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iI could have simply written that the Dacia Lodgy I is just a Dokker with windows and I could have gone out for a beer in peace and quiet as it’s now open until 11 pm anyway and it’s open inside. Or go to the fruit machins as those are open too? Except that the Dacia Lodgy I is not really a Dokker with windows and Ricky Gervais is not really a stand-up-er.

You know, I’ve been told, mainly by myself, why don’t I do stand-up comedy??? And my answer, mostly mine to myself, is that I already do stand-up comedy, I have my own online septic tank where I write my issues down and put my dementia on the scale. Well, actually it’s not really stand-up comedy because I’m sitting when I write these literary calamities. If I have to write about the VW Sharan, I’m sitting on the toilet for example. If I’m writing about the X5, I go to the latest club craze and hope I don’t come out raped and tattooed. And if I write about the Dacia Lodgy I, I write straight from the library. Not to say I don’t, but I like to play with words like a scatophil plays with poo.

Around 2000 the saloon car craze began, mainly thanks to the Passat B5.5. Then around 2005, the SUV craze began with the X5, Touareg, Range Rover, Q7, Porsche Cayenne, and other cars made with the sole mission of showing the poor what social and financial status you have. Come the 2008-2009 crisis and the wheeled massaging seats are the first victims and the hatchbacks come back so spectacularly that you’d think they were straight out of Star Wars Episode VI, cars like Golf GTI, Megane RS, Alfa Giulietta, Astra OPC and so on. Except that by 2010 the Nissan Qashqai was starting to catch on and by 2015 the car industry was already dominated by crossover abortions.

And here we are in 2020 and we come across a new automotive trend in the car industry, at the center of which the Dacia Logdy I found itself to be one of the main stars – the holiday car.

Why are vans with windows in high demand in 2020?

First of all, the civilized world is starting to give up cars to move about around town. Either they have realized that it is cheaper, faster, and more efficient to use public transport, or they are being forced by their mayors to give up cars – insufficient and pay-only parking, banning cars with old pollution standards, turning centers into pedestrian zones etc. This means that most people now just buy a car to drive around on holiday, and if it is cheap, has a huge boot, and can hold 7 people then it is ideal.

The second reason is that people are starting to get out into nature because they are tired of concrete. It’s just that most of them are not willing to give up the comforts of the city so they would like to drive to the mountains and stay in a tent but have wi-fi, plugs, and a TV in the tent. As you can see, that’s why glamping has taken off in Europe. Not to mention the boom in camper van rental and camper van conversions. And if you have the chance to grab a rugged version like the Dacia Lodgy I Stepway, then you’re really in for a treat.

Dacia Lodgy I Engines

Petrol

• 1.2 Turbo of 115 horsepower – The seed of discord between Renault and Nissan, an engine so good it was strapped with a straitjacket and taken off the scene shortly after it was unveiled. Notorious for its oil consumption.


• 1.3 Turbo 130 horsepower  – The only engine available on the Dacia Lodgy I in 2020, to make it clear that the Dokker is a working car (with diesel) and the Lodgy is a family car. In any case, if this engine was good enough for Mercedes, it’s good enough for you.


• 1.6 MPI of 85 horsepower – The original engine the Dacia Lodgy I was launched with, and was clearly way too small for the 7-seat version, but at least it’s reliable. Anyway, if you can’t afford the 1.3 Turbo, then go for this engine.

Diesel

1.5 dCi 90 and 110 hp – The famous 1.5 dCi K9K launched 3000 years ago in the Clio and Megane, which was by far the most balanced engine for the Lodgy but here we are at the end of the road, as pollution regulations have finally withdrawn it. Just like the 1.6 naturally aspirated, this engine has been around since before the universe and so far pretty much all the issues have been solved. I say pretty much all the issues because the AdBlue system remains, which is the death of passion but also of modern diesel engines.

Dacia Lodgy I General Issues

• The door locks are of the highest quality if your standards in life are all about tough love. However, as with tough love, the issue can be solved with some Vaseline.


• Unlike the Dokker where instead of infotainment space you have place for papers, papers, packs of cigarettes, gums, and phones, the Dacia Lodgy I has been fitted with an infotainment system that is fussier about phones than a high school girl when it comes to boys. Either make sure your phone is compatible or take Dacia’s advice and change your phone.


• The suspension is such a weak point that you feel like they put chewing gum in place of shocks. 


• In the purest Japanese tradition, the Dacia Lodgy I comes with symbolic insulation and after 100 km/h you have to shout at the passenger next to you like Ellen Degeneres shouts at her staff to bring her phone. But hey, what do you expect for that kind of money?

Dacia Lodgy I Verdict

And so the Dacia Lodgy I becomes the leading star in this obscure but steadily growing trend. You’d think a crossover would be better suited, but most don’t have a boot or a 7-seater option and if they have a boot and 7 seats then they’re easily jumping over the 30,000 euros mark. And the Dacia Lodgy I Stepway? 16400 euro VAT included.

Not to mention that the Lodgy when it was launched cost only 11500 euros in basic trim and 5 seats. 11500 euros for a holiday bus. Exactly half the price of a Touran. 2000 euros less than a Combo Life. But don’t think that only the lowest price dictates this market because VW California and Mercedes Viano sell just as well even if they are well over 50.000 euros. Will the time of the hated cross-over finally end and we all start driving holiday buses in which we can conceive, deliver, maintain and raise a family???

What engines do I recommend? For petrol, I recommend the 1.3 TCe if you can afford it and the 1.6 MPI if you can’t afford the 1.3 TCe, and for diesel definitely the 110hp 1.5 dCi.