The Tiida May Become the Next Generation Sentra
Imagine if you will an economically compact car that has the room, features and quality of a full-size luxury sedan.
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| Nissan's Renault-spawned Tiida compact marks the dawning of a new ear for the Japanese automaker's compact cars. (Photo: Nissan Canada) |
It's sort of like going into a fast food joint and asking for prime rib. It's a tall order, regardless of how you look at it. Now, imagine that very vehicle in question features a price tag no more expensive than an average Honda Civic or Toyota Corolla. Better make that a porterhouse, medium rare.
But wait a minute! What seems impossible in theory has become a reality in Japan at least, thanks to Nissan's brand new C-segment Tiida. Recently announced for sale in its domestic market, the Tiida hatchback proves that automotive rules can be broken once in a while.
Hold up a moment, why should the domestic product launch of a simple Japanese
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| The Tiida's tall body delivers a sports-car like low drag coefficient rating, and has zero frontal lift. (Photo: Nissan Canada) |
compact make front page news? Is there more to the little Tiida than first meets the eye? While many of Nissan's products are aimed squarely at the culturally unique Japanese market, an even greater portion of its vehicles are marketed on a global scale. Take Nissan's current compact vehicle for an example. It is sold in Europe as the Almera, albeit modified considerably with new sheetmetal, a revised interior and with different drivetrains. The Sunny is also sold here in North America, although not in hatchback or wagon configurations. Our Sunny is the 4-door Sentra, a typically average Japanese compact sedan which struggles to gain recognition in an overcrowded class.
