First ride: The new Nissan Pulsar

Hands up, who still remembers the Almera? Okay, one or the other can remember. But really successful? No - the Nissan Almera could not make a trick with us. And that was not only due to the VW Golf, the undisputed top dog in the so-called C-segment, also known as: “The Golf Class”. It was also due to the barely pronounced character of the Almera. Nissan then took the Almera off the market in 2006 and then simply invented a new segment: The crossover. With the Qashqai exploded the success of Nissan. A compact golf opponent was not needed anymore.

Now the command is: everything back to the start. Nissan has come to believe that as a volume brand you have to offer a broad product portfolio. And a golf opponent should not be missing.

Clear the way for the new Nissan Pulsar.

Nissan Pulsar 1.2 DIG-T

Character question in the golf class

The new Nissan Pulsar in the first driving report

Actually, the Nissan is no longer Japanese. The nicely drawn Nissan is built near Barcelona. And the design is anything but strange. It looks out into the world with the typical Nissan face, covers its length with a few cheeky swings in the side and ends with a rear view that is just as typical of Nissan. A little Qashqai already resonates at the stern. Which doesn't have to be bad.

Inner size

At 4.39 meters, the pulsar is just “manageable”. However, its wheelbase of 2.70 meters sets a new benchmark in the “theoretical” compact class. The result of the long wheelbase? A legroom for the second row that you only find one class above elsewhere. The Pulsar spoils the interior with a lot of space, with proper workmanship and the dashboard wants to provide a little more ambience with piano lacquer insert and a “floating” center console. The biggest plus in the interior? A lot of things are very valuable and the cockpit with its large, clean and clearly structured instruments is enriched in the middle by an extremely modern and attractively designed multifunctional instrument.

Cheap Japanese? Not at first glance in the cockpit.

Saved on displacement - and a little on performance

While the occupants of the place are just so spoiled, Nissan has held back on the question of possible motorizations for a little. Clear is the nice description for the current range of engines.

A petrol engine with 1.2 liter displacement, turbo blower and 115 HP - known among others from the new Nissan Qashqai - and a diesel engine from Allianz partner Renault, with 1.5 liters and 110 hp. While the small 1.2 liter turbo bravely pushes over the country road, the 1.5 liter dCi lacks a little revving. But Nissan is quick to point out that the 1.6 liter DIG-T with 190 hp will soon be added. However, there remains a big gap between the 120 PS gasoline engine and the 190 PS of the more potent 1.6 liter turbo.

So it might be. Even though the two engines have not cracked the 10-second hurdle so far, they do not feel so weak or even underpowered. Not even with the 190 Nm strong and clearly downsizing prescribed 1.2 DIG-T. In 10.7 seconds he pulls the Pulsar from a standstill to Tempo 100 and at 190 km / h he sets the further acceleration. The 260 Nm strong diesel can be schaltfaul drive. Also this 110 PS strong diesel should speed up to speed 190. In consumption, the small diesel, according to paper values ​​according to NEDC, the absolute savings! Only 3.6 liter should be sufficient for the diesel pulsar in the mix. The small turbo gasoline engine should be content with 5 liters.

So he drives

GTI? Or a NISMO feeling? No. The two engines do not turn the deliberately soft and comfortably tuned pulsar into a racing roll. The target group here is the 50+ age group. Go on a tour on Sunday morning? From A to B without stress in everyday life? That's more of the new pulsar thing. Do you want to tackle winding terrain with sporty ambitions? Let it be. Nissan has come up with a lot for the chassis. An active “lane control” monitors the steering angle, the current speed and can hide the tendency to understeer by means of targeted braking impulses of individual wheels. What remains is the overall package. The Pulsar doesn't want to be the GT for the country road. It drives the most confidently in a balanced style, you don't have to turn down the engines, you can delight the standard 6-speed gearbox with early gear changes and it is best to stay the quiet type.

On the safe side

Nissan Safety Shield, Moving Object Detection, Blind Spot Warning, Lane Departure Warning, Emergency Brake Assist, Nissan Connect, etc. Does it all sound terribly complicated? Is not it. Depending on its equipment version, the Nissan Pulsar has the full package of assistance systems on board. In the TEKNA version, the multimedia system with touchscreen and all assistance systems are on board. Also on board is the 360 ​​° all-round view from four individual cameras. At the stern, the pulsar has an absolutely special feature. So that the rear camera is not constantly polluted, it was given a water and compressed air cleaning. With that you are on the safe side, also thanks to the many electronic helpers, and you can keep track of things.

The conclusion remains:

If pulsar. Then now. Because Nissan is offering a particularly attractive “Launch Edition” at the start of the new Pulsar. The price list now starts at € 15.990. The driven 1.2 liter DIG-T in the TEKNA version costs € 21.690, but then offers the full range of equipment.

The pulsar is certainly not the better golf. But the pulsar offers more character than the Almera back then. And that makes it a possible alternative in the golf class. At the start, in addition to the extensive safety equipment, Nissan especially adopted the price argument. Because what you get for your money is properly processed, drives comfortably, offers the largest space in its class in the second row and encourages the driver to take a quiet tour. The question of whether that is enough to turn the pulsar into a volume model remains unanswered for the time being.

The pulsar relaxes while driving.

Nissan Pulsar 1.2 DIG-T

Nissan Safety Shield

The manufacturer packs different safety and assistance systems into one package and calls it “Nissan Safety Shield”. Part of it is motion detection that detects objects outside of the field of view, for example. When maneuvering backwards, this system uses the data from the parking sensors and the tailgate camera and can warn of a collision with shopping carts, children or approaching vehicles. The warning appears optically in the display and acoustically. The individual functions can also be deactivated - should the lane departure warning system get on your nerves when driving on country roads, for example.

How the others experienced the new Nissan Pulsar:

1. Criticism from colleague Phil Huff
2. spon.de
3. rp-online
4. tz.de

Galleries:

• Nissan Pulsar in white

Photos in the article: Bjoern Habegger, cover picture: too