2014 Dacia Towny small car will be the Romanian brand’s latest and lowest priced offering

Small is big and entry level is the new money spinner. That seems to the overwhelming sentiment across the world’s car making circles. From Toyota to Nissan, car brands are all jumping on to the cut price-entry level bandwagon with a vengeance, never seen before. Volkswagen, has the first mover advantage with the Up! hatchback. Even as Toyota announced 8 new products targeting emerging markets, Nissan has already begun working on the Datsun range of low cost, small cars. Amidst all this, we have Renault joining the party with its Romanian low cost car brand in tow.

2014 Dacia Towny-Renault Small Car render

The Dacia Towny is the name of the low cost small car that Renault plans to develop for the emerging markets. Renault hopes to price the Towny at under 5,000 Euros, thus justifying its low cost credentials. Also, Renault wants to develop this platform with Nissan, which has Datsun to take care of. The Renault small car will be launched sometime in 2014, coinciding with Nissan’s launch of the Datsun based cars. However, the Renault small car could be priced a little higher than the Nissan cars, as has been the trend for quite a while now, in line with positioning Renault as a slightly more upmarket brand than Nissan.

So, it becomes quite apparent that the low cost small car that Renault is developing along with Nissan is what the Dacia Towny will be, in European markets, as Renault has clearly demarcated the Dacia brand for its low cost offerings in Europe. In India though, the Renault badging is what will adorn the small car. Engine options are said to be limited to a petrol engine as the price at which the small car will retail at makes it very difficult for a diesel engine to be plonked under the hood. A 900cc, three cylinder unit could be the choice of petrol engine used in the Dacia Towny/Renault small car.

2014 Dacia Towny-Renault Small Car render

Expect this car to be produced in India, both for the domestic market as well as exports. That said, Renault also is mulling local production to ensure that the car is priced competitively across the world. So, expect the small car to be produced in a few emerging location across the globe, where the cost of production is suitably lower than say, Europe. The Dacia Towny car will compete with the likes of the Volkswagen Up! and the Suzuki Alto. All said, crucial details of the Towny like the engine and platform apply to the Renault/Datsun small cars as well.

Via Largus