The new 2019 Nissan Livina made its world debut in
Indonesia today. The new Livina
replaces an ageing model that’s struggling to compete in Indonesia’s core Low
MPV segment, where the the Toyota Avanza, Daihatsu Xenia, Honda Mobilio and
Suzuki Ertiga play in.
The new boy in this budget three-row MPV segment is
the Mitsubishi Xpander, which the new Livina is based on. Most of the Xpander’s
sheetmetal have been carried over, but Nissan did make slight modifications to
the Dynamic Shield face of its Alliance partner’s donor car.
As per the Xpander, there are slim daytime running
lights sitting above big main beams in a three-tier lighting arrangement,
although the LED DRL design is different, and the Mitsu’s trademark chrome
strips that give the sunken cheeks look is absent. Without this frame, the
grille is bowl-shaped rather than X-shaped, conveniently morphing into Nissan’s
“V-Motion” nose.
Also different from the Xpander is the lower bumper,
which has a full-width silver lip and angular fog lamps at each end (vs round
fogs on the Xpander, arranged narrowly). The contrasting front lip is visually
connected to the silver side skirts.
The front wheel arches of the Nissan are round
instead of squared-off on the Mitsubishi. On the side, that deep wedge of a
signature line is present, along with the “floating roof” look created by the
small black strip joining the side and rear glass areas.
At the back, the shape of the taillamp cluster is
similar, although the LED signature graphics are different – the Livina sports
outward pointing boomerangs. The Nissan’s tailgate is also more simple in
design compared to the Xpander, which features lines that mimic the Dynamic
Shield face. Lastly, the silver diffuser of the Livina is a two-piece item. We
see some X-Trail in the rear.
It’s
easy to tell the Livina and Xpander apart. Under the skin, they’re the same.
The new Livina is powered by a 1.5 litre engine with 104 PS and 141 Nm of
torque at 4,000 rpm, mated to a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic.
Maximum ground clearance is 205 mm on 16-inch wheels, an important stat for
Indonesian buyers.
Equipment highlights on this “trendy techno” MPV
include a seven-inch touchscreen head unit with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto,
LED DRLs, 16-inch two-tone alloys, colour multi-info display with eco
indicator, reverse camera, keyless entry with push start, tilt and telescopic
steering and 12V power outlets for each row.
There are five variants and four trim levels in
Indonesia, and the line-up reads E MT, EL MT, EL AT, VE AT and the top VL AT.
All models get dual airbags and ABS/EBD, with the VE and VL adding on Brake
Assist, Vehicle Dynamics Control (VDC) and the above-mentioned back-up camera.
Prices range from IDR 198.8 million for the
bare bones E MT (15-inch steel wheels, no rear AC blower and radio) to IDR 261.9 million for the top VL will all the kit listed above. Six colours are
available, including the black and signature Sunset Orange hues seen here.
