Back to Page 1: Design and Interior

Driving Experience

The great news is that despite the engine driving the front wheels through a CVT, usually notorious for their rubber bandy power transmission, there’s none of that in the Qashqai. The car always feels responsive in the standard drive mode, and sport mode puts it into a sort of hyper responsive program. Nissan didn’t give an official 0 to 100km/h dash time, but we figured that at its paciest setting you’re looking at a mid eight-second time. 

It can be driven very sedately, but when you really lean on the accelerator it punches hard enough for quick bursts of speed. The sequential shift paddles on the steering wheel locks the transmission to seven fixed gear ratios, though in practical use they are most likely deployed for engine braking on slow, steep descents like long multi-storey carpark spiral ramps. 

Steering feel is pretty relaxed though, so you don’t have to worry about a twitch on the wheel sending the car over to the next lane like you would find from driving a Mini Cooper JCW. 

Cornering composure is pretty good for a car for this size, though we reckon that the 18-inch wheels of the Premium variant, with the fatter tyres, will offer a slightly more comfortable ride than the 19-inch wheels riding on tyres with less sidewall height.

It’s also very well stocked with active safety systems. The lane departure warning will buzz the steering wheel with a vibration motor should the car start to deviate from the driven lane. Blind spot warning indicators on the wing mirror alert you to hidden motorcycles, and forward collision assist sounds an alarm if the car thinks that you are going to crash into the vehicle ahead. At low speeds, intelligent emergency braking will halt the car if it senses an immediate threat of collision, which can typically happen at traffic junctions with vehicles inching forwards and stopping suddenly.

The adaptive cruise control is applicable only on the Prestige variant, and on smooth highway drives does the job of tracking, and matching the speed of cars in front of you pretty well. However we wouldn’t advise using it in start-stop traffic as the system won’t bring the car to a complete stop, and it reacts quite suddenly at lower speeds. It’s not the Qashqai’s AI that you have to worry about, but rather, there’s the risk of the car behind ramming into your rear if the driver isn’t keeping a safe distance or is not alert.

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Competition and Conclusion
One might think that the Honda HR-V is the most obvious alternate choice to the Nissan Qashqai, but it’s not. The Qashqai’s much more powerful engine and fully loaded cabin raises it head and shoulders above the Honda. Unfortunately, you must pay to play and the Qashqai’s much higher price will put it out of reach of some shoppers looking for a smart family urban SUV. 

It’s closer in theme with the Peugeot 3008, which is around S$10k cheaper and slightly less powerful. Despite being about the same size, the French-made Peugeot has a very different styling aesthetic and the final deciding factors could be down to brand loyalty and personal opinion.

There’s also the Peugeot 3008’s cousin, the Citroen C5 Aircross. It’s built on the same chassis and has the same 1.2-litre turbo engine as the Peugeot, but has less features and as a result a more palatable price tag. 

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The Qashqai’s increased size and upmarket positioning has also put it within range of a base model Hyundai Tucson. The popular South Korean car has plenty of fans and is a larger car than the Qashqai too. It is however, thirstier with a 1.6-litre turbo engine and in these days of sky-high petrol prices, and road tax, means a lot.

They base model Qashqai Premium is quite a bit cheaper, though it does away with some niceties. The most obvious are the lack of a panoramic moonroof and digital instrument cluster.

The Qashqai is fighting for position in a crowded spot, though it’s arguably above the ultra-price sensitive segment of small crossover SUVs like the Toyota Yaris Cross. As it stands, it’s worth remembering that if you want a smaller Nissan crossover SUV there’s the very accomplished Nissan Kicks E-Power, a car that has in many ways filled the spot of the Qashqai as it moves upmarket.

Nissan Qashqai Prestige

Drivetrain type	Petrol-electric mild hybrid
Engine	1,332cc, inline 4, turbocharged
Power	157hp at 5500rpm
Torque	270Nm at 1800-3750rpm
Gearbox	CVT
Electric Motor	Not stated
Battery	Lithium Ion, unknown capacity
System Power	Not stated
System Torque	Not stated
0-100km/h	8.5 seconds (estimated)
Top Speed	200km/h (estimated)
Fuel Efficiency	5.5 L/100km
VES Band / modifier	A2 / -S$15,000
Agent	Tan Chong Motor
Price	S$175,800 with COE and VES
Availability	Now
Verdict	More techy and with a properly classy interior, the Qashqai has definitely gone up a level and is now a step above its old competitors

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