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Virtual Adviser's™ opinion
We are here considering two somewhat similar cars, but we can't deny some of the obvious differences. For a start, they are not even classified under the same segment, with the Renault being a city car and the Dacia representing small family car vehicle class. Both the engines are Renault-engineered . The first one has a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 130hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 75hp one.
SafetyBoth vehicles got tested by European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP), with the Renault displaying significantly better structural stability. That aside, let's consider some other aspects which affect safety. The second vehicle is a small family car and that gives it a marginal advantage over the city car competitor, at least that's what statistics show. On the other hand, if we'd like to consider vehicle mass in this context too, which we definitely should, the French car offers a considerable difference of 13% more metal.
ReliabilityManufacturers have been building their reliability reputation for decades now and, generally speaking, it appears that Renault does have a slight advantage, all the models observed together. These are the official statistics, while our visitors describe reliability of Renault with an average rating of 4.2, and models under the Dacia badge with 4.1 out of 5. Some independent research have also placed Clio as average reliability-wise, and Logan is more or less at the same level.That apart, owners of different cars powered by the same engine as the French car rank it on average as 3.0, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 4.4 out of 5.
Performance & Fuel economyRenault is way more agile, reaching 100km/h in 5 seconds less than its competitor. In addition to that it accelerates all the way to 197 kilometers per hour, 41km/h more than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy the winner has to be the Romanian car, averaging around 5.8 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (49 mpg), in combined cycle. We can't ignore that 19% difference compared to the French car.
Verdict
Dacia appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, the French car beats the other contender by far, making it the best choice without even considering other things. It all continues in the same direction, with Renault outracing its opponent in any situation possible, making it better choice for boy racers. It does come at a cost though, and that's the fuel consumption... All together, there's not much more to say, in this case I wouldn't even consider anything but Renault. In any case that's my personal view, built upon all the data available to me. What should decide here though is the way you feel about the two vehicles, and I hope you'll find my guidelines useful in the process. In case you have two minutes to spare I invite you to define your needs, desires and budget and see which car would be chosen by the virtual adviser™, among more than 12.000 different ones in our database.
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