Ride and handling
Image: Rajendra Negi/ Gaadi.com
The Sunny has always been more oriented towards ensuring optimum space and comfort for the back seat passengers than delivering the kicks to the man at wheel. It’s got a balanced ride, light steering for easy maneuverability and reasonably sized tyres to offer decent levels of grip. Since the mechanicals of the car have not been touched, the drive and ride feel of the car remains completely unaltered. The Sunny will ferry you around in comfort, absorbing minor bumps without a whimper, and making a complaining noise only when you make it pass over the more vicious undulations.
Image courtesy: Rajendra Negi / Gaadi.com
From behind the wheel, the steering feels light, though we found the feedback and weight of the steering on the diesel variant a bit more satisfying from a driver’s perspective as compared to the petrol version. There is a fair bit of body roll exhibited by the car when it’s hurtled around a corner, though it exhibits appreciable poise when driven at moderate speeds. It’s only upon crossing the threshold of practical driving and verging onto lunacy that the tyres start losing their grip and the underpinnings begin crying foul.
Equipment and variants
With the launch of its new version, the Sunny is available in a total of 8 variants – XE, XE D, XL, XL CVT, XL D, XV D, XV Premium Pack 1 and XV Premium Pack 2
Mounted controls on the new three spoke steering wheel
New color screen for the top of the line variant
Reverse parking camera
Lower variants get this two din audio without the screen
Speedo-tacho arrangement on the lower spec CVT variant.
Top XV diesel variant get a jazzier instrument console
New 12 spoke ‘Y Shape’ alloys
USB and aux-in slots
The complete list of variants and their respective features are provided in the chart below. Luxury Pack 1 and 2 add leather upholstery and 2 additional airbags (side, total 4) respectively to the top of the line XV variant.
(Click on the image to expand)
Verdict
The Sunny has always been appreciated for its practicality, comfort and good price. It’s not earned many brownie points as regards styling, but with the changes made to the exterior, the car looks better, especially at the front, though it still isn’t a head-turner. It’s a decent looking family sedan which should appeal a bit more to the buyers in the C-segment thanks to the bolder exterior styling and some really useful new features.
The Sunny isn’t a particularly exciting car to drive either, but the diesel engine is amazingly linear, smooth and responsive. It also delivers great fuel efficiency, making it one of the most practical diesel engines on sale today. The petrol motor, on the other hand, though not too sporty, is quite torquey and offers great driveability and fuel efficiency. The CVT variant astounds by delivering even more fuel efficiency than the manual version.
The price of the car has not been announced yet, and we will get back to you with our final word on the value proposition offered by the car once the prices are out. In the meantime, do let us know what you think of the new Sunny and what should be the ideal pricing for the base and top end variant of the car respectively.
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Its the 3rd and Nissan’s not even bothered to update its website with the Sunny facelift …… Terrible !!!!!
Wonderful for your customers, Nissan !