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Long-term review

Nissan Qashqai Tekna+ DIG-T 158 - long-term review

Prices from

£36,125/£37,270 as tested/£450pcm

Published: 21 Mar 2022
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SPEC HIGHLIGHTS

  • SPEC

    Tekna+ 1.3 DIG-T Xtronic

  • ENGINE

    1332cc

  • BHP

    158bhp

  • 0-62

    9.2s

Is the Nissan Qashqai a design icon?

Fashion and design are polarising, no two ways about it. And what’s especially notable is how willing people are to give you the benefit of their wisdom regarding how things look. The internet is filled with opinions. 

What’s equally notable is how those opinions change from one moment to the next. I suggest that part of this is down to environment. Hands up any of you who think that the Qashqai has startlingly good styling? A few, I suspect, but not the majority. But clean it up, show it some love and put the Nissan in the right location, like the one in the photo above, and people increasingly pause for thought.

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Of course, this is nothing new. Companies have been creating advertising and promotions for years to show off their products to the best advantage and encourage people to invest in their particular brand.

This only becomes an issue when the photos and claims do not stand up against the reality. Fortunately, where the Qashqai is concerned the reality is very much up to snuff. Not only does it look great – admittedly a wash and polish help out in this regard... as does the background – but it has excelled itself on several longer than usual trips.

On motorways into London in Standard mode, it’s been smooth and efficient, and also comfortable – the heated massage seats are very effective.  Good news indeed that they are both standard on this high-specification Tekna+ QQ. Imagine telling a Nissan owner from the Nineties or even when the Qashqai first arrived in the 2000s that one day, heated massage chairs would come straight from the factory...

Then, during a trip on the narrow, twisty country lanes that the Cotswolds seem to specialise in, the Nissan was sure-footed and easy to place. Tried out Sport mode too. Those (also standard) all-round cameras make for a much less stressful life when trying not to scrape alloys against the road edge on tiny lanes or in squeezy villages.

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What test next for the Qashqai, I wonder. Maybe it’s the moment to see how it stacks up as family transport. It should obviously be brilliant. We shall see...

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