page_title: Automobile Dacia
section_title: Founding
hierarchical_section_title: Automobile Dacia / History / Founding
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Ein Dacia 1300 „Berlina“ (rumänischer Lizenznachbau des Renault 12), Baujahr 1973. Der Wagen ist registriert in Halle (Saale). English: A 1973 Dacia 1300 “Berlina” (a Renault 12 built under Romanian license). The vehicle is registred in Halle, Germany. Čeština: Stará fotografie Dacie 1300 „Berlina“ (Renault 12 vyrobený pod rumunskou licencí), z roku mezi 1969 a 1979. Vozidlo je registrované v Halle (Německo).
context_page_description: Automobile Dacia S.A.
  is a Romanian car manufacturer that takes its name from the historic region that constitutes the present-day Romania. The company was established in 1966, and in 1999, after 33 years, the Romanian government sold Dacia to the French car manufacturer Renault of which it remains a subsidiary. It is Romania's top company by revenue and the largest exporter, constituting 8% of the country's total exports in 2018.
context_section_description: The Dacia automobile company was founded in 1966 under the name Uzina de Autoturisme Pitești (UAP). The main Dacia factory was built in 1968, in Colibași (now called Mioveni), near Pitești.
  Dacia acquired the tooling and basic designs of the Renault 12. However, until the tooling was ready it was decided to produce the Renault 8 under licence; it was known as the Dacia 1100. From 1968 to 1972, 37,546 cars of model 1100 were produced, with a very minor cosmetic change to the front in early 1970. Also produced in very limited numbers was the 1100S, with twin headlamps and a more powerful engine, used by the police and in motor racing.
  The first Dacia 1300 left the assembly line ready for 23 August parade in 1969, and was exhibited at the Paris and Bucharest shows of that year. Romanians were delighted with the modernity and reliability of the car, and waiting lists were always lengthy. By 1970, there were two variants: the standard 1300 and the 1300L (for Lux); in 1974 the 1301 Lux Super was introduced, which had novelties such as a heated rear screen, a radio, windscreen mirrors on both sides and a more luxurious trim. This was reserved for the Communist Party nomenklatura.
  
  Changes soon followed as export markets opened up. In 1973, the estate variant, 1300 Break, was produced. There were 1300F (estate with no rear seats, for carrying goods) and 1300S (ambulance) variants, and in 1975 the Dacia 1302 pick-up was developed. 2,000 units were made until 1982.
  Dacia also produced the Estafette, a complete knock down version of the Renault Estafette van, in limited numbers, but given the competition of the Bucharest-made T.V. van, numbers were very limited. In the very early 1980s, the Renault 20 was also assembled as the Dacia 2000; because of the exclusivity of this model numbers were always very limited. The 2000 was only available in dark blue or black, and was reserved for the Party elite. In 1978 plans were revealed for the Renault 18 to be assembled by Dacia, but the Renault contract lapsed and Dacia went its own way.
  At the Bucharest show in 1979, the restyled 1310 models were presented. These had quad lamps at the front, larger lamps at the rear, re-profiled bumpers, and a new interior. The changes were heavily inspired by Renault's own restyling of its 12 in 1975. After a brief series of "crossover" cars in 1981 (for example, there were no more rectangular headlights available for the 1300, so the last models used the quad lamps of the 1310), the 1310 hit the Romanian market in late 1981. In the UK, where it was known as the Dacia Denem, the top of the range model included such luxuries as a five-speed gearbox, alloy wheels and electric windows. The advertising slogan used for the car was "The Very Acceptable Dacia Denem". Sales were very limited, and the number surviving are not thought to exceed single digit figures, although the Romanian Embassy in South Kensington kept a fleet running until the mid-1990s. Sales of the pick-up version, known as the Shifter, continued until the 1990s, and the Aro 10 was also sold as the Dacia Duster. The plug was pulled on the Denem, however, in late 1982.
  At the same time the Sport model was produced. At the 1980 Bucharest international trade fair, crowds admired the Brașovia, a prototype of a sports coupé based on the 1310 and developed at a service station in Brașov. The go-ahead was given for a prestige model, and so from 1983 the two-door Dacia 1310 Sport (and later the 1410 Sport), was available for general consumption. These were very popular for rallies, and racing drivers such as Nicu Grigoraș tuned them to extract extraordinary power from the old Renault engine.
caption: Dacia 1300, a model from 1973
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