Dacia Sandero Stepway review
The Dacia Sandero Stepway is a rugged, practical, and incredibly affordable supermini that gives you SUV style without the high price tag.
Author: Charlie Harvey
19th Dec 2025 – 8 mins read
The Dacia Sandero is famous for being one of the UK’s most affordable new cars, offering brand-new, hassle-free motoring for the price of a used car. The Sandero Stepway takes that winning formula and adds a dose of rugged, crossover-inspired style. With its raised suspension, chunky plastic cladding, and roof rails, it’s a car that looks ready for an adventure, even if it’s just the school run. The latest version, launched in 2021, is a huge leap forward. It’s based on the same platform as the excellent Renault Clio, so it’s more comfortable, better to drive, and much more modern inside. It’s also one of the most spacious cars in its class. While it’s a little more expensive than the standard Sandero, the Stepway’s combination of cool looks, amazing value, and impressive practicality makes it a brilliant and very clever choice.
Pros
- Chunky and attractive SUV-inspired styling
- A surprisingly spacious interior for a supermini
- Unbeatable value, undercutting most rivals by thousands
Cons
- It's noticeably pricier than the standard Sandero
- Doesn't come with as much safety kit as rivals
- The engine and trim choices are more limited than the regular Sandero
Interior
Dashboard & tech
The interior of the latest Sandero Stepway is a massive improvement over the old model. While you can still see where costs have been saved with plenty of hard plastics, the design is modern, logical, and the quality is surprisingly good for the price. The Stepway gets its own unique orange trim highlights, which adds a welcome splash of colour to the cabin.
Entry-level models make do with a clever system where you mount your smartphone to act as the infotainment screen, but most versions get a simple and user-friendly eight-inch touchscreen. It’s a cabin that prioritises function over flair, but it does everything you need it to, and it feels solid enough to stand up to the rigours of family life.
Comfort
The Sandero Stepway is a very comfortable car to drive. The soft suspension and raised ride height do a brilliant job of soaking up bumps and potholes, making it a relaxing car for tackling Britain's less-than-perfect road surfaces. It’s an easy and stress-free car to live with every day.
The driving position is good, with great visibility thanks to the higher seating position. It's not a car that's built for speed, but when driven sensibly, its comfortable and easy-going nature makes it a very pleasant companion for both town driving and longer journeys.
Quality
You have to remember the Sandero Stepway’s bargain price when assessing its quality. No, it doesn't have the plush, soft-touch materials of a Ford Fiesta or Volkswagen Polo, but everything feels solid and well put together. The cabin is built for durability rather than luxury.
The new model is based on proven Renault Clio parts, which provides a great deal of reassurance about its long-term dependability. It’s a car that feels like it’s built to last, delivering a sense of robustness that belies its low price.
Practicality & boot space
Interior space
For such an affordable car, the Sandero Stepway is incredibly spacious. In fact, it’s one of the roomiest cars in the supermini class, offering more space in the back than pricier rivals like the Ford Fiesta and Vauxhall Corsa.
There's plenty of headroom and legroom for adults to get comfortable in the back, making it a genuinely usable family car. The five-door-only layout means access is easy, and fitting a child seat is no problem at all. It’s a car that punches well above its weight when it comes to interior practicality.
Boot space
The boot in the Sandero Stepway is a very generous 328 litres. That's a great size for a supermini and is more than big enough for a weekly shop, a pushchair, or luggage for a family weekend away. It's a good, practical shape that makes it easy to load. The clever roof bars on the Stepway can also be converted into a proper roof rack, allowing you to carry loads of up to 80kg, which is a brilliantly useful feature.
Driving
Driving experience
Don’t let the rugged looks fool you; the Sandero Stepway is not a proper off-roader. It drives in much the same way as the standard Sandero, which is no bad thing. The latest model is a huge improvement over its predecessor, with steering that is light and accurate, and handling that is safe and predictable.
It’s at its best when driven in a relaxed manner, where you can appreciate its comfortable ride and easy-going nature. The light controls and great visibility make it a doddle to drive around town. It’s not as fun or engaging as a Ford Fiesta, but it’s a capable, comfortable, and confidence-inspiring car to drive.
Performance
The Stepway is only available with Dacia's more powerful engine options. The main choice is a 1.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine called the TCe 90, which produces 89bhp. It’s available with a six-speed manual gearbox or a CVT automatic. It provides perfectly adequate performance for everyday driving, getting from 0-60mph in around 12 seconds.
Dacia also offers an intriguing ‘Bi-Fuel’ model. This uses a 99bhp version of the 1.0-litre engine and can run on both petrol and cheaper Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), which can significantly reduce your fuel bills.
Running costs
Fuel economy & charging
The Sandero Stepway is a very cheap car to run. The standard petrol engine can return up to 50.4mpg, which is a very respectable figure. If you really want to cut your running costs, the Bi-Fuel model is the one to go for. LPG costs roughly half the price of petrol, and Dacia estimates you could save up to £600 a year on fuel. You can switch between petrol and LPG at the touch of a button with no impact on performance.
Low insurance groups also help to keep annual costs down, making it a very affordable car to own and run.
Value for money
Value for money is the Sandero Stepway’s ace card. It costs thousands of pounds less than its rivals, and even top-spec models with all the bells and whistles are cheaper than many entry-level superminis. It’s a brand-new car for the price of a used one.
Because Dacias are so affordable in the first place, they don't have as far to fall in value. They hold their value surprisingly well, which means you won't lose a huge amount of money when you come to sell it. It’s one of the smartest buys on the road.
Reliability & Warranty
Dacias have a good reputation for being simple, robust, and reliable. The previous Sandero proved to be a dependable choice, helped by the fact there wasn't much complex technology to go wrong. This latest model uses well-proven engines and parts from its parent company Renault, so it should be a very reliable car. From new, all Dacias come with a three-year, 60,000-mile warranty.
Safety
Safety features
When the latest Dacia Sandero was crash-tested by the safety experts at Euro NCAP, it was awarded a two-star rating. This is one of the main areas where the car’s budget price is noticeable, as it lacks some of the advanced active safety systems that are standard on more expensive rivals. However, all models do come with automatic emergency braking and an emergency E-Call service as standard, along with six airbags.
Trims & Engines
Trim levels
The Sandero Stepway is available in three well-judged trim levels.
Essential: The entry-level model is far from basic. It comes with 16-inch wheels, automatic LED headlights, air conditioning, cruise control, DAB radio, and Bluetooth.
Comfort: This is our pick of the range. It adds the eight-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, rear parking sensors, a reversing camera, keyless entry, and automatic wipers.
Prestige: The top-of-the-range model is still a bargain. It adds features like diamond-cut alloy wheels, front parking sensors, blind-spot warning, automatic air conditioning, and a built-in satellite navigation system.
Engines
The engine range is simple and focused on efficiency.
TCe 90: An 89bhp 1.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine. It's available with a six-speed manual or a CVT automatic gearbox and offers a great blend of performance and economy for everyday driving.TCe 100 Bi-Fuel: A 99bhp version of the 1.0-litre engine that can run on both petrol and cheaper LPG gas. It's the most economical choice in the long run.