\u201cMy challenge is to say nothing is impossible,\u201d says Dacia\u2019s head of design, David Durand. \u201cI tell my designers, constraints mean creativity.\u201d\u00a0 And when Dacia decided to enter the hyper-competitive (and profitable) C SUV segment with the Bigster, Durand\u2019s team knew that they had to keep costs and diversity to a minimum. They started from the premise that the Bigster would be the same as the new small Duster (launched earlier this year) up until the B pillar. Then, they sought to create a credible, high-performing compact SUV that would start at less than 25,000 euros.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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<\/a><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\u201cWith the Duster, we know the B SUV segment very well,\u201d Durand said in an interview in Berlin, where the Bigster was revealed to the press ahead of the Paris auto show Oct. 14-20. \u201cFor the C SUV segment, it\u2019s not the same story. Nobody is waiting for Dacia, and we have to convince them we have a serious offer.\u201d Serious, for Durand, means the Bigster has a strong, vertical front end; large, simple volumes (and one of the largest cargo spaces in its class), and the ability to fit up to 19-inch wheels under aggressively flared and plastic-cladded fenders. The Bigster stretches out the Renault Group\u2019s CMF-B platform up to the compact class. The Bigster is 4.57 meters long, 25 cm more than the Duster; 1.71 meters high (+5 cm vs. the Duster) and has a 2.7 meter-long wheelbase (+4 cm).<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/a><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>Durand and his team did more than add longer doors to the Duster to create the Bigster. Mindful of retaining the correct proportions, some of the new length is in a longer overhang and extended rear side windows. Rear seat passengers benefit from generous knee room as a result; and the rear cargo space is 667 liters, 150 liters more than the Duster. \u201cIt was all about getting a good balance,\u201d Durand said. If the proportions aren\u2019t right at first glance, he said, the design loses credibility. Fine-turning the proportions of the Bigster also saves money, he said. \u201cWhen you don\u2019t have good proportions, you need to put on \u2018makeup\u2019 to hide a big overhang, for example.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/a><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>But that \u2018makeup\u2019 comes at a cost, he said, in extra parts, chrome, contour lines, \u201cand you start to make the car look busy. That\u2019s not our approach.\u201d In the end, will the Bigster persuade buyers in the C SUV segment, to give Dacia a chance? Durand sees the Bigster, in particular, attracting those who now have a B segment SUV or even a used midsize car. \u201cThey\u2019ll say, OK, this offering from Dacia, it\u2019s big, it\u2019s well designed, it\u2019s serious, it gives me everything I need,\u201d he said. \u201cMaybe it doesn\u2019t have this feature or that feature, but honestly for the price, I don\u2019t care.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>