Nissan is planning a Czech rebirth. The bargain Qashqai is worth flooding with Karoq and Tucson
In recent years, the Japanese carmaker Nissan has cleared positions on the Czech market with new cars. The model palette gradually narrowed and became obsolete until there was not much left to sell. The brand's new importer believes the card will turn with the third generation of the Qashqai model.
In the difficult covid-19 the year of 2020, the situation was not significantly improved by the new generation of the small Juke crossover, which dealers sold more than twice as much as the year before, but with 369 registered units, Nissan could only remember the times when the Car Importers Association statistics Yuků. Last year, Nissan sold a total of only 853 cars.
In 2019, the new importer Grand Auto Central Europe took over from Nissan the representation of the brand for the Czech Republic as well as Slovakia and Hungary, where it also has its registered office. Since last September, the company, led by the Czech director Petra Růžičková, has been building a new team and would like Nissan to return to its vacated positions.
The cornerstone of success should be the third generation of the Qashqai model. The compact SUV in 2007 was at the birth of the category, which in our country today is determined by variables such as the Škoda Karoq and Hyundai Tucson.
The novelty is to appear at Czech retailers at the turn of August and September. It relies on the attractive exterior design and the developers have again worked on the interior design, which makes the effect significantly more valuable. However, the practical parameters have also improved, the rear passengers have more space in front of their knees and the suitcase is also larger with 461 liters.
The new Qashqai is based on the CMF-C platform, which Nissan uses in conjunction with Renault's alliance partners. Under the hood will be two versions of the petrol single-engine with mild-hybrid support and 103 or 116 kilowatts. The weaker will be available exclusively with the manual and front-wheel drive, the stronger will be with the automatic transmission CVT and optionally as an ATV.
The 4 × 4 versions will arrive later, and the e-Power hybrid will be added. Only the front wheels will be driven by an electric motor, for which electricity will be produced by an atmospheric one-piece. The Qashqai e-Power should replace the diesel and become the most economical but with 140 kW also the most powerful version of the Qashqai.
The manufacturer also promises rich equipment with assistance systems. As standard and free of charge, not only adaptive cruise control, emergency braking but also the basic Qaqshqai should stop itself in front of an obstacle when parking and also warn against cars in a blind spot. Nissan's main competitors, the aforementioned Tucson and Karoq, offer most of these systems at an additional cost or in higher equipment. In higher versions, Qashqai will offer, for example, matrix headlights with a permanent high beam.
Nissan wants to get closer to Tucson and Karoq in terms of price. So far, only the starting price tag for the Visia version is known, which should start at 539,900 crowns. In addition to the aforementioned assistants, it will also offer manual air conditioning, LED headlights, rear parking sensors, or automatic high beam switching.
The equipment is slightly better than the competitors, the price is only slightly higher. Compared to the Tucson, the Qashqai is 10,000 crowns more expensive, compared to the basic Karoq with a significantly weaker liter three-cylinder by only nine thousand.
If it equals them differently than the price list policy, we will find out at the end of the summer. The importer of Nissan plans to sell between 1,500 and 1,600 new cars a year, and when its sale is in full swing, Qashqai should account for about three-quarters of that.
New models should help further sales growth. In the course of 2022, the Nissan Ariya electric crossover and, in the middle of it, a larger relative of the Qashqai, the X-Trail, will arrive on the Czech market. "We are considering returning utility Nissanes to the Czech Republic," says Petra Růžičková. These should be the NV300 (renamed Renault Traffic) and NV400 (Renault Master).
On the contrary, one of Nissan's utility icons will disappear from the offer, the Navara model will end with the closure of the factory in Barcelona, Spain, in December this year. According to the British media, the successor is not going to Europe.