Nissan’s Qashqai refreshed not reinvented

Nissan’s new edition Qashqai was launched in Ireland last week, with minor improvements in engine economy and more significantly upgraded front-end styling, coupled with some new safety technology additions.

There are other small improvements to the car, including the addition of Google live systems, while the overall shape and internal dimensions remain the same. This car has been upgraded and refreshed, not reinvented.

The Qashqai has more competition today than when the first version was introduced in 2007. Since then, Nissan buyers have registered more than 60,000 new Qashqai models in Ireland. What’s different is that the market is more competitive now, with far more choices in this segment.

Nissan continues to offer two engine power options in the Qashqai, the mild hybrid system based around a 1.3-litre turbo-petrol engine and the ePower system that uses a 1.5-litre petrol engine to power a generator that, in turn, powers an electric motor to drive the wheels.

The ePower engine system combining an efficient petrol engine with a drive-by wire separate electric drive system, does away with any range issues as the engine’s sole purpose is to drive an electrical generator system to power the front wheels. This was the version of the new Qashqai that I drove just last week.

The ePower Qashqai feels good to drive, is quiet and fuel-efficient, making it different to the competition, but is it different enough? This drive system will attract some buyers for range reasons alone. This seems like a transition, as an electric version will be available towards the end of 2025.

With a full tank of petrol, the car’s computer estimated a range of over 900km before the need to top up its 55-litre capacity fuel tank. Out on the road, the car lived up to that expectation and was only 20km short of the target figure, so economy from that engine plus electric drive system, can be easily achieved.

This type of ePower drive system gives impressive acceleration and smooth power delivery, especially on smaller rural roads.

The evenness of the torque output from the electric motor that drives the wheels means that the car takes hills in its stride. The system delivers 333Nm of torque and that’s a high level of performance from what is initially a 1.5-litre petrol engine, before it gets the electric treatment.

Braking

There is the option of ePedal driving, which gives the car more control over the braking, so that you’re driving with a single pedal and deceleration braking.

This system can easily be set to give greater regeneration power from the system, and the end result is the potential for even better economy.

Among the driver features in the new Qashqai is the eight-point around view monitor and a new 180-degree side-vision system for the front of the car.

This is especially useful when driving on rural roads at blind junctions as it allows the driver to see what’s coming from a camera fitted to the front of the car.

Nissan claims that the cameras on the car have been improved to give cleared views in lowlight conditions.

The Google on-board system is also a new driver addition. Do we really need more Google access? The system provides an integrated account so that everything on your smartphone can also be accessible through the car’s infotainment system. Sometimes driving allows us to get away from Google, not so with this new Qashqai system, but to be fair it allows easy access to Google Maps and some other features.

The system is linked with the NissanConnect infotainment system and NissanConnect Services updates, to give more information to the driver.

Entry models

Nissan has increased the specification for the entry models of the new Qashqai, which now starts at the SV grade. This means that prices start from €45,000 for ePower electric models. That’s just about €1,000 more than the outgoing model. The entry price for the SV edition mild hybrid versions starts at €39,900, a price increase of €1,100.

Northern Ireland prices differ as there are different specification grades, while the entry models start at £34,430.

Nissan Ireland say that the price increases are partly due to what is called the new GSR 2 safety regulations.

These new European General Safety Regulations 2 (GSR2) introduced a number of new mandatory safety features for cars, vans, buses and trucks from 7 July 2024 on newly manufactured vehicles.

The aim of these regulations is to reduce collisions by providing driver assistance systems to help protect the occupants of the vehicle, pedestrians, cyclists and other road users. But they come at a cost and, for Nissan, it claims that’s close to €1,000 extra.

This upgraded Qashqai still retains the features that have made it the most popular car in the Nissan range.

The changes to the exterior designs include more modern lighting and greater use of LED systems, some of which do away with the need for fog lamps.

The styling is modern. This car continues to look well. The extra driver features will be appreciated, while it’s a competitive world out there in what is called the C-Cross market segment, so be prepared to work a little harder to get the best deal and make this car worth it.

The ePower version of the Qashqai has been around since the third-generation car was introduced in 2021. I’ve looked for older versions of the ePower Qashqai and they are scarce, so my ownership cost table is based on a two-year ownership figure rather than the usual three-year calculation.

The table shows a running cost of €0.21/km over a 25,000km annual use level. That’s competitive with diesel-powered cars of this size, while it will lack the towing ability of diesel in similar and increasingly scarce equivalent cars.

Qashqai ePower cars are still in good demand, so depreciation levels are relatively low and that has the biggest impact on ownership costs.