The latest incarnation of Nissans ever-popular Qashqai Crossover is getting ready for its South African launch.
Another week and it seems like another Crossover is making its way to South Africa, and this week, its the turn of the Nissan Qashqai!
Off the bat, I will admit that I never liked the Nissan Qashqai or any other of Nissans smaller SUVs/Crossover. Well, that is all about to change because the new Qashqai is HOT! Just look at the photos, gone are the weird shapes and in their place, Nissan has squared off the body a lot more than its predecessor and cleaned up the front end. The integrated split headlamps give the Qashqai a futuristic look, a trademark of the model while keeping it so much cleaner and smoother.
When it comes to the vehicle’s architecture, the new Qashqai is built on Nissan’s CMF-C platform which allows for better packaging thereby enhancing spaciousness and even the vehicles carbon footprint. The platform has also done wonders for the Qashqais driving dynamics as it allows for far better body rigidity, and as you should know, the stiffer the chassis, the better the handling. Well, aside from just the stiffer body, Nissan has gone and tuned the suspension springs and damper rates, meaning the body rigidity cant take all the credit.
That improved handling allows you to take advantage of Qashqais turbocharged 1.3 engine which will be available with either a manual transmission or Nissans new Xtronic automatic transmission.
Speaking on the release of the new Qashqai, Nissan Stefan Haasbroek, Nissan Africa Marketing Director said, Fourteen years after creating the crossover segment, we are confident that this model will be a game changer and offer our customers the kind of driving experience they have come to love from Nissan. We are looking forward to revealing the completely renewed design, inside and out, innovative technologies and electrified power to our customers and on our roads.
Nissan is so confident in the new Qashqai that instead of launching a normal marketing campaign, they hosted an exclusive influencer road trip through the Garden Route. As a pre-cursor to the launch, actress Zola Nombona and filmmaker, director Thomas Gumede were allowed to highlight their experience of the vehicle, waxing lyrical about the premium finishes, and the integration of technology that enhances the driving experience whilst showcasing the bold new design.
Thats a bold move by Nissan, but then again, I guess the Qashqai is a bold car, and Nissan wants to show it off.
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