Nissan PRIMERA ESTATE RANGE
The Only Thing Thats Unadventurous About Nissans Medium Range Estate is the Carrying Over Of Its Name From A Model Line Once Renowned As Dull But Worthy. Andy Enright Reports
Theres a ball that now seems to be rolling with increasing momentum, a trend amongst vehicle manufacturers to design estate cars that are genuinely desirable. Nissans Primera is a case in point. Walk around it and youll want it as opposed to resigning yourself to needing it. Whilst
Nissan cant claim to have pioneered this movement, the Primera reinforces what was a mere suspicion.
| Build |
 |
| Comfort |
 |
| Depreciation |
|
| Economy |
|
| Equipment |
|
| Handling |
|
| Insurance |
|
| Performance |
|
| Styling |
|
| Value |
|
Think of estate cars of years gone by. If youd proposed an extension to your house in the same ham fisted way that
Citroen spawned the BX estate from the neatly styled BX hatch, your local authority would probably throw a very large book at you.
Volkswagen Golf estates,
Subaru Legacy estates,
Renault Laguna station wagons all once treated to a generous pranging with the ugly stick. Thats certainly not the case any more and the
Nissan Primera estate is prima facie evidence of an estate you can imagine owning without being the downhill side of fifty.
Credit for the styling goes to Stephane Schwarz, not the one-time Arsenal defender, but the man who appeared on Nissan adverts on the telly spouting profound, New Age-y mantras that, when you sit and think about what he actually said, are quite pointedly ridiculous. Still, hes obviously a lot better with a pen than he is with a soundbite because the current Primera estate is beautifully detailed. Schwarz claimed his influence for the car was the way settling snow softened the angles and edges of a car into a smoother silhouette and you can see what hes tried to achieve with the Primera. One can almost imagine Schwarz in the role of Richard Dreyfuss in Close Encounters, piling mashed potato up on his plate, smoothing it into form, wielding the back of his knife like a spatula whilst his Afghan hounds (designers dont have children too much clutter) look on in amazement.
"The Nissan Primera estate is prima facie evidence of an estate you can imagine owning without being the downhill side of fifty."
Prices begin at £15,955 across a range that consists of uprated S, SX, SVE or T-spec levels of trim, topping out at £21,505 for the T-Spec estate. These prices equate to a round £1,100 more than saloon versions, although to many the estate is an even prettier proposition. Though its a little more than Primera customers have paid in the past, Nissan is quick to point out that the latest car is safer, more comfortable and better refined, as well as being significantly better equipped than its rivals. Engine-wise, theres a choice of 1.
8 or 2.0-litre petrol units or a 2.2-litre common rail turbo diesel. A factory warranted 1.
8-litre LPG conversion is also available in SX estate guise. The sloping rear window line of the estate is partly responsible for creating such a dynamic appearance, and it has an effect on overall loadspace. With the rear seats in place, the Primera estate has, in shameless Sportwagon style, less luggage room than either the four-door saloon or the five door hatch variants, although when the seats fold down, the possibilities that 1,650 cubic litres generate could equal one rather battered IKEA store card. The load bay is usefully shaped too, Nissan realising that this is far more important than a capacious but inconveniently shaped rear.
The rear suspension is compact enough to ensure that intrusion is kept to a minimum and theres no awkward lip to lift loads over either. As regards road manners, its customary to now report that yes, the driver would never know he or she was at the wheel of an estate, but with the Primera its different. The estate actually seems more refined than its saloon and hatch siblings, lacking their slight whisper of wind noise around the door seals. Normally the opposite is the case, estate cars finding it difficult to suppress noise, their sheer volume giving rise to all sorts of booming harmonics.
Full marks to Nissan, then. Inside the latest model, a revision of the dashboard means that theres now more storage and the facility for an on-dash CD autochanger whereas before it resided in the boot. The steering wheel is redesigned, as is the centre storage box, the larger door pulls, the head lining and the higher mounted armrests. Small tweaks are everywhere.
The in-dash clock now stays visible irrespective of whether the audio selection, climate control or satellite navigation is activated, the ice warning tone doesnt chime on and off if the temperature is fluctuating around zero and the climate control is more sensitive. The reversing camera and excellent Birdview DVD satellite navigation system have been rolled out to more models across the range. All Primeras feature climate-controlled air conditioning, front, side and curtain airbags, a 6-speaker CD stereo, a 6" colour display screen, a trip computer, electric mirrors, remote central locking, front electric windows and ABS. Though the 111bhp 1.8-litre petrol unit is always going to be the most popular of the three Primera engines available in the UK, its not the most interesting. More diverting attractions lie with the 2.
0-litre petrol unit a powerplant that cranks out 139bhp and which is mated to a six-speed manual transmission or a CVT transmission with sequential manual override switching between six artificially mandated gears. A 138bhp common rail turbodiesel completes the engine line-up, offered with a six-speed manual only. Performance is nothing outstanding, the 2.0-litre petrol car capable of sprinting to 60mph in 10.
9 seconds in CVT form. The CVT gearbox would probably benefit from driver experience, as novices can make excruciatingly jerky progress. The diesel engine has to be the pick of the range, offering that sprightly acceleration with an average fuel consumption figure of nearly 49mpg and diesel prices are now a good deal more affordable. Its either me growing old or station wagons like this getting ever more attractive, but this Nissan Primera Estate is a genuinely desirable piece of real estate.
One glance at a picture of an old Citroen BX estate and Im certain. Im not getting old. Stephan Schwarz has earned his crust.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Nissan Primera Estate range
PRICES: £15,955-£21,505 - on the road
INSURANCE GROUPS: 8-11
CO2 EMISSIONS: 164-209g/km
PERFORMANCE: [2.0 petrol] Max Speed 114mph / 0-60mph 10.9s
FUEL CONSUMPTION: [2.0 diesel] (Combined) 48.4mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front, side and curtain airbags, ABS, EBD
<< Back to Nissan car reviews
<< Back to car reviews homepage
Find New & Used Cars in the UK |
New & Used Nissan Cars For Sale UK
