THE ALL-NEW NISSAN QASHQAI will launch in Australia with four feature-packed grades, exciting new engine options and advanced multi-link rear suspension across the range when it arrives in 2022.
Welcoming all-new levels of design, comfort and technology, the new Qashqai is equipped with premium features across every grade.
“The new Qashqai is the perfect example of style meeting substance, from its sleek exterior design and premium cabin to its advanced safety equipment and powerful yet efficient engine options,” says Nissan Australia Managing Director, Adam Paterson.
“Bigger, smarter, safer, and more spacious, the new Qashqai is everything our customers are looking for in their next SUV, all wrapped in a stylish and well-equipped package, across the range.”
A new CMF-C platform underpins the Qashqai, which delivers increased torsional stiffness (+48 per cent), thanks in part to a significant increase in the use of ultra-high-strength steel.
Despite its overall increase in stiffness, the bodyshell is more than 60kg lighter, which contributes to the new Qashqai’s overall efficiency, while also reducing inertia when driving, improving agility and dynamics.
The Qashqai is also now bigger in every key dimension, measuring 4425mm in length (+31mm), 1625mm in height (+30mm), and 1835mm (+29mm) in width, while the wheelbase has grown to 2665mm (+19mm), all of which directly translates to more cabin space.
Generously equipped across the range
The range will begin with the Qashqai ST, which combines 17-inch alloy wheels, a rear spoiler, and LED automatic headlights and DRLs to deliver a premium and polished exterior appearance.
In the cabin, there’s a 7.0-inch TFT instrument cluster, while the 8.0-inch touchscreen, along with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, ensures you remain connected. Six speakers and twin USB ports are ready to handle your entertainment needs.
Ensuring high-tech safety isn’t an optional extra, the Qashqai ST is equipped with a suite of Nissan Intelligent Mobility safety features, including Intelligent Cruise Control, Forward Emergency Braking, Predictive Forward Collision Warning (PFCW) with pedestrian, cyclist and junction detection, rear AEB with pedestrian detection, Lane Departure Warning and Departure Prevention, Blind Spot Warning and Blind Spot Intervention, rear cross-traffic alert, Traffic Sign Recognition, Driver Attention Alert and Rear Seat Alert, as well as High Beam Assist, front and rear parking sensors, and a parking camera.
Every Qashqai is also equipped with a new central airbag, which deploys from between the two front seats, to prevent the front-row occupants from making contact in the event of a side-impact. The central airbag supplements the driver and passenger airbags, as well as the side and curtain airbags fitted as standard to the new Qashqai.
The street appeal of the Qashqai ST+ is further enhanced by LED fog lights, 18-inch alloy wheels and auto wipers, while cabin comfort is bolstered with a navigation-equipped 9.0-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay. An Around-View Monitor (AVM) with Moving Object Detection is also added to the safety equipment.
The Qashqai ST-L arrives riding on unique 19-inch alloy wheels and adds Adaptive Driving Beam headlights, along with privacy glass, roof rails and LED turn signals for a striking exterior appearance.
In the cabin, there is an auto-dimming rear view mirror, while the leather-accented seats are heated in the front, and include an 8-way power-adjustable driver’s seat. They’re joined by an even more technologically advanced offering in the cabin, including wireless phone charging and dual-zone climate control.
Safety equipment is further enhanced by Nissan’s advanced ProPILOT with Lane Keep Assist. ProPILOT is able to accelerate and brake the vehicle within a single-lane on a highway. The system can accelerate the vehicle to cruise at a set speed, and can brake the vehicle down to 0 km/h in heavy, stop-start traffic. The system is able to resume automatically if the vehicle has been stationary for less than three seconds and the traffic in front of the car moves away.
The Qashqai Ti will be the ultimate expression of this all-new model, with a Panoramic Glass Roof and electric sunshade, a unique rear bumper finisher, a black headliner, ambient interior lighting and luggage boards.
Cabin comfort and technology features include a 10.8-inch colour head-up display, a 12.3-inch TFT, and a premium 10-speaker BOSE audio system, while the seats are accented in stunning 3D quilted premium leather, and include memory and massage functions for front-seat passengers, and the tailgate is motion activated.
Safety equipment is further bolstered by Intelligent Park Assist, supported by the addition of Side Sensors.
More power, less fuel
The new Qashqai will be offered with a choice of two engine options; a new turbocharged petrol engine will arrive first, with Nissan’s innovative e-POWER technology to follow in late 2022.
While the current Qashqai is powered by a 2.0-litre petrol engine producing 106kW and 200Nm, the new model will be equipped at launch with a turbocharged 1.3-litre four-cylinder engine that will generate an impressive 110kW@5500rpm and 250Nm @1600rpm.
Despite the power increase, the new engine is also considerably more efficient, requiring just 6.1L/100km combined (was 6.9L/100km) and emitting just 138g/km of C02.
The new HR13DDT engine is paired exclusively with a new-generation CVT automatic designed to deliver better fuel economy and better acceleration feel, thanks to a 14 per cent ratio coverage improvement and a 29 per cent friction reduction.
The dual-personality gearbox is equipped with three modes, Eco, Normal and Sport, and has been engineered to produce seamless upshifts in city-driving scenarios, and DCT-like stepped shifts and acceleration feel in sportier conditions.
Multi-link rear suspension for ultimate driver engagement
The new Qashqai will also deliver the class-leading poise and comfort that comes from an advanced multi-link rear suspension configuration.
This configuration allows the wheel placement on the road to remain optimised through direction changes, as well as camber changes, most noticeably on roads with poor and bumpy surfaces.
This delivers a connected feeling with the road, with a positive response in bends thanks to well-controlled body-roll, without compromising comfort. Insulation from road noise and vibrations also remains one of the Qashqai’s finest attributes.
Completing the Qashqai’s engaging dynamics is the reworked steering configuration, with the power-assistance motor now directly adjacent to the steering rack. This has reduced the feeling of friction through the steering wheel, and gives a more natural increase in steering effort as more lock is applied.
The steering ratio has changed from 19.1:1 to 14.7:1, resulting in a quicker response on turn-in. Combined with the stiffer chassis, drivers will immediately detect the improvement in agility, increasing the fun-to-drive dynamics of the Qashqai.
The new Qashqai will arrive in Australia in early 2022, with customer reservations to commence this month.