Datsun Go Plus

When to expect:February 2015

Estimated Price:5.70 7.50 lakhs

In February, the Datsun brand was born again when parent company Nissan launched the Go hatchback at a function in Delhi. It was the first car in the line up as well as the first car in what the Japanese automaker called locally designed cars for local markets . At the 2013 Indonesia International Motor Show, Datsun unveiled the second car in the line up; the Go+ MPV, designed to cater to MPV crazy Indonesia but also with the intention that it will be available in Datsun s other markets too.

The Datsun Go+ looks like a stretched version of the Go hatchback and shares many of its design cues including the front fascia and the overall shape. It is 1.6 meters wide, 1.4 meters high and more importantly 3.95 (wheelbase of 2450mm) meters long qualifying it for the concessions available under the sub four metre rule when it is launched in India. The rear end too is the same as the Go hatchback but looks proportionately larger due to this being a bigger vehicle.In a bid to keep costs down and follow what is now an accepted practice among manufacturers to maintain economies of scale, the Datsun Go+ gets exactly the same interior features as the Go hatchback. Everything is exactly the same including the accessories like the mobile phone charging dock.

However, since this an MPV, we expect that on higher spec variants Datsun will offer features like AC vents for the second row and foldable third row seats to increase boot space and unlike the industry trend of captain seats in the second row on the highest spec variant, the Datsun Go+ will continue to have split bench design. From the looks of the pictures, the third row does not get openable windows and passengers will be sitting higher up so as to get breeze from the second row windows and front AC vents.

The engine and underpinnings are the same as the Go hatchback. It makes use of the 1.2 litre three cylinder petrol engine that produces 67bhp and 104Nm of torque. However since this is the larger vehicle, we expect that Nissan may increase the power. Power is transmitted to the front wheels via a five speed manual gearbox. In India, we expect that they will also offer the Go+ with the 1.5 litre diesel engine.In Indonesia, the Go+ will be priced below 100million Rupiah (Rs 5.52 lakh). However in India, we expect that Datsun will price the Go+ in the range of Rs 5.7 lakh to Rs 7.5 lakh for the top spec diesel engined variant. It is expected that they will display the car at the 2014 Indian Auto Expo and launch it a few months after the Indonesia market gets it, the latter being scheduled for the first part of next year.