More economical than Sunny petrol but just as dull

The Nissan Sunny stands out with its bulbous design and the Teana inspiration is evident. | Photography: Eshan Shetty.

Design Review

Nissan’s Micra-based sedan was an eagerly awaited product in India – and it was a big surprise when it turned out to be a global offering like the Sunny. Unlike their partners Renault though, Nissan decided to launch the petrol version first to gauge the market response. But that said, Nissan stunned everyone when they announced the pricing for the Sunny sedan in India when it was finally launched in 2011. It had an astonishingly low base-price while promising acres of space. 

Since then, the prices have gone up – blame it to the usual revision that follows the ‘introductory price’ hoopla or the new taxation that came into play after the recent changes in the Union Budget. In spite of that, the Sunny is still one of the most economical and spacious sedans that you can buy in the mid-size sedan segment and these facets set it apart from its rivals. Joining the fray is the diesel version of the Sunny which not only promises the same features that made the sedan so popular, but now also adds a more economical engine to the mix. 

The design of the Sunny diesel is similar to its petrol counterpart. The Teana inspired design dictates the shape of the headlights upfront. The headlamps are large and the throw is decent – but I would have preferred brighter illumination. You get the trapezoidal grille with chrome plating on it to give the Sunny a dose of premium appearance. The front bumpers of the Sunny tend to look drab when compared to the sharper designs you see on cars like the City, Vento or even the new Swift Dzire which caters to a lower segment.

The side profile shows the three-box design of the Sunny and particularly highlights the rear overhang. It does look disproportionate and pulling the rear wheels further backward could have avoided this imbalance. The bulbous styling again sets the Sunny apart from its sharper looking competition and the smoothly receding roofline adds a touch of class. Even on the diesel version, Nissan has used the same alloy-wheel design that you get on the Sunny petrol.

The rear end continues to showcase the design inspiration that the Sunny takes from the Teana. The taillights are swept back and make the Sunny appear like a really long car (which it actually is). The Bangle-butt inspiration for the boot lid looks good, but also makes the Sunny look like the Swift Dzire’s long-lost elder sibling. The rear overhang is evident from the rear three-quarter view as well, but also lends the Sunny a big boot.

The Sunny comes across as a large car, while its bulbous styling makes it look youthful and fun-loving amongst the other aggressively designed mid-size sedans that fill up this segment. 

User Experience Review

The Sunny’s Micra roots are visible when you get inside the car. You have the similar curvy-design theme throughout the interiors. The most eye-catching similarity is the rotary arrangement for the air-conditioning controls on the centre console. It has the same grey pigment as the Micra’s plastics – and tends to make it look slightly low-rent. What spoils it further is the scratchy texture of the plastics. The round air-con vents at either ends of the dashboard come from the Micra too, but the two vents on the centre console are rectangular like the audio system that sits below them. The entire setup looks like an afterthought and could have been designed better. 

The dashboard also gets a push-button starter on the top-end model for keyless go. This too, comes from the Micra – and so does the steering wheel. It gets controls for the audio system however, there is no phone pairing. The horn-pad is small and will need you to really stretch out that thumb to operate it. The wheel itself is ergonomic though and the bolsters give you a good grip. 

The front seats are adequately wide and have adjustable headrests. The under-thigh support is decent, however, the lumbar support is almost non-existent. There is a tiny arm-rest provided between the front seats as well. Though this arm-rest does not come with any storage space underneath, you do get lots of storage bins elsewhere – which include the big glove compartment, bottle holders and door-pockets. 

The real business though, is at the back. What you get here is the generous amount of leg-space which gives the Sunny its ‘Caaaaaaar’ moniker. True to what Nissan touts, the rear bench does allow you to cross your legs and sit in the sort of comfort that is unparalleled in this segment. The bench is also quite flat so seating two adults and a kid in comfort isn’t a big task. The head rests for the rear seats are fat enough to provide comfort of long drives. The headroom is generous and the windows are large – making for a roomy cabin to be in.

The Sunny doesn’t really offer any class leading creature comforts that you can talk about (apart from the additional blower vents for the rear bench), but the big leg space and rear seat comfort that you get, more than makes up for the small feature list.

Performance Review

The Nissan Sunny is powered by a 1.5-litre diesel engine that puts out 86 PS of power at 3,750 RPM and 200 Nm of torque at 2,000 RPM. Though it belongs to the acclaimed K9K series of diesel engines developed by Renault-Nissan, it does not get the updated fuel injection system or a re-profiled turbocharger. Nevertheless, the engine still manages to return a good mix of peppy performance and good fuel economy. In spite of not having a variable geometry turbine, the Sunny pulls cleanly from lower revs and you don’t get the sudden jerk when the turbo kicks in. 

As compared to the petrol engine-ed Sunny, the diesel counterpart feels significantly peppier to drive. The oil-burner is inherently noisy, as in the Micra, but the sound deadening is better on the sedan. The clatter is audible nevertheless, but not irritating. While the petrol variant returned us an overall fuel economy range between 12 to 14 kmpl, the diesel Sunny managed to return an economy range of 16-18 kmpl. 

Like the petrol version, the diesel Sunny too has a cushy suspension which is comfortable on the Indian road conditions. The setup absorbs potholes pretty well but there is the occasional thudding sound. It will even tackle the undulations in the road surface at highway speeds, but the body roll and the light steering wheel could get unnerving at times. The cushy suspension also hints that the Sunny does not like tackling corners all that much therefore its better you don’t persuade it to do so. Instead, it will offer a plush ride quality on the straight roads and within the cityscapes – and that is the real purpose for which the Sunny is built.

Conclusion

As I mentioned right at the beginning, the Sunny is an acclaimed bloodline the world over and you understand why when you spend time with the car. It may not have any particular features worth shouting about, but the kit it offers in on par with the competition and works as reliably as a Japanese product. Add to it lots of space, conservative styling and cheap cost of ownership and you have a diesel sedan that warrants the slightly higher sticker price that it demands.