover kin, also making the top 10.
The Bigster now opens up another potentially successful front for Dacia, and of course it doesn’t deviate from the recipe. Even in the top-spec form tested here, it costs less than £30,000.
