← Continued from Page 5 of "From Dacia 1300 to Dacia Logan/Duster. The History of a Controversial Brand"It was under these circumstances that the much awaited launch day finally arrived. In 1995, Dacia officially announced the first 100% Romanian-made automobile, the Dacia Nova. This time, even though the project was said to be 100% original, the model chosen for “inspiration purposes” was Peugeot 309. Old habits die hard, I guess. Nevertheless, that’s probably the reason why the car, being delayed for so long, looked dated and had no point of attraction whatsoever, failing to make any impression even on the local market.
Some claim that the resemblance to the Peugeot 309 was due to pure coincidence and the car was really 100% original. What’s 100% certain, however, is that when it rained, owners had to use an umbrella both outside and inside the Nova. Many customers complained that rain got inside because of the defective design of the car’s doors.
The Nova had a hatchback exterior design, front wheel drive, five doors and, very broadly speaking, five seats.
However, competition was already starting to build up for Dacia. Cheap second-hand vehicles were being brought over at an alarming rate, which in turn put incredible pressure on Dacia’s engineers and designers.
If up until recently Dacia benefitted from a self-indulging monopoly position, from now on having a Dacia badge and (probably) being the first 100% Romanian-made Dacia would not matter that much anymore in the battle for the best quality/price factor.
The inexorable and downright proverbial technical issues promptly showed up but things moved forward, even though lack of direction made navigating away from the dark waters of business competition seem unlikely. Dacia was not prepared for what was going on and, if things did not change from the ground up, and fast, it was bound to fade away from the automotive market.
Dacia Nova received a new and modern engine in 1998, a 1.6 litter from Bosch with monopoint injection. At the same time, Dacia 1310 CN4 get its last facelift. For a 25 year old model, it was extremely successful and was exported to Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic and Latin America.” Lots of “idiots” on this planet”, would have Ceau_escu probably muttered under his breath, were he still alive to see these achievements with his own eyes...
It’s worth mentioning that 1310’s last incarnation was nicknamed “Iliescu’s smile”, as if each Dacia model just had to be connected somehow to the country’s president. This was very much in tune with the feeling that Romania and its people were still strongly connected to the defunct communist regime. Still, Romania was on its way to becoming a communism-free country, member of NATO and the EU, while Dacia eventually turned into a private company, determined to secure a firm position on the new, free automotive market.
1998 was also the year when the 2 million mark was passed. 2 million Dacias sold, a respectable figure providing doubtless recognition of one of the strongest local brands.
The last 1998 novelty was a Dacia Nova 7-seater prototype which was written about and pictured in newspapers but very rarely seen on the streets.
Some claim that the resemblance to the Peugeot 309 was due to pure coincidence and the car was really 100% original. What’s 100% certain, however, is that when it rained, owners had to use an umbrella both outside and inside the Nova. Many customers complained that rain got inside because of the defective design of the car’s doors.
The Nova had a hatchback exterior design, front wheel drive, five doors and, very broadly speaking, five seats.
However, competition was already starting to build up for Dacia. Cheap second-hand vehicles were being brought over at an alarming rate, which in turn put incredible pressure on Dacia’s engineers and designers.
If up until recently Dacia benefitted from a self-indulging monopoly position, from now on having a Dacia badge and (probably) being the first 100% Romanian-made Dacia would not matter that much anymore in the battle for the best quality/price factor.
The inexorable and downright proverbial technical issues promptly showed up but things moved forward, even though lack of direction made navigating away from the dark waters of business competition seem unlikely. Dacia was not prepared for what was going on and, if things did not change from the ground up, and fast, it was bound to fade away from the automotive market.
Dacia Nova received a new and modern engine in 1998, a 1.6 litter from Bosch with monopoint injection. At the same time, Dacia 1310 CN4 get its last facelift. For a 25 year old model, it was extremely successful and was exported to Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic and Latin America.” Lots of “idiots” on this planet”, would have Ceau_escu probably muttered under his breath, were he still alive to see these achievements with his own eyes...
It’s worth mentioning that 1310’s last incarnation was nicknamed “Iliescu’s smile”, as if each Dacia model just had to be connected somehow to the country’s president. This was very much in tune with the feeling that Romania and its people were still strongly connected to the defunct communist regime. Still, Romania was on its way to becoming a communism-free country, member of NATO and the EU, while Dacia eventually turned into a private company, determined to secure a firm position on the new, free automotive market.
1998 was also the year when the 2 million mark was passed. 2 million Dacias sold, a respectable figure providing doubtless recognition of one of the strongest local brands.
The last 1998 novelty was a Dacia Nova 7-seater prototype which was written about and pictured in newspapers but very rarely seen on the streets.
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