Following the launch of a facelift version of Micra hatchback, Nissan is gearing up for the introduction of an eagerly awaited compact Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV), Terrano. Sources close to the development process stated that the Terrano is Nissan's equivalent of the Renault Duster, a car that has done really well in the Indian auto market. Expected to be introduced by the Japanese auto maker in September 2013, Nissan Terrano compact SUV was spotted doing test rounds in Chennai.
The official sketches of the Terrano were recently released by the Japanese firm, which depicted the differences between it and the sibling Duster. Notably, the Nissan Terrano is going to be the last product of the badge-engineering policy between the Japanese car maker and French firm Renault. The Nissan-Renault alliance was formed, in order to reduce cost by sharing platforms. However, things did not shape up the way they were expected to, resulting in the discontinuation of the product-sharing policy.
The Nissan owned Oragadam production facility is the site for the manufacturing of the Terrano. The Japanese car maker has previously used the moniker of Terrano, as it was put on sale in many European markets. It must be noted that Nissan has made many changes to the design of Terrano, against the Renault Duster. Featuring a bold design, Nissan Terrano is expected to be more stylish and sharper in appearance than the Duster.
According to the pictures revealed, the front fascia of the Nissan Terrano is same as the sketch, featuring new bumper, front grille and revised headlight. The released images also depicted the straight crease present in the car's lower body, which is again different to the U-shaped crease of the Duster. Nissan's upcoming compact SUV is also expected to sport a new tailgate, tail lamps and rear bumper. Apart from these changes, Terrano will get rectangular air vents (circular in the Duster) and a distinguishably shaped instrumental console.
Kenichiro Yomura, Chief Executive Officer and President of Nissan Motor India, recently spoke about the bold design of the Terrano compact SUV at an event. “You can see from the sketch that Terrano has a bold and distinctive design that I am confident will appeal to our growing customer base in India, as will its driving performance and range of other features that will be revealed at a later date,” he said.
Judging from the reports, Nissan is expecting to take advantage of the soon arriving festive season for launching its much hyped Terrano. It is a known fact that the festive season is considered to be the best time period for introducing a vehicle in the Indian car market. According to industry experts, the Nissan Terrano will be a more premium car than the Duster, which might make it slightly costlier than its Renault sibling.
