It wasn’t too long ago that the Nissan Sunny was launched. The car, with spacious interiors, lots of features and a very competitive price tag, has been accepted pretty well by us Indians. But, at the moment, there’s nothing like a diesel to really set the sales charts on fire... Across categories, in fact. So while the 1.5-litre petrol did its regular numbers, Nissan needed the diesel Sunny, and needed it fast. So before you knew it, the Sunny diesel is already here. Is it fit enough to take on the strong competition? Read on...
On the outside, there are no changes at all, save for a small badge on the trunk lid to remind you that there’s a 1.5-litre K9K engine under the hood instead of the petrol one. That means the Sunny’s oh-so-boring looks remain, with no attempt to distinguish the two siblings. Though it looks like a shrunken version of the premium Teana, the proportions are a bit off – especially that bulbous boot. Alloy wheels in the top-of-the-line XV model help its looks a bit.
Nothing has changed on the inside either, but nothing needed changing there anyway. From the driver’s seat, a well-lit twin-pod gauge cluster stares back at you while the tach now shows a lower red-line for the diesel engine. You also get a push-to-start system as standard, which gets a little annoying once the novelty wears off. Closing an open window once you’ve shut down, for example, requires that you either turn on the engine again or press the start button without depressing the clutch. Aagh. If you prefer to be driven, however, you’ll find that the rear seat of the Sunny is one of the best places to be this side of Rs 10 lakh. The front seats seem farther away than any of the other cars in the segment. What’s more, the clever engineers at Nissan have placed a blower between the front seats for rear-seat passengers. Hey, no expensive HVAC re-routing!
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