Anyone got a Nissan Qashqai ??

John Young

John Young

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I was looking at buying a Nissan Qashqai 1.6 anyone got one... any comments.

I read some reviews which seemed to be great but I have since found people moaning about problems such as rear shocks etc...
 
We looked after the Mrs's brothers while he was in Canada for 5 months on a course, and I hated it. Lardy, softly suspended and wallowy, and monstrously underpowered. It's built like a tank, and needs much more engine than it has to move that kind of weight. I was surprised at how little room there was too, considering it's outward dimensions. I really gave it chance, but usually ended up just taking the Clio we had at the time instead... a much better package.

I suppose it feels nice and safe, being pretty big and positioning you pretty high up, and it seemed pretty well built, but it just doesn't know what it wants to be. I honestly wouldn't touch one with a bargepole.
 
That was the 1.6 petrol, front wheel drive. Bigger motor and 4 wheel drive would probably have helped a great deal. Always felt there was gear missing on the Motorway.
 
A tad biased after 8 years with Nissan but hopefully of some help...

The Qashqai has been one of our biggest sellers since it's launch, exceptionally comfy and one of very few cars to achieve a fully rounded 37 points for interior safety from Euro NCAP, great if your in the wrong place at the wrong time...

The shock issue you mention was a faulty of batch on the arlier Qashqai's circa 2007-2009, the shocks didn't fail but developped an irritating knocking noise which was quickly rectified under warranty, the later Qashqai's used a different supplier and no further knocking noises have been reported...

In terms of the wallowy comment from Nick, that surprises me, one of the most frequent comments we get is how supportive the ride is, especially when you compare it to similar vehicles (especially the Kuga). The front will dip a tad but then support you through the corner in a progressive manor so very easy to drive.

The 1.6 is the weakest of the engine line up adn only Qashqai to come with a 5 speed box, the question I woulsd ask is what type of driving you will be doing in the car? If your not doing many miles and they're made up of round town/short trips the 1.6 maybe the best solution although the 2.0's can be had relatively cheaply. The 1.5 on paper looks to be similar performance but feels a lot nippier due to the nature of the diesel engine...

If you have any q's on spec or Qashqai in general I'll be more than happy to answer any questions you may have :)

The other recall you'll see out there at the mo is the steering wheel recall which has only affected a tad over 7,000 UK Qashqai's and again purely as a precautionary measure, when you consider the volume of Qashqai's currently on the UK road, not to shabby a result :)
 
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Thank you Ryan that is helpful

I have had Nissan's for years ( got Almera DCI 2.2 at the moment) so I do generally think they are good cars (although brakes are prone to problems with binding etc). Our Almera is great but its getting old (97,000 miles) so we need to start looking.

The Qashqai caught our eye as its very low millage 25,000 miles on a 5 year old car. Speaking of age its a 2007 model so does that mean the shocks will be an issue or will that have been sorted as this car has had one owner and full service history.

We drove the car and it was a comfy ride with high elevation but I did notice when accelerating it did not want to go much BUT I thought that might be because this car has hardly been used (25K Milles on a 5 year old car - 5K miles a year) so I thought it might be a 'stiff engine' I was going to go to another garage tomorrow and try another higher milage one to compare. But after reading some reviews I am a bit worried they are ALL underpowered (well the petrol 1.6) and they have other problems like the shocks I mentioned.

One thing I did notice was the Diesel engines all seem to be the ones with problems and I understand they are Renault engines. My Almera is an old car now (8 years old) and it has the Nissan 2.2 Diesel and its superb
 
The Almera with the 2.2Dci was a fantastic car and very under-rated especially when you consider the engine is the same as the old X-Trail!

All the 1.6's should drive the same, tyhe new ones are a tad better but not a great deal...

What issues are you refering to with the diesel engines? The only so-called issues that I am familiar with are from the owners of the early 2.0dCi engines which were only being used for short runs/round town trips where the DPF Filters would clog up as they weren't being run long enough to clear them. Not really the fault of the car, more a fault with either a) the sales person checking the DPF Filters were explained to the customers correctly, or b) The customers ignoring the DPF advice and not running them correctly...

The 1.5dCi is a cracking engine and not had any problems with them, they also feel a lot nippier than the 1.6 and return a lot better mpg. Have a play with both engines and see what you think, you shouldn't have any issues with any maintained Qashqai but see how you feel in the drivers seat.

The one you have found if it has a full Nissan history should have had the shock's done as all vehicles are checked when they are booked in for service to see if any recalls are required on the car to try and ensure you only have to visit the dealership once, we'ld look a bit daft if you came to collect your car after a service for the service advisor to ask when you next wanted to be booked in for the recall to be done :) :) :)

If your buying from a main Nissan Dealer there shouldn't be too much need to worry as all Nissans under 7 years or 75k will come as a Cared 4 car which means it will have 12 month full warranty, 12 months RAC and MOT cover if over 2 years old so well protected...
 
I have been reading on this site HERE and a LOT of the reviews on there have had problems and one lad said he is in a User club and there is issue with the Diesel engines as they are Renault units but the petrol ones are OK as they are Nissan units.

Can you tell us more about the Care4Car as the bloke never mentioned anything about that today....

So which model would you choose ? I also read the 2.0 petrol model was VERY thirsty.

We also looked at the Nissan Note and it seems a nice car but not as refined as the Qashqai
 
The Renault/Nissan Alliance stared in 1990 (ish) so is nothing new, you'll find Nissan bit's in Renaults and vica versa so nothing to really worry about. Whichever Renault parts are chosen to go in a Nissan will still be tested by Nissan to ensure the quality is what we expect, as a brand Nissan have spent years building up a name as providing reliable vehicles which we don't want to lose...

In terms of problems, I unfortunately have no real way of backing up my opinions other than to suggest that people are more likely to write a negative comment rather than a positive, working for a Nissan Dealer I can assure you that we do not see many come back other than for routine service and we have a lot of very loyal customers who will Part Ex the old Qashqai for a new one so must can't all be bad :)

For me I would choose the 1.6dCi Tekna 4wd all day long but then don't have to pay for the pleasure...

If I had to choose between the 1.6 petrol and 1.5dCi I would choose the 1.5 purely as I prefer the way it drives, but, that is a personal opinion and the engine is more suited to the use I would give it...

In terms of spec I would choose a minimum of an Acenta as the spec difference is considerable, over the Visia you get as standard, 6-CD Changer, dual-zone climate control, auto light, auto wipers, cruise, reverse sensors and nicer alloys :) If possible the N-Tec would be the better choise as the introduction of sat nav and panoramic glass roof as standard makes it a much more desirable car but then also costs considerably more and wasn't available until later on...
 
Absolutely cracking car and again very popular. Not the prettiest thing but very, very practical. It is a lot bigger on the inside than it looks on the outside so oodles of space.

Spec is good, b/tooth, nav, cruise, climate (on the n-tec+) or air con on the n-tec, and loads of other toys. The sliding rear seat is great if you have very little one sin the car as you can move the rear seat close to the drivers seat so easy to re-assure a kiddy in a child seat.

Not as comfortable over long distances as the Qashqai but then the seats in Qashqai are superb...

Some good finance packages mean that a new Note on Preferences is not as expensive as you may think and should be considered.

The other car to consider which is highly under rated is the Supercharged micra (DIG-S), advertised at 64mpg although I've had it up to 85mpg, good amount of spec and stunning drive :)
 
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Thanks again you have been a HUGE help... I am going to a different garage tomorrow to try another 1.6 Qashqai with more miles to see how it compares and see if the other one we are 'really' looking at is tight engine
 
I would be extremely surprised if the two drove very differently to be fair...
 
Not owned or driven one but a neighbour bought one and wished he hadn't. Poor build quality throughout was his only strong comment with bits badly fitted, lacking power etc. Don't know which model he bought .

Realspeed
 
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realspeed said:
Not owned or driven one but a neighbour bought one and wished he hadn't. Poor build quality throughout was his only strong comment with bits badly fitted, lacking power etc. Don't know which model he bought .

Realspeed
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Was that the Qashqai or Note ?
 
Beware the quashqai - my mate has one at work and as had to have a new intercooler and a clutch replaced in the last 6 months.....each job cost circa 1k!?
 
My wife has a Note 1.4. I call it a Ronseal car, it does exactly what is says on the tin. Sure it's not the prettiest car on the road (but far from the ugliest either) It has more than enough room inside for the average family, with the rear seat down I managed to get a 100 gallon fish tank in.
I quite often drive it and find the driving dynamics pretty good for a car of this type, and the 1.4l engine pulls it along very nicely.
No hesitation in recommending it
 
candlestick said:
Beware the quashqai - my mate has one at work and as had to have a new intercooler and a clutch replaced in the last 6 months.....each job cost circa 1k!?
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£1k to replace an intercooler?:cuckoo: Unless it's hard to get at the labour cost shouldn't be much and I wouldn't have thought a mass produced one would cost much. I bought an uprated one for my car which aren't mass produced and it was only £285 and took an 1 to 1.5 hours to fit.

The clutch I can believe as on alot of modern cars that will involve replacing the dual mass flywheel too.
 
Quick Google brings up £425 for an aftermarket intercooler, so if he went main dealer, then I can well believe it!
 
My parents went through the same decision recently and settled on the Toyota Rav4 which they seem delighted with. I have to say it has perhaps the comfiest backseats I have ever sat in. Besides that I can't say much more as I have driven neither the Qashqai or the Rav4. My dad is a bit of a car nut and changes cars like they're only good for 15,000 miles but this is one of only two he's absolutely delighted with and intends to keep hold of - the other being a c-class merc estate with all the gadgets, which is incredibly nice.
 
Have you considered a Honda CRV, I bought the diesel model 12 months ago and have never looked back.

The diesol is quite nippy with good fuel economy, I average around 42 to 45 a gallon depending on how hard I drive it, four wheel drive and a roomy interior.
 
Thanks for the suggestions, I reckon we need to look around some more. Just picked the Nissan's as we have a Nissan and had loads in the past. But it seems maybe it might be time for a change
 
OK been looking at a Citroen C5 today, its the Citroen C5 2.0 HDI 16V VTR+

Anyone got one of those... we test drove it and it was in another world compared to the Qashqai. Loads of power (150bhp) and the comfort and ride was amazing
 
I have a Qashqai, well to be more precise the mrs has one as our family transporting car.

It goes. You can fit the kids in it. I wouldn't describe it as wallowy to drive, a bit underpowered maybe but nothing unpleasant.

Re build quality, feels fairly standard Nissan to me.

But remember it ISN'T a 4x4 really. The 1.6 is Dragging a big chunk of steel. It's a city car, view it as a styled up Micra and you are about right.
 
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TheCrewDesigns said:
OK been looking at a Citroen C5 today, its the Citroen C5 2.0 HDI 16V VTR+

Anyone got one of those... we test drove it and it was in another world compared to the Qashqai. Loads of power (150bhp) and the comfort and ride was amazing
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My dad had one for a year - had to ditch it as the clutch was starting to go. The DPF caused him problems despite him doing lots of longer trips. Was a nice comfortable car while it lasted but very expensive repairs considering its age. He's now switched to a Bora TDI and it's pretty damned reliable, maybe not as much power but pulls well gets better economy and doesn't have any DPF to worry about.

Another thing he hated about the C5 was it's **** poor turning circle - really bad for a car of its size.

I can't see past VW myself (or other VAG cars).
 
rssmrry said:
My dad had one for a year - had to ditch it as the clutch was starting to go. The DPF caused him problems despite him doing lots of longer trips. Was a nice comfortable car while it lasted but very expensive repairs considering its age. He's now switched to a Bora TDI and it's pretty damned reliable, maybe not as much power but pulls well gets better economy and doesn't have any DPF to worry about.

Another thing he hated about the C5 was it's **** poor turning circle - really bad for a car of its size.

I can't see past VW myself (or other VAG cars).
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Yeah I have been reading some dodgy reviews on the C5, shame as it was NICE to drive. We looked at VW but they are expensive....

*Edit* - Just been re-reading reviews and I see a lot of problems were with earlier cars (2001-2004 etc) I have read the 2009 model reviews and a lot are better. Maybe some things have been ironed out. Do you remember what year the car your Dad had ?
 
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TheCrewDesigns said:
Yeah I have been reading some dodgy reviews on the C5, shame as it was NICE to drive. We looked at VW but they are expensive....
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I can recommend the Jetta - cheaper than an Octavia when I was looking. It's not as big as the C5 but is still a nice drive and quite cheap as saloons aren't hugely practical.

Honest John is really good for reviews as it points out bad things about all cars including recalls and common faults which is really handy!
 
Ebilpirate said:
But remember it ISN'T a 4x4 really. The 1.6 is Dragging a big chunk of steel.
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Not entirely sure what the OP's requirements are, but then I've never quite understood the gap in the market the Qashqai fills (see also RAV4, CRV etc, they aren't proper off roaders and they aren't that big inside either).
 
onomatopoeia said:
Not entirely sure what the OP's requirements are, but then I've never quite understood the gap in the market the Qashqai fills (see also RAV4, CRV etc, they aren't proper off roaders and they aren't that big inside either).
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I think the endographic is pretty much my wife / me ie. city dwelling families who could use a small MPV but really don't want admit it.

Big enough to get a family into easily along with shopping + the buggy , small enough to park easily without it being tiresome. Tarted up a bit so it looks and feels a bit more "grown up" then a big supermini type vehicle.

Oddly enough the whole not really pretending to be a 4x4 design stops me feeling like some twonk driving around in a chelsea tractor. I suppose it is a mpv without making me feel like I should start wearing m&s slippers and other assorted middle aged cliches.
 
I had a qashqai 1.5dci acenta for 3 years, owned it from new.
I had no issues with it and loved it to be honest.
Now have the nissan juke with same size engine, smaller car but very funky.
The only thing I miss is the boot of the qashqai which was obviously much bigger than that of the juke.
 
If you look on the web you will find poor reviews on every single car on the market, as said earlier its the people who will complain, far more so than those who enjoy a car. Personally I would test drive until you find the car that does what you want it to do. By far the large majority of cars on the market are bloody good if maintained properly :)
 
That's true about reviews, every car will have someone piping up about them breaking. The Qashqai is alright, just a bit bland... like a toaster or other home appliance. It'll do it's job well but never inspire you.
 
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