Dacia has sold 100,000 vehicles in the UK since launching here in 2013 and establishing a reputation for incredible value for money and robust reliability. With her purchase of a New Sandero Stepway TCe 90 in Cosmos Blue metallic, Heather Reiss became the brand’s 100,000th customer in the UK. Heather collected her new car in Lauréate trim from S J Cook and Sons, Bristol – her second Dacia in three years – and was welcomed by James Hardiman, Sales Manager at S J Cook and Sons and Jeremy Townsend, Communications Director, Groupe Renault UK.

Louise O’Sullivan, Head of Dacia UK, commented: “Dacia was launched in 2013 and straight away we had great public interest in the brand. In four years the Dacia community has built up significantly thanks to the annual Dacia Day, a Dacia owners club and major brand partnerships like our one with the Rugby Football League. Loyalty to the Dacia brand has never been higher as we’re starting to see many customers, like Heather, returning to the brand to trade their old Dacia in for a new one. We wish Heather all the best in her new Sandero Stepway.”

Heather Reiss, from Bristol, said: “I purchased my first car, another Dacia Sandero Stepway, three years ago. Originally I was looking at buying a second hand car but when we arrived at the dealership, I instantly took a liking to the Sandero Stepway and thought ‘I wish I could afford it’.  After finding out more and taking it for a test drive we decided that it would be silly not to get one. With a little help from the Bank of Mum and Dad for the little amount that I was short, I could afford my new Dacia – best decision ever!  Since then, my Mum has bought a Duster as has my auntie.  When the time came to trade it in, I didn’t think of going anywhere else. It’s exciting to know I’ll be driving around in a piece of Dacia history.”

James Hardiman, Sales Manager at S J Cook and Sons said: “We’re very pleased that Heather chose to come back to SJ Cook and Sons for her second Dacia and we’re excited that the 100,000th model in the UK was at the dealership. The brand has proved extremely popular for the dealership since launching in 2013 and we have found that customers enjoy the robust, no-nonsense simplicity of Dacia vehicles. We wish Heather many happy miles in her New Sandero Stepway!”

100,000 Dacias in the UK – some facts since UK launch in 2013

• If you lined up all the Dacias sold to date in the UK, they would stretch more than twice around the M25
• Over 94 per cent of Dacia sales are to retail customers
• Heather’s New Sandero Stepway travelled 1,636 miles from the Dacia factory in Pitesti, Romania to S J Cook and Sons, Bristol
• You’re most likely to spot a Dacia in Scotland than anywhere else in the UK with a Scottish market share of 4.2 per cent
• Sandero Stepway is the most popular Dacia model bought with 35 per cent of all Dacia sales
• The TCe 90 is the most popular under the bonnet of the Dacia range
• Pearl Black is the metallic colour of choice with 36 per cent of UK customers choosing the shade for their vehicle.  White is the most popular non-metallic colour.
• Across the Dacia range, the Lauréate trim level reigns supreme, with customers opting for equipment such as larger alloy wheels, seven-inch touchscreen housing a MediaNav infotainment system, rear parking sensors and electrically-adjustable and heated door mirrors
• Inflation hasn’t reached the Sandero Access – the UK’s most affordable new car is still priced at £5,995 four years after it was first launched.

Dacia UK’s free ‘Dacia Day’ event, exclusively for Dacia owners, offers opportunities to meet with other passionate Dacia owners and provides a fun day out for the whole family.  The next one is scheduled for the summer of 2017 with a date to be confirmed in the coming weeks.

Over 4 million Dacias have been sold in Europe since the brand’s reintroduction by Groupe Renault in 2004.