Dacia Duster.

[Retired]

Hi,

Thanks Gary. Remember the TV Series "Howard's Way"? Leo in the series I believe had one of the first Suzuki jeeps and I was very impressed by its trendy looks until reports started to appear that these rolled over very easily? I must stress this is from memory and was many years ago but I've never considered owning a Suzuki since; I was never keen on the big (750cc) Suzuki motorcycles either. Thanks though Gary for your suggestion which I do appreciate; I've had a look at the Suzuki Jimny and note there are three variants all having petrol engines and all costing around the same price as the mid range Duster.

I've no problems buying any car from any country as long as the car will do its intended job in a reliable manner and be value for money; I'm not into badge engineering or snobbery; Bron and I just want a car fit for purpose without lots of frills and extras to complicate matters. I used to be interested in cars and enjoyed many years of playing around with them but these days I just want to climb in and drive; in fact I'm no longer bothered about driving because it has become nothing but hassle.

Thanks David; yes the Dacia is made in Romania and is Renault based; Renault has been another car I've never considered buying for no particular reason but having looked at the Dacia range these are based on tried and tested Renault running gear so in this respect I wouldn't think reliability is an issue and reviews state running costs should be reasonable especially when it comes to servicing and spare parts?

Depreciation on your son's Aston Martin David in a year would possibly pay for a Duster or two? £150K isn't a sum I would wish to pay just for everyday transport but what the heck whatever pushes your buttons I say? I prefer getting dirty rubbing old machines down than driving these days. Any car whatever the cost is only a machine made up of many parts each of which can break or go wrong; even a Rolls Royce can break down but I would think the company would like such matters kept quiet?

Our little Aygo is a capable little car and this is our second Aygo but last summer I ended up very ill indeed whilst lifting bags of aggregate from its boot over the very deep boot lip so I said at that time enough is enough and now a low boot lip is a must. The bigger Duster will also be very handy for carrying machines; when I loaded the Aygo with two cast iron lathe beds it was plane spotting on the way over to Halifax where I had the beds re-ground. I wouldn't knock our own British industry because we are still capable matching the best engineering in the world even if our industry has been considerably reduced.

Good question Gary; what to buy and each of us are different as are our requirements when it comes to car ownership; good luck with whatever you finally choose and perhaps like me you can share your story? I bet you get another Honda Gary though?

Kind regards, Col.