The prototype Hi-Cross will be used by Nissan designers as a source of inspiration for the style of the new Qashqai. Auto Express has shared this news along with a first rendering. “The dimensions are pretty much fixed, so we’ll have to differentiate the new car in the details”revealed Andy Palmer, Nissan executive vice-president. Auto Express also reveals that Nissan next- generation crossover will be approximately 4,33 m long and both passenger and luggage compartments will be as spacious as the current series.

The interior will be the focus of attention for the designers of the Japanese company: “Everybody loves the Qashqai’s exterior, but perceived quality on the inside lets it down- Plamer added - Rather than bring the new car up to German quality levels, we want to surpass them.” Auto Express also outlines the range of engines and finally reveals that today’s 1.6-litre petrol unit will be replaced by a 1.2-litre turbo with output of 115 hp and 190 Nm of torque, with CO2 emissions of 120 g/km. Most buyers, however, will opt for the 1.6-litre dCi with 130 hp and less than 105 g/km of CO2. The second generation Nissan Qasqhai will go on sale in 2014.

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After announcements that the UK would have a large slice of Nissan Leaf construction, the new Qashqai will also be built and even designed in Britain. Nissan has a style centre in Paddington which will be responsible for the European design of the future Qashqai, and the rest of the development will take place at Nissan’s European technical centre in Bedfordshire.

Production will then take place at Sunderland facilities where Note and Juke models are also built, although the Qashqai has so far been the most popular model. It’s good news for the UK car production industry and shows that Japanese car manufacturers are still happy to design and build in Europe.

Source | Autocar

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The Renault Captur Concept will be an important model for the company, heading for production as the French take on a Nissan Juke. While we’re not convinced the Renault line can support three SUV models, AutoExpress had originally reported that the Captur would go to production as a compact SUV, and another two models based on the Nissan Qashqai would be developed.

In this video we hear plenty of the Renault Captur’s engine: a 1.6 dCi with 160 hp and 380 Nm. The compact crossover could prove quite popular and so Renault is apparently planning the two larger models to expand the range upwards. While many components will be borrowed from Nissan, it seems that the French company will use this 1.6 diesel engine with 130 hp, and add the 160-hp twin turbo unit as well.

The model is important in itself, but would also seem to demonstrate that Renault has got some design inspiration back (through new design head Laurens Van den Acker) and will start competing in segments it previously left to the competition, moving away from its failed Koleos experiment. The new Renault SUVs should keep the flowing lines seen on the concept model, but we’ll be interested in checking out a less exaggerated production version when it’s ready.

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