Here’s to another 10,000: New Duster due here in weeks

DACIA’s new Duster will be unveiled in Ireland on September 5.

It has big footsteps to follow. The outgoing model hit sales of more than 10,000 after arriving here six years ago.

Dacia remains tight-lipped about what sort of pricing levels the new generation will involve.

And the same goes for their spec levels, except to emphasise that they are not in line with those in the UK on the basis that Irish buyers are getting some different engines.

Pricing was absolutely key for a car that arrived at a time when the recession was hitting hard and there was keen demand for something that could be bought brand new for the price of a good second-hand motor.

That transformed how people viewed the car and to be fair still do in many respects. Above all it has to be value for money.

The new version looks a lot better inside and out – at least from where I was sitting in it at a motor show – but we’ll have to wait and see how the whole package fits.

A lot has changed over the past six years, not least people’s preferences for something a lot more than basic, at a price.

The brand insists there are major changes and claims significant active and passive safety elements have been added (blind spot monitoring, multi-view camera etc, especially on the higher-trim cars).