Dacia Logan MCV Stepway estate (2017-2021)

With four components to its name, the Dacia Logan MCV Stepway needs a very brief introduction before we can tell you if it’s any good or not.

Built by Renault-owned Dacia, the standard Logan MCV (Maximum Capacity Vehicle) is an estate sibling to the Dacia Sandero hatchback, and offers potential Fiat Tipo Estate and Skoda Fabia Estate buyers an even more affordable alternative.

Just as it did with the Stepway version of the Sandero hatchback, Dacia has toughened up the Logan MCV to create the Logan MCV Stepway. By flaring its wheelarches, fitting tougher black plastic bumpers and side sills and raising its ride height, Dacia has brought SUV styling cues to the Logan MCV estate car, building on the success of the Sandero Stepway in the process.

Practicality is unchanged, so you get a huge 573-litre estate boot and room for five adults – making the Logan MCV one of the best-value cars money can buy if space is your priority. For comparison, the Skoda Octavia Estate from the class above has a 610-litre boot, but is around £7,000 more expensive.

That brings us to one difference that does exist between the standard Logan MCV and the Stepway version: price.

Because it’s only available in high-spec Comfort trim and with the better engines from the Logan range, the Logan MCV Stepway is roughly £4,000 more expensive than the cheapest standard Logan. Due to the extra equipment and nicer engines, that’s a reasonable enough deal, but it does mean the Logan MCV Stepway can’t offer the stonking value-for-money its standard stablemate musters.

Dacia offers three engines with the Logan MCV Stepway: an 89bhp turbocharged petrol, a 99bhp dual-fuel petrol/LPG engine and a 94bhp 1.5-litre diesel. All models come with a five-speed manual gearbox and take around 12 seconds to go from 0-62mph. The diesel officially gets 60.1mpg, while the petrols are cheaper to buy, but less efficient, returning around 45-47mpg.

The diesel also has more outright pulling power – particularly lower down in the rev range, so if you plan on using the Logan MCV as the maximum capacity vehicle it was designed to be, you’ll likely be grateful for the diesel’s extra grunt. Just don’t expect a thrilling driving experience: while it’s comfortable enough over individual bumps, the Logan does get a little bouncy over uneven country roads – but it’s a competent enough motorway cruiser.

While the Logan MCV Stepway is relatively no-frills inside and interior quality runs to durable rather than plush, there’s enough equipment to keep most happy, with sat nav and reversing sensors being two highlights.

The 1.5-litre Blue dCi diesel engine is the best choice for high mileage drivers, posting an impressive official economy figure of 60.1mpg and CO2 emissions of 124g/km.

The petrol versions of Logan MCV Stepway are less efficient, with the turbocharged TCe 90 capable of up to 45.6mpg and emissions of 139g/km. The TCe 100 Bi-Fuel is a decent alternative for those who don’t cover enough miles to justify a diesel, with fuel economy of 47.1mpg and emissions of 134g/km when running on petrol. Run it on LPG, and you can expect up to 38.2mpg with emissions falling to 121g/km.

Road tax will be a flat £150 a year for both models and if you’re offered a Logan MCV Stepway as a company car, expect a mid-range Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) rating for all models.

Dacia’s fixed-price servicing is affordable, with a three-year/30,000-mile deal costing £350.

The Logan MCV Stepway has been designed to offer tough looks, value for money and strong practicality – and it delivers in those three areas.

A driver’s car it is not, however. With soft suspension and a raised ride height, the Logan MCV Stepway irons out individual potholes well enough, but it tends to bounce about over undulating roads, which are fairly common in the UK.

16

Taking such roads gently largely solves this problem, however, and driving with a laid-back mindset will also make the most of the diesel engine’s nature, as it’s quiet enough in general use but a little loud when revved hard.

Both the 0.9-litre TCe 90 three-cylinder turbocharged engine and TCe 100 Bi-Fuel petrol/LPG engines are decent enough performers in general terms, taking 12.4 seconds to go from 0-62mph. The more powerful Bi-Fuel engine offers slightly improved pulling power lower down the rev range, but both engines are likely to struggle somewhat if the car’s fully laden.

If your annual mileage and driving habits justify it, you’re better off choosing the 1.5-litre diesel. While this is slightly slower, taking 12.6 seconds to go from 0-62mph, it’s better suited to pulling the heavy loads the Logan MCV was designed to carry.

Dacia facelifted the standard Logan MCV at the same time it launched the Logan MCV Stepway, so the latter benefits from the company’s latest steering wheel and some improved materials. It’s still relatively utilitarian inside, with scratchy plastics and run-of-the-mill styling, but everything works conventionally and there are few gripes about build quality per se.

16

As a relatively expensive car within the Logan range, the Stepway in Comfort trim comes with 16-inch wheels, rear parking sensors, cruise control, air-conditioning, sat nav, a seven-inch infotainment screen (with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay compatibility), DAB radio and all-round electric windows, as well as Stepway badging on the seats. For added luxury, customers can upgrade to leather upholstery (£500), or add a rear-view camera for £200. We'd also recommend the optional spare wheel, costing £150.

SE Twenty spec cars get a model-specific set of 16-inch alloy wheels, upgraded upholstery with blue mesh detailing and a rear parking camera.

Dacia is so keen to highlight the Logan’s status as a maximum capacity vehicle that it added those MCV initials to its name – and it lives up to them.

Front and rear-seat passengers get a decent amount of room, and although the middle rear seat is tight, this is a given in many cars from this class and beyond.

16

Opening the boot (an operation which requires the key) reveals a huge 573-litre load area that dwarfs the competition and puts many rivals to shame. For comparison, the Ford Focus Estate is almost 100 litres down on the Dacia.

Dropping the rear seats sees the Logan MCV Stepway’s cargo area almost treble in size to 1,518 litres, and even if the back seats don’t lie totally flat when folded, it’s a strong effort.

First, the bad news: Dacia came in last place out of 30 manufacturers in our 2020 Driver Power customer satisfaction survey. The standard Logan MCV also posted a fairly uninspiring three star (out of five) rating for crashworthiness when tested by Euro NCAP.

Much of the poor result for Dacia in our Driver Power poll was due to its engines being rated poorly, with owners finding them noisy and unrefined. Equally, the ride comfort provided by Dacias’ suspension was felt to be subpar. But in terms of outright reliability, just 17.2% of owners reported a fault with their Dacia in the previous year.

16

The Euro NCAP results are less easy to excuse, however, with the testers commenting the Logan MCV’s “passenger compartment suffered extensive deformation and could clearly not withstand any further loading.” Still, at least the Logan MCV offers “good protection of the knees and femurs of the driver and passenger”, and scored 75% for child protection, with maximum points being awarded “for its protection of the 1½ year dummy.”

Considering the Logan MCV Stepway starts at under £12,000, the fact it comes with sat nav, reversing sensors and air-conditioning as standard is impressive – particularly when cars costing several thousand pounds more have less equipment.

Looked at next to the standard Logan MCV, however, the Stepway is expensive. Sure, the Stepway may be just £1,000 pricier than a similarly equipped Laureate Logan with the same 89bhp petrol engine, but a huge part of the appeal of the Logan range is that it starts at just over £7,000 – quite a lot less than Dacia asks for the Logan MCV Stepway.

The options list is limited but includes leather seats and metallic paint, both of which are around £500.