The rise of SUVs and crossovers is well documented, and their popularity has taken off to the point many manufacturers have introduced more ‘rugged’ versions of their regular cars. It’s been with mixed results, though – Audi’s high-riding A1 Citycarver proving to be a sales flop and Vauxhall quietly dropping its faux off-road ‘Rocks’ models.
The same can’t be said for Dacia, though, which has seen its chunkier ‘Stepway’ models outsell its regular variants – accounting for 60 per cent of overall Sandero sales. And with this budget supermini now back for a new generation, should buyers continue to opt for the Stepway version? We’re finding out.