Dacia is to expand into the light-commercial market later this year with a van version of its Duster SUV.
The Renault-owned Romanian brand has announced the launch of its LCV during the CV Show 2015 at the NEC in Birmingham.
The new Duster Commercial models will be offered in 4×2 and 4×4 guises and according to Dacia have been created at the specific request of the UK and Ireland divisions, where car-derived vans account for 30 per cent of the LCV market. Evolved directly from the Duster car but with its window apertures blanked out, the Commercial has a false floor with load protection. As a result it can carry up 1,150 litres in two-wheel-drive form or 1,000 litres with all-wheel-drive.
Payload capacity is 550kg and the flat cargo deck measures almost 1.4 metres long with more than a metre width between the wheel arches.
All Commercials will be sold with the 1.5-litre 106bhp dCi 110 diesel engine, while Dacia believes the availability of an all-wheel-drive transmission will increase the vehicle appeal to a number of commercial users, notably landscape gardeners, ground maintenance staff, farmers and forestry, power and communications companies who need to reach remote areas, often in extreme weather.
There will be two trim levels, Ambiance or Lauréate, and prices range from £9,595 for an Ambience 4×2 to £12,545 for the Lauréate 4×4. These prices are of course plus VAT – the Duster Commercial classed as a van, allowing owners to reclaim the VAT on the purchase price, while users benefit from flat-rate benefit-in-kind taxation.
