The
word is out, Nissan
will be launching
its version of
compact car to
challenge City and
Vios dominant. So
ladies and
gentlemen, it you
are planning to get
a car in that class,
its best to wait a
little longer to
compare what you
might want with this
offering.
The car, Nissan
Latio has already
been launched in
Singapore for some
time, so its good
that we could hear
some comment from
our neighbor about
it. The car
comparing to Sentra
has a wheelbase 65mm
longer even though
the overall car is
100mm shorter. With
its height increased
by 90mm, the Latio
has bigger headroom
and legroom.
The Singapore
version with its
list of standard
features would put
many of its more
expensive self
proclaimed luxury
cars to shame. The
standard version
comes with an
intelligent key
system, that is
first seen on the
very much more
expensive Benz. It
allows the driver to
lock/unlock the
doors or even start
the engine without
needing to get the
keys from your
pocket. We just hope
the Malaysian
version have the
same feature. One of
the comment we saw
in the Singapore
review was
‘This
keyless system works
beautifully and is
thoroughly idiot
proof. We tried to
'fool' system by
trying to lock the
car with the key
still in it. But in
every one of our
'scenarios' the
Latio kept its
windscreen intact by
refusing to lock us
out.’
The other luxury
features that came
with the Singapore
model was it include
the ‘clean ion’
climate control
air-conditioning
system that charges
the cooled interior
with negative ion
which is supposed to
be good (whatever it
is
J
).
With all the
exciting interior
features, the
exterior design of
the sedan could
possibly need some
improvement, however
the sports version
of it looks more
exciting, with the
outlook of the mini
Murano. The sport
version with same
feature as the sedan
offered more styles.
Powered by the 1.5L
engine, the Latio is
available in
Singapore either a 5
speed manual or
automatic with
Continuously
Variable
Transmission (CVT).
Another notable
comment found was;
‘With the latter, no
one expects the
Latio to be a sports
car but in reality
is deceptively
spritely as its
superb noise
insulation and
refinement does a
good job of hiding
its surprising pace.
Approach
three-figure speeds
and the Latio Sport
turns in a much
better composed ride
than the sedan as it
feels more stable in
places where its
sibling started to
'float'.’
With some of this
good review we saw,
luxury interior
offerings and sporty
sports version, we
are very much
tempted to call this
small car the next
big thing. Bearing
in mind if Nissan
will keep the price
of it down. Move a
side Honda Jazz…
here comes Nissan
Latio Sports.
