Fridae

Lines honed by Nissan’s European studios in London; the Qashqai is distinctive looking from all angles. The chunky bumpers and blunt front end creates a rugged SUV stance and its height gives it the tall eyepoint and easy access that SUV buyers enjoy.

Full length glass roof comes with a one touch button, helps lift Qashqai's interior by heaps

Nissan claims the Qashqai drives with all the agility of a car. Oh, and the low-ish roof and sleek windows, according to Nissan would do no shame on a coupe. Hmmmm: SUV, hatchback, coupe: are we crossed-over and confused enough yet?

The Qashqai’s exterior design is certainly a winner, as it is Nissan’s fastest selling model ever. In fact, the Qashqai has sparkled a cross-fuser fever among other manufacturers. Including, the soon to arrive Peugeot 3008 which looks suspiciously similar to the Nissan Qashqai. Isn’t it refreshing to hear for a change that the Europeans are being “inspired” by a Japanese company’s design? 

On the move, the Qashqai turns out to be very accomplished for a high-riding vehicle. The steering is accurate and gives a good well weighted feel of the road, giving you the confidence to explore its grippy and steady cornering behaviour. The Qashqai threads in the middle ground in terms of body rolls: not as much as a SUV but a tad more than a conventional hatchback. Of note, the Japanese cross-fuser brakes pretty well, no unnessary diving actions as one would experience in a heavier SUV.

Of course there would be some trade offs for such high vehicles if they corner well and that would be penalties in ride comfort. Which Nissan springs a surprise as the Qashqai seems to cope well with poor road surfaces. The typical euro-hatchback owner will not feel short-changed in this cross-fuser. 

Local cars come with a barren steering wheel

Taking 10.7 secs to hit 100km/h from a standstill is not too shabby when compared to the Qashqai’s Japanese counterparts. This is an area where the “coupe” part of the Qashqai seems to be omitted. Fuel consumption is rated at 8.0 litres per 100km, similar to the Volkswagen Tiguan, but considering the performacne deficit compared to the German segment leader; Nissan certainly has some catching up to do here. Also, the missing four-wheel drive hardware on the Qashqai should have resulted in better fuel efficency.

The Qashqai’s interior scores hits and misses in equal measures. Playing to the “coupe” tag, the low set dash is well designed with fine touches like the circular air vents and deep twin crowl instrument binnacle. Some soft touch plastics on the dash top and chunky indicator stalks does impart the “quality” feel, but mostly, cheap plastics dominate the interior.

The Qashqai cross-fuser does offer similar amount of interior room or boot space compared to a Volkswagen Golf. Oddly, local cars do not come with remote radio controls on the steering wheel despite a factory fitted audio head unit. Optional full sliding roof is a must buy even if it does rob some headroom. Overall, the interior is still a pleasant place to be in, but improvements in spec levels and quality wouldn’t hurt.

Perhaps I had been too critical with the review of this innovative product from Nissan, but my expectations are according to the asking price for the Qashqai, S$84,000 for the Premium model tested. The high yen has hurt the buying proposition of a Japanese make as Continential brands are becoming rather price competitive in recent months.     

In the end, the confusing theme the folks at Nissan had so painstakedly masterminded is indeed backed by a likeable and competent end product, few small flaws aside. The Nissan Qashqai will serve well for those who wants a bit of everything, but logically packed in a sweet package.

Kmlim 1 has every right to be proud of his cross-fuser.