Used Nissan Qashqai long-term test: report 3
For many years, the Qashqai was the go-to car in the family SUV sector. Can a used one convince us it's still worth a look? We've got four months to find out...
The car 2018 Nissan Qashqai 1.3 DIG-T 140 N-Connecta Run by Mark Pearson, used cars editor
Why it’s here To find out if buying a used family SUV makes good financial sense, and to see if the venerable Qashqai is still a viable alternative to its younger competitors
Needs to Inject a bit of interest into suburban motoring, and cope admirably with a variety of uses, including daily commuting, motorway journeys, school runs and family life
Price when new £24,000 Price when new with all options £25,025 Value on arrival £19,995 Mileage 4850 Official economy 53.2mpg Test economy 38mpg CO2 emissions 121g/km 0-62mph 10.5sec Top speed 120mph Power 138bhp Insurance group 15E Options Blade Silver metallic paint (£575), Panoramic glass roof (£450)
18 July – Getting to know you, getting to know all about you
My passengers’ comments are always instructive – unless, that is, they’re screaming in terror to get out. For example, my family, who have no interest in the cars I bring home and wouldn’t know a Rolls-Royce from a Skoda, have all praised the Nissan Qashqai for its smoothness. That the cars preceding this long-termer were a plush £40,000 Volvo SUV and a £57,000 sporting Jaguar saloon must speak volumes for the little Nissan’s refinement, which is pretty good with this new 1.3-litre petrol engine.
They are more critical of its looks, however, which my teenager daughters have described as bland. I have to say I agree with them, especially in our car’s silver hue. It’s still a chunky monkey, for sure, but in a world awash with SUVs it needs something with a little more sizzle to stand out on the school run these days.
The driving experience is easy-going but a little bland too, if I’m honest. However, if driving it is only an average experience, living with it is definitely a positive one. There are numerous cupholders and handy spaces dotted around the interior for storage, including what must be the deepest cubbyhole beneath the central armrest I’ve ever seen: it could almost house another passenger within it.
All the driving controls both major and minor are easily accessible (except for the button that releases the fuel filler cap, which is awkwardly placed down low behind the steering wheel), and the quality of the materials used in the interior seems much improved on Qashqais of old.
The sat-nav is accessed via the 7.0in touchscreen and is easy to programme. However, the graphics are rather small and aren’t actually of the sharpest resolution, and it’s sometimes difficult to hit the right icon, especially on the move. There is the option of using the voice control, though, which can help out with the audio and phone functions, although my relationship with it is still a burgeoning one, and sometimes it doesn’t seem to fully understand my wants and needs. (Maybe we just need more time together?)
My N-Connecta trim is well equipped, however. There’s Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, for example, for hooking up smartphones, and all the usual electronic aids to keep you away from other traffic or from running into brick walls, and lots of neat everyday godsends like the hold function that keeps the car stationary on inclines.
Every Qashqai features those adorably large door mirrors, too, to add to the 360deg surround-view colour camera, a seemingly small touch but one that actually works wonders in everyday driving. It means that parking the car is, like driving it generally, a bit of a doddle.
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