Renault is providing some recession relief with a spacious and well-specced 1.6-litre sedan for under R100 000.

Renault's budget sedan (also built and sold by Dacia on many markets) has been selling up a storm in many third world countries since its introduction in 2004, and now it's finally available in South Africa.

Based on the B0 platform, the Renault Logan claims to offer interior space fitting of a class above, with enough back seat space for three adults that are 1.9 metres tall, and a massive boot, with 510 litres of storage space available. Specification is decent, with power steering, air conditioning, electric windows, CD/MP3 audio system, driver's airbag and ABS being standard features.

The new Logan is powered by a proven 1.6-litre eight-valve engine that develops 64kW at 5500rpm and 128Nm of torque at 3100rpm which, according to claims, gets the sedan from 0-100km/h in 11.5 seconds and up to a top speed of 175km/h.

In terms of fuel efficiency, the Logan records combined-cycle consumption of just 7.2 litres/100km. As a point of interest, the recently introduced Nissan NP200 bakkie is closely based on the Logan and even shares this engine. But while the Nissan is built here in South Africa, Renault's sedan is put together at its plant in India.

You might be concerned about the quality offered by a car that was designed to be so affordable. But Renault insists that the Logan is meticulously built to Renault's stringent global quality standards and that all vehicles produced from this platform undergo rigorous quality testing by exposure to severe climatic conditions and bad road surfaces. Besides, the Logan was awarded the top spot in the 2007 JD Power Initial Quality Survey in India, at least. As for local backing, Renault is selling it with a three-year comprehensive warranty.

The best thing about the Logan is its price tag of R99 500. It seems to offer a really comprehensive package for less than the price most small hatchbacks command. Sure, it's not going to win beauty contests and it won’t be the most refined car on the block, but for that kind of money what do you expect? We have already driven the Nissan NP200 that it's based on that that impressed as a fairly comfortable and sturdy, if basic, vehicle.

Perhaps this is just what countries like South Africa needs. If Renault can improve its after-sales reputation as it claims to be doing, then the Logan could be the start of a huge success story for the company. Renault will also soon be launching the Sandero hatchback, which is closely based on the Logan and will be built at Nissan's local plant in Rosslyn.