Nissan Teana

On the inside, the Nissan Teana oozes out sophistication, thanks to brilliant fit and finish. However, the overall design feels like it now needs a significant upgrade in terms of layout and features list. The dashboard looks a bit old school with its simple layout, which may not appeal to many.

The three-spoke Y-shaped steering wheel with silver elements is a far departure from the ones which we have seen in other designs from Nissan and feels the most chunky to hold in Nissan’s lineup. The instrument console has a very plain-jane design, with the colored MID screen being the only savior here.

The overall dashboard has a flat layout with the centre console having a wide and vertical design. It does lack a touchscreen infotainment system which is nearly equal to a sin given the premium positioning of this car, however, the music system from BOSE is flawless in terms of sound quality. The Teana does come with a dual-zone climate control system which works flawlessly too. However, the overall design, along with that of the music system, makes you feel that this is an interior of a car from the previous generation.

Apart from the aforementioned things, the Nissan Teana packs in some other noteworthy features such as push-button start with keyless entry, 10-way powered driver’s seat, rear sunshade, rear AC vents, sunroof, leather upholstery, cruise control, and a reverse camera with 5-inch screen display in centre console. The space levels are pretty high in Teana, with enough room to seat five passengers comfortably. Even the boot space at 516 litres is pretty high in terms of volume.

We all are much familiar now with the way Nissan designs its sedans, with the Teana being the best and easily the most sophisticated one till date from the Japanese manufacturer. The car blends in smooth curves and sporty elements with ease, which is why it still looks distinctive even after the fact that it has been in existence for a long time.

At the front, the Nissan’s traditional chrome-slat trapezoidal grille, which is curvy from the sides, is present, in its most glorious form. The boomerang-shaped headlamps, which again is Nissan’s characteristic design element, is present here with projector units inside them. However, considering the current trend, the absence of daytime running lights here is a big miss, given the fact that Teana is Nissan’s flagship sedan not only in Malaysia but all over the world.

From the sides, the Nissan Teana’s elongated wheelbase with a smooth curve flowing all the way from the front bumper towards the rear tailgate looks suave, giving the car the much-required style statement. The Teana has got a coupe-like roofline which adds in a dash of sportiness to the side profile.

At the rear, the Teana looks a bit sporty, thanks to the large boomerang-shaped tail lamps with LED inserts, along with large tailgate with curvy overhead and chrome garnish. The dual exhaust ports further make it look even more aggressive when viewed from the rear.

The Nissan Teana has got a simple suspension layout of independent MacPherson struts with stabilizer at the front and independent multi-link with stabilizer at the rear. The overall suspension has been tuned on a softer side in order to rate the ride quality on a plusher side. While the lower two variants do with 16-inch alloy wheels, the top-spec variant comes with 17-inch alloy wheels.

Under the hood, the Nissan Teana comes with two engine options. The lower two variants – XE and XL – come with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine which puts up 136 PS of power and 190 Nm of torque. On the other hand, the top-spec XV variant is powered by a 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol motor, which develops 173 PS of power and 234 Nm of torque. In all these three variants, the engine is mated to Nissan’s tried-and-tested X-tronic CVT transmission.

The Teana is the flagship sedan from Nissan, which means that it should come with all the state of the art safety equipment usually seen on premium cars nowadays. However, the Teana partially tries to achieve this task. The car comes equipped with six airbags, ABS with EBD, brake assist, vehicle dynamic control, traction control, active understeer control, hill start assist, ISOFIX mounts, rain sensing wipers, and headlamp washers. We would have loved to see more on this list, though.

As said in the beginning, the Nissan Teana is one of the most underrated cars in this segment of full-size luxury sedans, and there is a fair reason for that. While the car does manage to look smart and sophisticated, one can’t ignore the fact that it lacks the novelty factor which is one of the key parameters for such cars. The interiors, though plush and premium, lack many contemporary features seen on many of its competitors. However, it does provide you ample amount of space and comfort levels, and thus for this reason, makes a strong case for itself.