Yahoo News 2017 Nissan Qashqai review - facelifted version of deserved best-seller offers more of the same
Will history look back on the original Nissan Qashqai as one of the defining mainstream vehicles of its age, much as we do now cars like the VW Beetle, Citroen 2CV, Mini or Ford Cortina? A product born of a corporation with engineering and manufacturing bases across the globe, the Qashqai’s emotional link with the UK (it was designed and developed here and is built at Nissan’s Sunderland factory) is strong.
But its popularity goes far beyond these shores. This second-generation car has been on sale since early 2014 and continues to defy regular lifecycle trends, recording its best ever sales in March of this year despite this coinciding with the unveiling of this range-wide update.
Thus far 3.3 million Qashqais have been sold across the world, 2.3m of those in Europe and Nissan holding a 10 per cent share of the crossover market it claims to have invented with the 2007 original.
From driveways across the land to the UK’s trade bottom line, the Qashqai is an important institution. Does this refresh do enough to keep it at the top of the pile?
The changes are evolutionary rather than revolutionary, comprising the usual stuff of new lights front and back, a revised grille, new wheels and paint colours and an improved interior promising a more premium feel and kitted out with all the latest tech. Enough to score you looks of admiration at the school gate, if you play to the stereotyped usage pattern of your average Qashqai driver.
Insight into their buying habits comes when you crunch the sales split across the different trim levels. Just 2 per cent of buyers opt for the basic Visia model while the next step on the ladder – Acenta – accounts for a mere 10 per cent. Nearly half of buyers go for the N-Connecta version with its standard touchscreen navigation, the core 1.5 dCi diesel popular for its 99g/km and 74.3mpg official figures.
But with 40 per cent pushing to the flagship Tekna version, and having tested the water for a more expensive Qashqai with the Premium Concept of 2016, Nissan has added a new Tekna+ trim level, banking on the fact many Qashqai buyers seem hungry to spend more on their cars and will appreciate features like a thumping new Bose stereo and a unique design for the Nappa leather-clad seats.
Frustratingly, the launch drive for the facelifted Qashqai focused not on the core 1.5 diesel but instead the more expensive 1.6 dCi diesel and 1.6 DIG-T petrol in Tekna and Tekna+ forms. The 1.6 diesel is available with four-wheel drive if you want to live up to the crossover dream; most buyers are more realistic, and happy with the image and the cheaper running costs of the front-wheel drive version. This (and the entry level 1.2 DIG-t petrol) are also available with the XTronic CVT automatic, popular with those doing mainly urban miles and with the older drivers who make up a chunk of the buyers.
There is nothing remarkable in the way any of the versions drive but all go about their business with the required refinement and appropriate levels of performance for a car of this kind. As you’d expect the diesel is a little noisier, though insulation through increased sound deadening, thicker glass and improved aerodynamics has been a priority for this refresh. At a cruise it’s both punchier than the petrol and perfectly refined for relaxed long-distance running.
The six-speed manual gearbox is a little ponderous and the steering on the low-geared side; a slight brittleness from the stiffened front suspension is also evident over harsher bumps. A no-cost ‘downgrade’ to 18-inch wheels from the standard 19s may be worth considering if comfort is important to you. But, overall, it’s a relaxed and confidence-inspiring drive.
Only the poor visibility really grates, the sloping pillars at the front obstructive in right-hand bends and at junctions, while the high windowline at the back makes gadgets like reversing cameras and the new Rear Cross Traffic Alert that bleeps if you’re backing out of a parking space into the path of an oncoming car near-essential. Standard from N-Connecta up, parking sensors at the least are an option you’d be advised to invest in on the lesser models.
Overall though this is the Qashqai customers have told Nissan they want. A car with 4x4 stature but hatchback practicality and running costs, packed with family-friendly features and technology to take the stress out of everyday driving. Exactly the formula that has made it such a dominant force for the last decade, now with a little extra luxury and style on top. Business as usual. And business is good.
THE FACTS
Nissan Qashqai 1.6 dCi Tekna 2WD
TESTED 1,598cc four-cylinder diesel, six-speed manual gearbox, front-wheel drive (also available with CVT automatic or all-wheel drive)
PRICE/ON SALE £29,030/July
POWER/TORQUE 128bhp @ 4,000rpm/236lb ft @ 1,750rpm
TOP SPEED 118mph
ACCELERATION 0-62mph in 9.9sec*
FUEL ECONOMY 64.2mpg/55.4 mpg* (EU Combined/Urban)
CO2 EMISSIONS 116g/km*
VED £160 first year, then £140
*Manual FWD only, figures vary for CVT and all-wheel drive models
VERDICT More of the things Qashqai drivers love in this carefully pitched refresh of a best-seller
TELEGRAPH RATING Four stars out of five
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