Dacia Manifesto - the best electric off-road buggy ever

16 September 2022

Dacia unveiled one of the most radical prototypes the automotive industry has seen. The company took the “less is more” theme and turned it up all the way to 11 and then kept going.

It’s no longer “less is more” - now it is “much less is much, much more” or “nearly nothing is so much better.” So - no doors, no windows - who needs those? Instead of a roof - a roof rack because that is sufficient. Who needs two headlights when one is just fine? Air in the tires? That is soo last century, no need for that!

In this almost scientific process of removing the parts Dacia saw as useless, the company ended up creating a perfect off-road buggy. An absolute gem of an adventure vehicle that thanks to its non-existent overhangs and giant air-less tires can get pretty much anywhere.

So what do you get since most things seem to be missing? You get two seats with proper harnesses and a hidden trick. This has to be the smartest thing ever on an adventure car - real or prototype. The seat covers can be easily removed and used as sleeping bags. Genius.

You get a place for your phone that handles then all the navigation and infotainment. You get a clever, removable, giant battery bank that can power up your campsite and all the electrical devices you manage to bring along for the trip.

The only headlight on the car is removable so you can use it to light up the hiking trail or whatever you need to light up in the middle of the night. There is a very clever bottle holder that acts as a hanger for all sorts of things and comes with its own name - meet the YouClip.

The car is a rolling laboratory, and Dacia uses it to experiment with new materials. For example, the few body panels that Manifesto comes with - 20 percent recycled plastic. The fabric on the seats - new material, easy to clean, more resistant and will make its way to Dacia production cars.

The roof rack on Manifesto is a bit of an upgrade to the existing Multi-Purpose Roof Racks available for Sander, Jogger or Stepway. The sides unfold and stop whatever is transported from moving about and, at the same time, serve as tie-up points. When not needed - the entire contraption folds flat like a wardrobe from IKEA.

To wrap up the perfect off-road tool that Manifest is, Dacia fitted it with a winch. The rear of Manifesto unfolds and turns into a table or a workbench. The entire car is apparently lighter and thus far more efficient than any current electric car on the market. Yes, Dacia, all current cars have doors and windows.

Unfortunately, the company has no intention of ever manufacturing the Manifesto, not even in a limited run. The materials and solutions used on it will make it through to production cars though.

The recycled plastic composite, for example, will be used in the next generation of Duster. The more resistant fabrics will replace the currently used ones and the roof rack will be an option on many models. Bit of a shame really, that we won't be able to buy the Manifesto but still - kudos to Dacia for brightening our Friday.

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