Dacia Sandero:

Renault and Nissan Set Sights on South African Factory

Renault and Nissan are investing in a future in South Africa. The partnered companies will spend 80 million euros to expand Nissan’s plant in Rosslyn. The factory is now set up to produce a replacement for Nissan’s well-established half-ton pickup, and by 2009, it will also be producing a version of the compact Renault Sandero (sold also as a Dacia in some parts of the world.) Once the expansion is complete, it will increase the factory’s output by 70%, bringing it up to 68,000 vehicles per year.

This marks the first time Renault will be building a car in South Africa for the home market, but Nissan has been established locally for a while. The plant in Rosslyn was originally built by Nissan about 45 years ago, and has since produced over a million cars. Renault moving into this facility should be no surprise as the companies already share many manufacturing facilities worldwide (as well as share stock ownership and a CEO.)<

Dacia Sandero

Dacia will launch a new model in 2008/2009,The Sandero, a five door hatch based on the Logan.Compared to the 4-door saloon, it has a smaller wheelbase; it is built in Brazil and sold there under the Renault brand from December 2007, being export for other countries as well.