The
new Nissan Kicks built on the Renault Duster platform is a good looking vehicle
(remember companies like Renault, Mitsubishi and Nissan are real brothers in
the world of automobiles).
Exterior Design and Features of the new Nissan Kicks
From
the front-- the dual tone vehicle looks bold and purposeful with its V motion
mesh grille, wide bumpers, front under guard, LED projector lamps, cornering
fog lamps, DRLs and the boomerang shaped LED signature lamp. The vehicle comes
with rain sensing wipers.
As
you move to the side, you get to see the floating roof rack design which brings
out the smart element in this vehicle. On both sides are the aspheric ORVM to
reduce blind spots. Not to be missed is the shark fin antenna. The SUV sits on
215/60 R17 tyres fitted on machined alloy wheels. The side mouldings and smart
wheel arches add to the beauty of the side profile. You also notice that the
doors in this vehicle fully cover the bottom area.
As
you move to the back, the design element continues to remain exciting with wide
bumpers, skid plate and the iconic boomerang shaped LED signature lamps.
Interior Design and Features of the new Nissan Kicks
Moving inside, you get to see a mix of fine premium
leather and plastic. The interiors are luxurious dual tone brown and black
theme with carbon fibre finish. The dash area can be described as a gliding
wing design with the steering coming in matt chrome finish. The dashboard and
door trims come with a soft touch feel. The glove compartment is illuminated.
The seats are of leather with prominent stitches. The seats in front come with
enough comfort and space, while at the rear it’s good for two because three
adults could be a squeeze there. The seats at the rear offer a lot of comfort
but a bit more under thigh support could have been nice.
The
steering can be adjusted for tilt but is not telescopic. Space within the cabin
is adequate with loads of shoulder room and knee room. The vehicle comes with
Auto AC as standard, a first in class, and also rear ac vents. The driver arm
rest is fixed and does not have any storage, while the rear arm rest comes with
two cup holders. There is ample storage areas on the inside door panels and a
small space to keep your smart key in the cavity of the dashboard on the right
side of the steering wheel. The boot area is very cavernous with space of 400
litres. The rear seats are not split but
can be folded nevertheless. The parcel tray at the rear comes in two pieces and
one close to the rear seat can be flipped opened from inside to access the boot
area.
The
car has plenty of technology to boot. It comes with first in class around view camera
which get gets its feed from cameras placed under the ORVMS, rear and the front
grill area. The vehicle has an 8 inches floating touch screen infotainment
system which is android auto and apple car play compatible with voice
recognition both SIRI and OK Google. The Nissan Connect comes with 50+
features. For the people in front there is a USB slot and a 12V socket while
for the rear there is only one 12V charging socket.
Safety and Performance of the new Nissan Kicks
With
a ground clearance of 210 mm, a turning radius of 5.2 metres, with features
like hill start assist and vehicle dynamic control, I had nothing to fear on
the sandy terrains of the Rann of Kutch. This vehicle comes with an option of a
1.5 litre H4K 4 cylinder in line petrol engine as well as 1.5 litre K9K dCi
four cylinder in line diesel engine. While the former is mated to a manual five
speed gear box, the latter is mated to a 6-speed manual transmission. There is
no option of an automatic as of now. I was driving the diesel variant.
First,
I drove the vehicle on the beautiful roads from Bhuj to Rann of Kutch in Gujarat
and back and I must tell you that the diesel engine performed well. The engine
churns out a peak power of 108.50hp @ 3850 rpm and 240 Nm of peak torque @1750
rpm. With discs in front and drums at the back, the vehicle was very dependable
when it came to braking. While I was impressed by the high torque kicking in
initially and the smooth acceleration, I was a tad disappointed when I took it
to speeds close to 160kmph on the roads. The vehicle did tend to vibrate a lot
which made me a bit uneasy. But at speeds till 130kmph, the vehicle was well
planted on the road and rock solid. The suspension of the vehicle surprised me
with its perfect tuning, offering immense drive comfort throughout.
The
steering mounted controls on both side of the steering wheel are dedicated to
cruise control and speed limitor, with an additional button on the right of the
steering on the dash activating these features. Next to it is an Eco mode
button. As for voice navigation and volume control, one has to move the fingers
to a few buttons behind the steering on the right. The six-speed manual
transmission performed rather well. Unfortunately, the rattle of the diesel
engine can be heard inside so a bit more insulation can help improve the cabin
noise levels. Of course, it’s not as bad as hearing the engine from the
outside!
The
vehicle comes with four air bags. These include dual front and front side.
Other safety features include ABS with EBD and brake assist.
Verdict
The
high point of my drive was thrashing it around the flat lands of the Rann of
Kutch and raising a bit of dust on the very damp ground. Had the soil been bone
dry, I could have actually raised a storm! With some wonderful features and
technology, this new Nissan Kicks offers a comfortable as well as spirited drive.
It’s truly a kick-ass product.