Nissan Qashqai

On the inside, the Nissan Qashqai again has a lot of X-Trail bits in the way its cabin has been laid out. The smooth flowing upper layer of the dashboard, the broad center console and the sober-looking instrument console look too much similar to those in the X-Trail.

Nevertheless, the Nissan Qashqai has got a slim three-spoke flat-bottom multi-functional steering wheel with a simple but informative instrument console behind it make up for a good driver’s cockpit. The broad center console of the dashboard houses a large touchscreen infotainment system with a panel for dual-zone automatic climate control below it, the whole of which is finished in piano black theme.

The sleek dual AC vents mounted on the upper layer of the dashboard above the infotainment system enhances the sense of width of the dashboard. While the upper layer of the dashboard gets soft-touch brown leather finish, the lower one is finished in a black theme. For five people, the Nissan Qashqai offers an abundant amount of room too.

When it comes to discussing the design of the Nissan Qashqai on the outside, the crossover-SUV looks and feels very modern, with the introduction of a number of latest design trends making it look quite contemporary. However, the overall design of the Nissan Qashqai looks very much similar to its elder sibling, the X-Trail, which robs off some of its individuality.

Starting from the front, the Nissan Qashqai gets a very aggressive and appealing front fascia, with the sloping and curved bonnet giving it a smooth appearance. Talking about the front fascia, the Nissan Qashqai gets the company’s signature V-motion front grille, which is made up of a large extended U-shaped chrome element and V-shaped black finish surrounding on its outer boundaries. This whole grille gets sharp and angular looking all-LED headlamps on either sides, which do house LED projectors as well as sleek daytime running LEDs.

The side profile of the Nissan Qashqai makes it look like a shrunken X-Trail, as barring the wheelbase, it looks very much similar to the latter. The rounded wheel arches, side body cladding, chrome finish for the window surrounds, roof rails and rising window shoulder line towards the C-pillar are all the traits lifted off from the X-Trail, which actually isn’t too a bad thing to complain about.

At the rear too, the X-Trail inspiration can be sensed a lot, with the SUV getting slightly sharply raked rear windscreen, roof spoiler, big and bold looking tail lamps and tough-looking bumper cladding.

Thanks to its crossover design and finely balanced suspension setup of independent Macpherson struts at the front and torsion beam at the rear, the Nissan Qashqai feels quite happening to drive as well as comfortable drive for the rear passengers as well. The Nissan Qashqai, however, is only offered with a front-wheel-drive configuration, which limits down its go-anywhere ability a bit. Though, it is not a big problem, given that the Qashqai is designed as an urban crossover.

The Nissan Qashqai is being offered with a choice of two petrol engine options. The larger 2.0-litre four-cylinder naturally aspirated petrol engine has been shared with the X-Trail, and here it pumps out 139 PS of power and 196 Nm of torque. On the other hand, the smaller 1.2-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine makes 115 PS of power and 165 Nm of torque. Both these engines get a common CVT gearbox as standard transmission option.

The Nissan Qashqai comes with a decent number of safety features as standard, which include a front, side and curtain airbags, ABS with EBD and brake assist, reverse parking sensors, around view monitor, traction control, vehicle stability control, hill start assist and hill descent control.

The Nissan Qashqai comes across as a heavily inspired model from the Nissan X-Trail, which retains all the positive attributes of the latter, including designing in and out. However, that’s not a bad thing, as the Nissan Qashqai, with its five-seater configuration, feels a thoroughly well-engineered product for tackling daily urban hustle with ease.