Calling their structural safety great seems like an overstatement -- I can't find a Dacia model on EuroNCAP that doesn't have sketchy dummy kinematics, and one new model (Spring) performs startlingly poorly in crash tests
The best appears to be the 2021 Dacia Logan[1] which has a crash test littered with "marginals":
> [...] structures in the dashboard presented a risk of injury to occupants of different sizes and to those sitting in different positions, and protection for this part of the body was downgraded to marginal. Chest protection was also rated as marginal for both front seat occupants, based on dummy readings of chest compression.
> In the side barrier test, representing an impact by another vehicle, chest compression indicated a marginal level of protection.
> ...geometric analysis of the rear seats indicated marginal whiplash protection.
I think Dacia makes great cars for what they are and their price, but there are much better options for crash mitigation.
I drove a brand new SEAT this year as a rental which had a clutch that was almost impossible to actuate smoothly due to a very bizzare non linear bite profile. I wonder if it's similar for Dacia cars.
The only Dacia stuff I'm personally interested in is the stuff with the new Renault hybrid drivetrains
No, the Dacia clutch has a very short bite profile, like most Renault cars. I find it annoying after driving mainly Suzukis and VAG group cars. The Seat Leon is quite a nice drive and we also had a rental Skoda Fabia which was ok as well, apart from a too soft suspension that makes you think it's going to flip over. My other car is a previous model Audi A1 1.4 TFSI, which is very stable and much fun to drive on good roads, but it's unreliable, the trunk is useless and Eastern European roads are full of potholes and inequalities, so I'm selling it.
The Captur hybrid is the only Renault PHEV I'm aware of and it has automatic transmission.
The hybrid version of the Jogger will – like Renault’s full-hybrid versions of the Clio and Captur – be based on a 1.6 liter four-cylinder gasoline engine. The E-Tech system uses two electric motors, a starter motor and a drive unit, that are controlled by a clutchless “dog box” transmission.
Dacia did not release horsepower figures or a sales price for the hybrid version, but the drivetrain produces 140 hp in the Clio. Dacia said it will be “the most affordable seven-seater hybrid on the market.”
Renault says the E-Tech system allows for 80 percent of urban driving in electric-only mode, and for a total fuel savings of 40 percent compared with a comparable gasoline drivetrain.
That's fair. It's still a massive improvement over the cars built before 2000 which would decapitate you with the steering column from a fender bender.
The best appears to be the 2021 Dacia Logan[1] which has a crash test littered with "marginals":
> [...] structures in the dashboard presented a risk of injury to occupants of different sizes and to those sitting in different positions, and protection for this part of the body was downgraded to marginal. Chest protection was also rated as marginal for both front seat occupants, based on dummy readings of chest compression.
> In the side barrier test, representing an impact by another vehicle, chest compression indicated a marginal level of protection.
> ...geometric analysis of the rear seats indicated marginal whiplash protection.
I think Dacia makes great cars for what they are and their price, but there are much better options for crash mitigation.
[1]: https://www.euroncap.com/en/results/Dacia/Logan/42505