NEW NISSAN PRIMERA, THE PRIME MOVER

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Nissan believes its new Primera will be the most advanced medium sized car available when it goes on sale 1 March 2002. Not only is the new Primera packed full of innovative and easy to use technology, it’s wrapped in the boldest, the most radical design Nissan has yet created with an interior that’s just as novel.

Almost two thirds of the new Primera range will be available from day one with the rest following in July. Initially there’ll be a choice of four-door saloon or five-door estate with three trim levels known simply as S, SE and SVE. These will be available with three different engines: a 1.8-litre 116PS unit with manual or automatic gearboxes, a 2.0-litre 140PS unit with six-speed manual or Nissan’s M-CVT ’box which offers the driver a choice of automatic or manual gear selection, and a 2.2-litre 126PS turbo-diesel with six-speed manual gearbox. Five-door hatchback variants follow in the summer. No prices, performance figures or specification details yet, they’ll be revealed next month.

The Primera has always been known for reliability, low running costs, value for money and for being fun to drive. And that will still be the case. But in the new Primera, you can literally see the changes that have gone on at Nissan which have seen the company grab business headlines the world over for its rapid return to long term profitability and stability.

Whether it’s the four-door saloon, five-door hatchback or the estate you’re looking at, you cannot deny the new Primera is a futuristic design. Nissan calls the look a ‘monosilhouette’ but whatever you term it, the new Primera stands out in a class that is seldom unconventional. Even the estate version looks elegant yet sacrifices none of the practicality of the outgoing model.

N-FORM, Nissan’s new behind-the-wheel concept

Inside, too, Nissan has broken the rules. Below the car’s centrally-mounted instrument panel is a unique command centre known as N-FORM which was specially developed for ease of operation and sited to fall readily to hand. As a result, there are 50% fewer switches on the dashboard than an equivalently equipped rival. Less visual information is needed to find the required control with the buttons designed for instinctive use. The same thinking went into the central positioning for the instrument cluster – the driver’s eyes need move only 25 degrees from looking at the road to glancing at the speed the car is doing, compared with 35 degrees when the dials are sited in front of the steering wheel.

Rear view parking camera

Nissan’s unique approach has allowed all controls for audio, driver information, communication, DVD navigation and climate systems to be packaged into one electronically managed keyboard. The information is displayed on a monochrome screen on the Primera S and a larger colour screen on SE and SVE versions. On these models, the screen also acts as the display for the rear view camera - put the car in reverse and a small camera positioned above the rear number plate shows the driver what’s hiding behind whether it be another car or a pair of legs. A cluster of six buttons is centrally aligned below the display. These are graphically reproduced on the screen and change function according to the menu selected. Two large circular switches operate the most frequently fiddled-with functions, the in-car entertainment and climate control. A joystick controls the navigation system.

Mobile phone integration

Every Primera SE and SVE will come with standard integration for the driver’s mobile phone. Developed with Nokia but suitable for the majority of modern mobiles, the phone is simply slotted into a cradle between the two front seats. Calls can be made or answered using the central console controls and the car’s audio system. The facility is not only convenient, it’s also a boo

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