Greetings from Guangzhou, China! We’re reporting live from Auto Guangzhou 2010 at the gigantic complex that also hosts the world famous Canton Fair. No carmaker can afford to miss out on a Chinese motor show today, even if it’s not Shanghai (GZ is China’s third largest city, KL feels tiny in comparison), so there are still some world debuts to shout about. Mainly from homegrown brands, but Nissan also showed its new Sunny for the first time, and that’s what we’re focusing on here.
“Sunny” is a name that’s right up there in recognition, probably only beaten by “Saga” and “Wira” in Malaysia, and Nissan has chosen this cheerful name for its Vios/City challenger. The Latio, Nissan’s previous attempt, didn’t do too well as an experiment in straddling both B and C segments, and that’s most probably due to its space efficient but unflattering looks. Same recipe here, but some lessons have been learned.
For a small family car, space will always have priority over “sporty looks”, and that’s reflected in the Sunny’s shape. This “baby Teana” looks much sleeker and palatable than the Latio though, and it still provides the latter’s generous cabin room. The footprint is about the same – the 1,695 mm width is unchanged while the 4,426 mm length is up by just 11 mm.
Wheelbase remains at 2,600 mm, which is 50 mm longer than the Vios and 100 mm less than the C-segment Sylphy’s. The Latio is the Peter Crouch in its class; Sunny is less lanky by 21 mm, but still dwarfs over the Vios.
Underneath it all is Nissan’s V platform, as used on the March/Micra. Front struts and a rear torsion beam is expected and the showcar wears high profile 185/65 R15 Bridgestones, the exact same size on the Latio. There’s a full sized spare tyre under the boot floor. Brakes are all discs, with the fronts ventilated. Steering is EPS.
The Sunny is powered by the HR15DE 1.5-litre engine. This modern unit is tuned for economy (up to 5.8L/100 km) and drivability rather than outright power and it makes 112 PS at 5,600 rpm and 139 Nm of torque at 4,000 rpm. Doesn’t look spectacular on brochures like the Honda City, but that car’s headline 120 PS and 145 Nm is achieved at at a dizzying 6,600 rpm and 4,800 rpm respectively. Transmission options are a five-speed manual and Nissan’s Xtronic CVT.
The Sunny’s March roots is evident in the cabin, which has the supermini’s curvy design and round elements. The dashboard is similar and the March’s unique donut style climate control is carried over, although the Sunny’s centre stack houses square instead of round air con vents.
Also not present here is the March’s integrated stereo, replaced by Nissan’s usual 2-DIN unit as found in the Grand Livina and Latio. The Sunny’s instruments are in a traditional twin dial layout. The steering wheel and gear knob design is familiar too.
The Sunny was mobbed by the crowd, but I did manage to sit in for awhile. Like the Latio (and unlike its rivals), there’s an obvious focus on comfort in the Sunny. That long wheelbase frees up plenty of legroom and the seats are very nicely shaped and sculptured for a budget car.
There’s even a fold down rear armrest with twin cupholders and rear air vents with independent 2-speed control, something even the Teana doesn’t have!
The show car had leather seats that are thickly padded and very cushy (both front and rear), and unlike the Latio, the front seat adjusters return to their normal positions on the outside of the seat. All door handles are in chrome for the “classy” look and there’s a sunroof to cater to the Chinese market.
Speaking of that, there are three trim levels in China – XE, XL and XV – and all except for the base trim gets keyless entry with Start/Stop button and a sunroof as standard. Dual airbags, ABS, EBD and Brake Assist are present across the board.
Sounds like a model that will do well in Malaysia if Tan Chong decides to bring it in or assemble it. Full gallery after the jump!
[zenphotopress number=999 album=1818]
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dont know if enter MLY, it named different?SENTRA?or SUNNY?
or TAN CHONG named.maybe.We’ll see.
danny thanks for the updates.
if etcm brings it in one day, given better localisation here & body kit up, am sure this car would look pleasant….. would probably sell well too :-)
Definately this car will have good demand in M’sia if TCM sell it with IMPUL body Kits!
The front facia seriously remind me of VW…
dude, which part looks like a VW? pls la….
headlamp like myvi/latio, front grille like facelifted accord, rear lamps looks like swift CKD. overall, disappointing….sentra should be like the civic.
actually, the front looks directly related to nissan “JOKE”, maybe tt explain the motive behind the weirdo headlights and mismatched front grille. the rear lamp also very old gen MURANO.
Most sohai is the centre console, looks like a GAS MASK or a horny BABOON going after the shift stick!
Dude..
Look at Jetta, Passat & 1 other model (look at their chrome grill…) & tell me you don’t see the similarity…
The Sunny is back and it looks quite pleasant.
really??? what about those chinese alphabets?? ridiculous..
Whoah~! rear aircon vents!
this blue is a terrible colour, gray interior is bland and a letdown, black would be a better fit
The Sunny is back and it looks quite pleasant.
Hopefully this model is brought in by Tan Chong soon.
*cough cough* at least saga FL has steering mounted audio control hehehehe…
I believe we Malaysians will get steering mounted dials. Its pretty std these days
Saga FL will better if it come with rear ac vent…
the sepcs are fantastic. very nice look both interior and exterior.
hot cake for malaysia is priced at 80k
Below 80k better…. 1.5 manual at 69k??? must cheaper than vios…. ;p who want to pay more???
80k if tanchong mantain:
1) moonroof
2) start/stop button
3) rear aircond vent
4) 2 airbags (at least)
5) rear seat armrrest
i have a scary experience on stugatt autotronic (cvt)… if i have choice i will avoid CVT..
doubful if 80k. , prefer vios 70k reliable and economic, both petrol and maintainance ( Spare parts easily obtainable ) + resale value.
Push n Pull the big circle button there and the car will transform to ROBOT.
autobot!! transfrom!!!
Wow it looks huge to me for 1.5L car.
Japanese budget car, hopefully ECTM doesn’t sell it at a high price and with watered down specs here in M’sia.
same price like Myvi??? sure buy!!!
Why dun price it same price with SAGA FL, sure sell like hot cakes !!!!!!!!!!!!
if they want to sell same price like Saga FL…. Even better… my sister looking for new car…. to replace 10~11 years old Daihatsu….
Hopefully there’s data for fuel comsumption on both manual and Xtronic CVT.
It’s a Sunny day…
Weird… Just doesnt feel comfortable with it…
neither pull nor audio system…
Wasnt sporty if with full body kit >.<
typical AH BENG….
welcome back sunny although some said sentra is its successor
for me it’s not ugly neither beautiful, can accept vios too,
good point is the aircond vents for backseats, good fuel consumption and the roomier cabin space
the bad point is the dashboard design
sentra is not its successor, its actually the same model with sunny. only different name in different country. as eg. current sentra in malaysia is called sunny in singapore
its look very bad.. seriously..
Gonna have to agree. A bit too ‘bulgy’. Looks bengkak-bengkak, lebam-lebam.
i agree with u..
the outcome is expected…boring car as always…
yaa..just another boring car jump into the bandwagon..
Time for a sentra replacement. When will it come in?
when come to M’sia sure more than RM 100k ……the desing just like the small size slyphy……
u must hope nissan give TC RM10k per car..when come malaysia plus all tax (max 115%CBU 95%CKD or 85%CBU[from thai]) so that the price will be around RM20-30k
Looks??? Ok Ok ok for me…. if cheaper than Vios… can consider….
yeahh…design so shame..suitable 4 pkcik2 and nenek only..
Design? Dull and outdated as Vios and other 1990s era car… but if can sell with lower price (than vios, city etc.) at the middle of 50k to 70k, it may be a good buy.
Jurassic design and styling. But rear aircon blower is thoughtful.
no mp3 player ??? too bad…but i like the middle air vent even it is only suitable for van …..
different markets will have different specification. just because the china sold model does not have it, doesn’t mean the malaysian product planner cannot spec it in.
knowing Tan Chong,expect it to launch here in m’sia in 2 years time!
maybe 4 years time bro…
the inside door handle use to open the door is quite weird. a bit hard to pull with that design.
Up to now, it’s the most comfortable and ‘reliable’ budget car money can buy !! the rear aircond vents for this budget segment is a very clever marketing idea indeed !! well done nissan! budget car, looks/sportiness/perf r never the main priorities. Price,Comfort n Reliability – YES !!
No matter from which angle the photos has been taken, it really looks bad.
mini Teana looks but a little bit female-ish…. but still better than that sissy sylphy..
instead should make it looks like USDM Sentra macho looks…
WOW! ALL ROUND DISC IS VERY PROMISING…..
except for the brand, nothing is worth attention.
is it just me or does it look like a taxi?
Could be the colour…..
Looks like another typical RM70k+ car if it comes to our market. Blehhh…
wait, when it is sunny it supposed to be in bright yellow, not rainy blue……
different country different taste. Yes. it looks a bit weird and ugly (for me). If u were in china before. U can find a lot of alike this kind of shape on the road. Just like U.S
while the side profile is not bad
it still looks like the car that puts the “aw” in awkward and “it” in sh*t
‘”suzuki swift dzire”
the sedan version of swift that sells in india
google it and u know what i am talking about
inspired from the
suzuki swift dzire
the car that puts the “aw” in awkward
Confirmed by TC salesaman coming nx yr , as latio sales is louzy & sentra is due for new model.
this is good news then. hopefully the pricing can be competitive.
At least that utter blandness can be toned down with fitting bigger tyres/wheel. Why Nissan so ‘kedekut’ by fitting those weedy tyres , suitable enough for scooters?
Ya. The rodas simply look disproportionately small compared to the rest.
cars sold in china are like that. this is due to their bad roads. small wheels with high profile tyres provide a more comfortable ride over there.
they are setting it more to comfort bro….don’t simply bash if you don’t know…if you want sportier…..get the GTR…and if you can’t afford….then leave it….you are not in their target market list….
so many ah beng comment here…==’….
agree with you. most are probably still in secondary school or college with no real world experience with cars judging by the juvenilish form of their posts.
Fitting a slightly bigger wheels should’nt hurt comfort too much. I don’t have problems with the exterior design, it’s quite a good modern day design.Just the tyres size is not balanced with the overall look. Pity.
One thing really stands out…it is so spacious!
If anyone can look past the external design, this is good value.
In Malaysia, this would be a 80 to 90k plus car.
Nissan cars are quite reliable….look at the 130Y…the 120Y also nice classic.
I drove it while learning at Driving School n it was nice although under-powered.
This is my dream car, the designed looks aggressive compared to dugong.
I heard Nissan engine always fuel efficient, good value of middle class in Malaysia..
UNCLE!
Nissan Sunny B11 is still the legend.
the backseat passenger in the middle will have his crotch chilled!
that is if u r sitting in the camry with non-adjustable vents….. pity those ladies too :-)
what is uncle car like this doing in paultan…
its screwing u, thats what its doing :-)
dunno y…nissan’s sport cars were so sleek n handsome..but when come 2 family car, its so ugly.. 4 me accord,camry, civic, altis much more beautiful than nissan sylphy/latio/ sentra..
From googling, the expect price of Nissan Sunny as quote on some web site “The new Sunny will be produced in Dongfeng Nissan’s Huadu Plant in Guangzhou and will be priced from RMB 82.8K to 112.8K (1.04 million – 1.41million yen). ”
and my guess this price within VIOS/City/Latio range.
I think if name as Sunny or even Sentra is very much better. As it will help people to think that they come back to the market again and easier to remember..
I also believe that once it is in, it will help to create more choice for user, but a challenge to vios. Which is nice to see.
i think if uncle Lim still around, he will buy many of this unit for his taxi to Genting. Look at the Sentra. Going uphill Genting 1 day 5 times 365 days a year without major overhaul required, Nissan Sunny/ Sentra is the car of the century for Uncle Lim
hahahahahahah i can’t help but laugh at the ridiculous state of this world
Doesn’t suit my taste, but may give the butterflies to others. Side profile looks too much like the Vios…
It will become Sentra if enter Malaysia..
hope not become Sylphy if enter Malaysia