Expanding the search to estate cars has brought up this which was recommended as ‘basic bang for buck’ by a colleague. Any good ? - I haven’t noticed any around but can see that for the money it’s spacious (not as big as a Duster) and low mileage. Equivalent models from other makes seem more expensive ....
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201903266269631?radius=50&onesearchad=New&onesearchad=Nearly%20New&onesearchad=Used&advertising-location=at_cars&model=TIPO&price-from=8000&price-to=10000&sort=relevance&postcode=nn142pt&year-to=2020&make=FIAT&page=1
That Fiat does look something of a bargain!. A bit of an unloved child in this country, perhaps unfairly. But it does fulfil a similar niche to the Dacia, that of basic no nonsense transport for those who are not concerned with what badge is on the car. And while it isn't as tall as the Duster, it taller than the likes of a current Focus or Golf so might still meet with SWMBO's approval!.
The figure for the Duster's dimensions are slightly misleading, if you look at one from the front or rear, you can see how obviously flared the wheel arches are. The cabin itself isn't actually that wide, so bearing in mind the overall width of the Duster is only 12mm more than the Tipo, it's cabin is likely to be narrower (i'm thinking specifically across the rear seat with three up). As for the length, this being the estate version of the Tipo, it is 23cm longer than the Duster and has over 100 litres more boot capacity.
As far as i know the 1.4t engine in the Fiat is quite reliable (not sure about the rest of the package), so definitely worth consideration.
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