[FlyingSpur]

The Nissan Sunny was launched in India in 2011. As the facelift is mechanically similar to the earlier model, this report will focus on the cosmetic changes only. For easy reference, here are links to our comprehensive reviews of the car:

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Since its introduction, the Sunny hasn't set the sales charts on fire, despite ticking several boxes that are important to prospective buyers. An efficient, robust and adequately powerful diesel engine (the popular K9K 1.5 DCi), comfortable ride quality, acres of legroom for rear passengers and Japanese reliability are the car's strengths. The quirky design & ex-partner Hover's poor marketing & sales resulted in the Sunny selling in merely 3 digits month after month.



In an effort to keep its product fresh and within the consideration set of potential customers, Nissan has given the Sunny a nip-and-tuck, with changes that are almost entirely cosmetic. A generous splashing of chrome on the exterior & interior is accompanied by small tweaks for back-seat passengers. A new colour has been introduced – a dark shade of maroon – along with some changes to equipment levels & trim packages. Nissan also claims to have tweaked the ECU to improve driveability, while the ARAI-tested fuel efficiency goes up by over 1 kpl for the diesel. You can now choose between a “Luxury Pack” that offers leather seats but omits airbags and a “Safety Pack” that offers airbags but omits leather seats....a puzzling arrangement?! The facelifted Sunny is expected to be launched in July.



The most noticeable changes are to the front end. Notice the sheer amount of chrome! Nissan adds that the car has the maximum chrome frontage in the segment:


Chrome around the fog lamps…


…chrome on the front bumper lip…


…and a LOT of chrome on the front grille…


…atop which sits the prominent Nissan badge:


Once your eyes adjust to the bling, you'll catch the large new headlamps which are pulled back quite like those of the American Nissan Altima sedan (from a segment higher):


Chrome splashing continues with the side profile. The front door handles have request sensors for truly keyless entry:


The tail-lamps are carried over from the pre-facelift version, although it must be said that they match the headlamps better now:


Needless to mention, the rear also gets a huge slab of chrome above the number-plate:


Bend a little and observe how Nissan has tweaked the design of the rear bumper to incorporate a plastic element. That’s no diffuser, but it succeeds in breaking the monotony caused by the large bumper. The top-end version has a camera (above the number plate) along with parking sensors, while the mid variant makes do with audible warnings from the sensor-only setup:


The ORVMs of the top-end variant now incorporate smart-looking turn indicators, bringing the Sunny up to speed with this market trend. The mid-variant, however, makes do with traditionally-placed blinkers on the fender…


…and loses some of the bling as well. Pictured here are the rear section & fog lamp housing of the mid variant:


Top variant sports updated alloy wheels wearing 185/65 R15 JK Vectra tyres…


…the lower variants have steel rims, plastic covers and 185/70 R14 rubber:


The radio antenna has been re-positioned to the rear of the roof:


Apart from these updates, there are no changes to the body of the facelifted Nissan Sunny:

[FlyingSpur]

The tweaks continue on the inside. What we have here appears to be a more mature, better finished interior that has a couple of pleasant surprises for both, the driver and rear passenger. The pre-facelift model had an interior dominated by grey, which was boring to say the least. Add to that, the large number of silvery bits and plasticky buttons....this was one interior that wasn't offensive, but didn't win any awards for excitement either.

The 2014 facelift corrects this to some extent, with the center console now finished in piano black, and a new leather-wrapped steering wheel with integrated audio / phone controls that look & feel superior. These are the two major changes that will hit anyone familiar with the pre-facelift Sunny. The round A/C vents have also been done away with:






Different instrument clusters for the top and lower variants:


The center console is similar to the recently launched Micra facelift. A new 5.1" touchscreen + Bluetooth-enabled headunit is standard on the top variant. The touchscreen doubles up as a display for the reversing camera (when reverse gear is engaged). The interface is easy to use and responsive enough. Lesser variants make do with a lower-spec unit instead (both HUs pictured here):


This piano-black finish can be quite a fingerprint magnet:


The MT & AT gear shifters:


The door handles get, well, chrome (but only in the top-end variant)…


…while the circular A/C vents (on the side) have a dull silver surround:


Leather seats are now an option as part of the “Luxury Pack”. Enormous legroom still an unbeaten ace:


Rear passengers get individual reading lamps:


Rear blower (not connected to the air-conditioning) doesn't impede on legroom:


Keyless start & go on the top variant only:


The smartkey of the top variant & the regular key of the lower trims:


A couple of ergonomic issues: one, the lever for adjusting the backrest can be a pain to reach if you push the seat behind...


…and two, the CVT is available only on the mid-variant which lacks the (useful) center armrest. Long drive? Argh!


Will the facelift & Nissan's direct handling of the marketing function improve the Sunny's sales performance? We'll be watching closely:


Disclaimer : Nissan invited Team-BHP for the Sunny test-drive. They covered all the travel expenses for this event.

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Indian Car Scene. Thanks for sharing!

[Mr.Boss]

That's a crisp review with detailed photos.
Is there any other color available for the media drive? Would love to see the new look in all colors.
Is there a display for parking sensor?

And the big disappointment is lack of Driver arm rest.

[Shanksta]

The Sunny is a no-nonsense practical family sedan, but that facelift makes it look very ugly. That front-end is unbelievably hideous and what is with these manufacturers in India why do they have to increase the surface area covered in chrome in the name of facelift, really annoying. Good to see the interiors have matured compared to the dull interiors on the previous car.

[carpacman]

IMO, one of the most ugliest cars around. I didn't like the boot right from the first gen. sunny, the front face was OK but now with so much chrome to the front face, things have not improved.

[Chetan_Rao]

Another 'let's slap on some chrome' (non)face-lift.

Isn't the rear bumper plastic insert lifted from the sister Scala?

The interior now is neither here nor there. The earlier one was at least quirky if not cool. Now it's neither.

[calypsoGT]

A very detailed review indeed with some nice detailed pictures. I wonder why Indians are still making cars shaped like clay toy. Am I the only one who thinks the interiors and exteriors are pretty weirdie to look at ?

[gschandra]

Some thing out of topic, where is this road shown in the 2nd pic?

Full of greenery on one side and sea on the other - would love to have a long ride on this.

[ajmat]

Nice crisp review, well guess there was nothing exciting or interesting beyond the chrome, hope Port Blair kept you more engaged compared to the car!

[xjosephjacob]

Thank you FlyingSpur. Very nice shots. Andaman ?

I think the overdose of chrome and the bigger front grill has given a little bit of character to what was otherwise a very bland design. Still, it's no match for its sister Scala, let alone the likes of Verna. In my books, Sunny was and still remains a car to be bought with head over heart. What it lacks in flair is compensated by driveablility, reliability and practicality.

That said, I'm reasonably sure that won't set the sales chart on fire.

[Mr.Boss]

Is this from XL CVT?
IIRC current Sunny XL CVT comes with rear comfort fan (blower), right? Another cost cutting?

[thoma]

Originally Posted by ajmat

Nice crisp review, well guess there was nothing exciting or interesting beyond the chrome, hope Port Blair kept you more engaged compared to the car!

Woah! I was all the way glued to the backdrop than the car. Did Nissan get cars there for media review alone?

IMO, the ugly duckling gets more uglier, with a load of chrome splashed in thick measure. Chrome is good, but this is gone overboard just for the sake of it (the huge slab of chrome above the number-plate is disgusting). Scala fares far better. The only change that impressed me is the steering wheel.

Thanks for the review though.

[9thsphinx]

Maximum Chrome Frontage - Couldn't help laughing there!

What's this obsession over excessive bling on your cars with the masses? If you think shiny is good, well no, it isn't. It's quite the opposite. It looks gawdy and loud and considering how much sun we get in India it also hurts the eyes. Nissan Sunny, get it?! :P

But that's just me. If the masses love it, who am I to complain. One thing's for sure - this facelift isn't bringing in numbers for Nissan.

[swiftnfurious]

The car didn't excite me but the pictures did! Thank you. Not sure how much Nissan gains with this facelift. That's too much of chrome, reminds me of a lady in my building with an overdose of make up. I feel the interiors were better with the pre-facelift version. I can't seem to like the steering wheel design.