SKIN-DEEP APPEAL
The all- new Terra pickup- based SUV from Nissan isn’t an outright winner, but it actually drives better than several of its rivals
Peruse Nissan’s model line-up in Thailand and some interesting things pop up.
If you want an affordable hatchback for the city run, there’s the half-million baht March (already superseded by an all-new replacement in global markets).
And for slightly more money, you can get a bigger and better-equipped variation of the same theme in the guise of the Note (which came to Thai showrooms with a facelift of a three-year model sold elsewhere).
Whether Nissan has some inconsistent product-planning or desperation of maximising business cases of various models remains to be seen. But on the positive side of things, choice can never be bad for buyers.
Now there are another two products slightly overlapping each other in the 1-1.5 million baht price bracket including the ageing X-Trail and box-fresh Terra SUVs. However, these two seven-seat sport-utilities are slightly different in concept to a wider degree than what separates the March from the Note.
While the X-Trail has a car-like monocoque platform for enhanced on-road driving, the Terra is built around pickupesque chassis-on-frame body for some offroad capability.
As well, the Navara-based Terra is slightly the larger of the two and features a diesel-turbo workhorse under its bonnet; the X-Trail comes with either pure petrol engines or hybrid (the latter only in fiveseat form).
Even so, many buyers in Thailand still tend to overlook this differentiation when it comes to SUVs of different origins. In fact, they have been attracted to pickup-based SUVs mostly for their size and looks.
Which brings us to the first crucial facet of the Terra. People prefer their SUV barges to look bold and rugged in appearance even though it’s a common fact that Thais hardly hit the mud with these vehicles.
This is where the Terra fails to hit the nail straight in its head. We still haven’t heard from anybody who liked the Terra’s looks. In fact, when it comes to all of its intended rivals (see sidebar for what’s what), the Terra is arguably at the bottom of the list by lacking some tough-looking proportions.
But the flip side of this is the basic package which offers comparatively higher levels of space and versatility. Of course, the thirdrow chairs have never been meant for fullsize adults like in its competition, but the Terra does its job sufficiently well when it comes to overall practicality. As well, the loftily-placed seats, themselves quite comfy to sit in, give occupants a decent sense of airiness.
The interior itself has quite a tidy design with some bits coming from the Navara but polished up a little to justify its higher price position. It may not be the best to eyes, but the fascia works sufficiently well with the exception of the aftermarket-like infotainment system.
Speaking of that, there are some cost-cutting measures like the use of drum brakes on the rear axle and omission of electric tailgate operation. That partially explains the Terra’s not-so-high prices in relation to rivals.
Rather than coming with the Navara’s 2.5-litre four-cylinder diesel-turbo, the Terra gets a smaller version but with twin turbos to boost low-end tractability and fuel efficiency from the same 190hp of power and 450Nm of torque.
This is crucial as Nissan wants to keep Terra within the 200g/km threshold of CO2 emissions to enjoy 20% excise tax. The seven-speed automatic transmission is the same as in the Navara and drives either the rear wheels (1.316-1.349 million baht) or four wheels (1.427 million baht).
Performance-wise, the Terra is reasonably capable being offering enough of acceleration and overtaking abilities. The bi-turbo unit (called YS23) also seems to be virtually lag-free and more refined than the YD25-coded diesel in the Navara (which will eventually get YS23 in the future) and in some other engines of its rivals.
But the Terra isn’t best performer in its class at the moment. Despite its on-paper advantages, almost all of the major players in this class don’t necessarily feel inferior to the Terra in real-world driving.
Although we have yet to drive the updated Ford Everest with the latest 213hp 2.0-litre diesel-turbo and 10-speed transmission, we already found this power train to be quite a peach in the Ranger pickup. If there’s really something to like in the Terra, it would be no other than its driving characteristics. It’s something that can’t be seen in the showroom, so potential buyers should give it a quick steer on the road.
The Terra features a multi-link rear suspension with coil springs like in several of its opponents. But thanks to some good tuning of the chassis, it rides quite well. Pickup-based SUVs usually have a jiggly ride, but the Terra manages to yield good body control when cruising with good amount of external noise suppression to match. In terms of cruising comfort, the Terra delivers.
But handling in the Terra is spoilt by an inconsistently-tuned steering that feels a touch heavy at low speeds and imprecise in the meandering roads we encountered in the North of Thailand. As for off-road ability, the Terra is geared with the necessary armoury, if ever you’re going to use them.
But what might be more useful is some of the driving aids like all-round view monitor. Pickup-based SUVs are already terribly big in city-driving, so things like this should be made standard across the range which isn’t the case for the Terra; lower models just get rear-parking camera. At least, front, side and curtain airbags are available throughout.
Sure, the Terra is deemed quite competitive in price if you start looking at the features given in return in spite of some omissions. But it also rewards with good driving manners for general on-road usage, which is why the 1.349 million baht VL RWD is probably the pick in the Terra model range.
They like to say better late than never, which is the case for the Terra, Nissan’s long-awaited answer for the Toyota Fortuner and its like. But the Terra isn’t a classact because it has actually been a little late to the party, which has constantly seen improved players over the past years.
THANKS TO SOME GOOD TUNING OF THE CHASSIS, IT RIDES QUITE WELL