Nissan Qashqai

The Nissan Qashqai (Nissan Dualis in Japan and Australasia) is a compact crossover SUV produced by Japanese automaker Nissan since 2007. The P32L automobile platform will be also used by other oncoming Nissan crossover SUVs. The Qashqai has been built at Nissan’s NMUK Sunderland plant since December 2006.
It is the first model to be styled by Nissan Design Europe in London, with engineering development led by Nissan Technical Centre Europe (NTCE) in Cranfield, Bedfordshire. It was globally presented at the 2006 Paris Motor Show.
By the end of 2007, Nissan had sold about 100,000 Nissan Qashqai in Europe, including 17,554 in UK, 15,376 in Russia, and 10,746 in Italy.
The Qashqai will be exported to the Middle East and additional overseas markets.
Built on an all-new platform, the Qashqai went on sale in February 2007 and Nissan targeted more than 100,000 sales per year. Nissan said the car, named after the nomadic Qashqai tribe, will cater for those car buyers who want a more dynamic design but are not attracted to the large, aggressive nature of a sport utility vehicle. The car slots below the X-Trail in the Nissan range and partially replaces the conventional Primera (still produced at the Sunderland plant for export markets but no longer sold in the UK), even though it took the production place of the smaller Almera. In terms of size, its 4310 mm (169.7 in) length and 1610 mm (63.4 in) height makes it fall between compact MPVs, such as the SEAT Altea and Renault Scénic, and compact SUVs like the Hyundai Tucson, Kia Sportage and Mitsubishi Outlander.
The top half of Qashqai has a sleek dynamic form with a distinctive shoulder line which rises at the rear — a design cue similar to that of the Nissan Murano. The lower portion resembles an SUV due to large, pronounced wheel arches and a slightly elevated ground clearance. The all new Qashqai uses the exact same platform as the X-Trail (the vehicle the Qashqai is based on) but will not be as functional or as off road capable as it is. Nissan is planning the Qashqai to rival such cars the Toyota RAV-4 and the Honda CR-V. Due to the cheaper building cost most of the practicability of the Qashqai will be compromised compared to the X-Trail. The seats, unlike the X-Trail, can not fold all the way down and the suspension is loud and hard on some roads. The Qashqai utilizes a 2.0 litre four-cylinder engine delivering 103 kW (138 hp) power and 196 N·m (145 ft·lbf) torque. It is equipped with a AWD/4WD system and received a five star Euro NCAP safety rating.
Four engine choices can be chosen: the gasoline engines will be a 115 hp (86 kW) 1.6 L and a 140 hp (104 kW) 2.0 L, while the 106 hp (79 kW) 1.5 L and 150 hp (112 kW) 2.0 L will be the Diesel engines.
In May 2007, the Euro NCAP (European New Car Assessment Programme) awarded the Qashqai its best ever adult occupant score.
The Qashqai is not offered in North American markets. The Nissan Rogue, a completely different model despite some visual similarities, is offered instead.
The Qashqai name (pronounced ghash’ghāee) comes from the originally nomadic Qashqai tribe from southwestern Iran (Persia). Nissan’s designers say they believe that its buyers will be nomadic in nature too. The Chinese nameplate was to be CCUV which was short for “Compact Crossover Utility Vehicle” but since Chinese launch has been named Qashqai. In Australia, the Qashqai is named as the Dualis. This was chosen due to the fact that Australians may call it the “cash cow”, a controversial nickname which has already appeared in some markets including the UK.