Budget Renault Oroch ute takes shape

As the average price and popularity of dual-cab utes continues to surge in Australia, there’s an opening for cut-price and less-hardcore pick-ups – which is where the next-generation 2026 Renault Oroch comes in.

The local importer of Renault vehicles, Ateco Group, has made no secret of its plan to bring key models from Renault Group’s Romanian brand Dacia here from 2024, rebranding them as Renaults – as is the case in other right-hand drive markets such as South Africa and India.

The next-generation Renault Oroch dual-cab ute is expected to lob from around 2026 and will be a crucial vehicle for the French brand, which currently does not have a ute in its range.

Renault Australia managing director, Glen Sealey, previously told carsales: “At the moment the Oroch is a pretty basic vehicle that would never pass the [safety] tests here in Australia.

“But it will be replaced around 2025, 2026, I think, and when it’s replaced, for sure we will have our hand up for that.”

The compact Renault Oroch could be one of the first soft-core recreational utes offered in Australia, as the Ford Maverick and Hyundai Santa Cruz utes are still unconfirmed for our market.

That said, there’s a chance the next-generation Oroch could move to an all-new – and much bigger – platform shared with the next-gen Mitsubishi Triton and Nissan Navara utes, due in 2023 and 2024 respectively.

The images you see here were created by KDesign and show how the next-gen Renault Oroch ute could look, taking inspiration from two recent Dacia concept cars, the Bigster mid-size SUV and Manifesto off-road buggy.

Sporting an angular and rugged aesthetic with its flared wheel-arches and blocky bonnet, the Oroch is punctuated by ultra-modern LED tail-lights – although the headlights bely its cheap-and-cheerful ethos.

Dacia-based cars are expected to begin rolling into Aussie showrooms from 2024, starting with the Renault Duster small SUV.

The all-new Bigster mid-size SUV is set to follow in 2025, which will rival the Toyota RAV4 in terms of size and packaging, then in 2026 the next-gen Oroch dual-cab ute is expected.

Dacia’s global CEO, Denis Le Vot, hasn’t officially confirmed Dacia’s Australian market assault just yet, but earlier this week refused to rule out rebranding the vehicles as Renaults in Australia.

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