18,500 miles and counting...NOW UPDATED 45,000 miles

Reviews / Comments about the 2014 QashQai
rm0rgan
Posts: 287
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2014 4:33 pm

Post by rm0rgan »

So, as I prepare for my first service at 18,500 miles I thought I would write up some of my experiences over the last 9 months...First off, the Interior - for me, one of the reasons I bought the QQ versus a Sportage was the premium feel of the interior and on the whole, I still find it a really nice place to be sat. The seats are on the whole as comfortable as any I've had before which places them right up there with Range Rovers, Volvo's, Saab's and Jags and if I had any complaints at all, it would be that I'd liked to have had memory settings so I can keep my seat 'just so' and easily revert back after my wife has driven the car.

Other observations would be that the heated seat appears to be on a thermostat or timer, so you find the seat going warm and then cooling in a cycle (I assume it's meant to do this?) whereas I like a constant warmth - something I will mention at it's service this week.I have a few minor rattles starting to creep in, but nothing too serious - again, i'll mention it at the service and see if the dealership can locate and fix them - I think it's coming from the passenger door or seat. Also, I find the drivers seat has developed an annoying 'knock' as I drive like it's moving on it's mountings.

The plastics and dash all seem well made on the whole although I find the glossy bits seem to love attracting dust and are easily scratched/marked, even if cleaned with a micro towel but other than that it all feels very premium and after 18,500 miles looks good.The stereo has 'settled in' to create a pleasing sound - initially I thought it was quite muddy but I am sure it has got better with use - either that or my ears have gone weird. A major bug - and again, something I will mentioned at the service - is that my bluetooth microphone is hopeless. The gain is set way too low and according to people who have called me in the car it sounds like I am sat in the back seat. I've reverted to using a headset if I have to take a call which kind of defeats the purpose somewhat.

Heating/Cooling - In general it works fine however at times I keep having to adjust it slightly to get the temperature where I want as it seems to drift up and down in temperature. Also, there is no auto-recycle so nasty smells can get into the cabin and you have to press recycle - that said, I understand there is an ioniser built in and this does a good job at neutralising nasty smells from the cabin (or it certainly does something as tested following a few beers and a curry!).I can live without the window buttons being illuminated but cannot see why Nissan didn't put illuminated switches in. I also miss not having auto door locking - apparently this is due to an EU regulation to remove it from new cars but personally think that's an excuse as I cannot find anything supporting this. Little things like this make a good car into a really great car.

Exterior: Love the shape and still think it's one of the nicest looking SUV's on the road today - that said, the paintwork is woeful. It chips, swirls and marks easily and in some places has terrible orange peel effect. This is simply down to poor application and quality of paint - attempts to correct scratches are often impossible due to the thickness of paint and lacquer. In years to come the bodywork is likely to look fairly substandard and even though I love the Nightshade colour when clean, if I was to have another I'd got for Appliance white as it wont show stonechips as easily. Wheel look great and yes, they are easy to kerb! That said, if you use the automatic parking, youll not have an issue and on the two occasions I have nicked mine, it was when i was parking manually - I'm ashamed!

Tyres - I got 18,000 miles from my fronts so have no complaints there and have only just changed them for a middle of the road brand - the OEM tyres are expensive and the Nexen tyres I have just fitted are half the price. I'll let people know how long they last as I pile on more miles but for now, very happy with the grip and comfort of these tyres.Performance and

Economy - Performance is what it is, this is not a performance car so as long as you accept that you'll be satisfied. Economy - brilliant. I average 600/650 miles per tank and the OBC says 50mpg - I've had 70mpg on a run once before (but was bored stupid) and since then drive about on the m/way at 75/85 mph without any complaints on MPG. The engine sounds like any 4 cyl Diesel - horrid, but it's a plucky little unit and surprisingly smooth when warmed up. I did have the rattly air box after a few thousand miles but a couple of self tapper screws quickly fixed this.

Overall, I'm really pleased with the car - I've normally got bored with a car by now but for some reason feel quite content - let's hope this continues! Can't really think of anything else to add really other than the horn is gay but I'm looking forward to the next 18,000 miles in the QQ

Foot note: One thing I forgot to mention - it's beautifully quiet in the cabin - I've not been blighted with any wind noise that some have suffered and think this is probably one of the quietest cars i've owned - even passengers have commented on how quiet it is, and I often find I am in the wrong gear as the engine, when warm is about as quiet as you can get on the inside.
Last edited by rm0rgan on Sat Dec 10, 2016 2:19 pm, edited 4 times in total.

Adrian
Posts: 98
Joined: Mon May 05, 2014 7:27 pm

Post by Adrian »

Great review. Just coming up to 20k on mine and tyres still hanging in there, just at 3mm now on the fronts so interested to hear how those Nexen's work out on yours. Pretty much share all your opinions above except for paintwork, seems OK on mine (storm white).Like you, a few creaks and rattles have crept in (bar an bad knock from a loose aircon pipe at the start) but nothing disturbingly so. The MPG and performance is exactly as I expected (though I've only managed a max of 67MPG). Like you, still love the look of this car and always pleased to walk up to it in a car park. I had a Bose system in my previous car and couldn't live with the sound quality so had the front speakers swapped for Alpines early on and get a decent sound and bass from them, though only at higher volumes.My personal quibbles are wind and road noise (admittedly those worn tyres will be exacerbating this now) and the sat nav/connect system. It's just plain woeful.
2014 1.6dci Tekna Storm White 2WD
Beardyman
Posts: 263
Joined: Tue Nov 18, 2014 4:19 pm

Post by Beardyman »

Still only on 4500 miles so a bit early for me to comment on too much.I agree with the lack of memory seat. I've come from a Merc with 4 axis memory seat and wing mirrors. Having said that, the difference between mine and my wife's driving position doesn't seem as different as it did in the merc so it's not so much of a problem as I thought it might be.Yes, Nightshade can look dirty very quickly - especially the back end - it seems to be a real road dirt magnet. Still, looks very good when clean ;-) I wanted to avoid yet another 'grey/silver' car but next time I might be tempted to revert back.Tyres - I've picked up a nail/screw in the centre of my rear offside (UK) tyre. Earlier today I called into the local tyre shop to check they could plug it (yes) and asked about the Nexen tyres. The chap suggested that as they were "on the soft side" they might not be that good for the QQ. As mine still have a lot of tread on them I don't have to make a decision for a while (I hope) but I would appreciate any feedback you can give us on the Nexens progress.Cheers
1.2 DiG-T TEKNA petrol manual panoramic, nightshade. Easy-Lift bonnet gas strut kit.
QDay 28.11.2014
rm0rgan
Posts: 287
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2014 4:33 pm

Post by rm0rgan »

[quote="Beardyman"]Still only on 4500 miles so a bit early for me to comment on too much.I agree with the lack of memory seat. I've come from a Merc with 4 axis memory seat and wing mirrors. Having said that, the difference between mine and my wife's driving position doesn't seem as different as it did in the merc so it's not so much of a problem as I thought it might be.Yes, Nightshade can look dirty very quickly - especially the back end - it seems to be a real road dirt magnet. Still, looks very good when clean ;-) I wanted to avoid yet another 'grey/silver' car but next time I might be tempted to revert back.Tyres - I've picked up a nail/screw in the centre of my rear offside (UK) tyre. Earlier today I called into the local tyre shop to check they could plug it (yes) and asked about the Nexen tyres. The chap suggested that as they were "on the soft side" they might not be that good for the QQ. As mine still have a lot of tread on them I don't have to make a decision for a while (I hope) but I would appreciate any feedback you can give us on the Nexens progress.Cheers[/QUOTE]
Good point about it being a dirt magnet on the back - I should have added, I fitted mudflaps and running bars and this seems to have helped enormously. The mudflaps alone made quite a difference.I think the fitter is probably right as the Nexens are summer tyres so may well be a softer compound - they are certainly sticky as I had found the tyres breaking traction quite easily as I approached 18,000 miles - I had about 2.6 mm left when i changed them and they were getting quite crashy. The side walls are XL so no difference to the OEM tyres there.
BatterBits
Posts: 83
Joined: Sun Mar 22, 2015 12:39 pm

Post by BatterBits »

Brilliant reviews, thanks.I'm just on 3k in mine - not bad for a month. Overall economy is at 54.8 - I commute from Staffordshire over the peak district - Asbourne - Bakewell - Sheffield so that's pretty good I reckon.My biggest niggle - auto stop start not working as I expect.My wife was walking past the car in the car park this week, and overheard 3 ladies who came out of a shop, and stood to admire the car, said it was the nicest looking car, and that the colour was perfect!
Regards,


Ian
--
1.5dCi Tekna in Ink blue fitted with Easy-Lift bonnet gas strut kit
DIM4762
Posts: 52
Joined: Sat Apr 26, 2014 6:41 pm

Post by DIM4762 »

Great review.Totally agree with paintwork. It's awful, chips easily, scratches easily. I'm sure ever the microfibre towels I use to clean the car cause scratches. To say I'm very disappointed is an understatement. And I'm never going to have a Black car again.
rm0rgan
Posts: 287
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2014 4:33 pm

Post by rm0rgan »

So, here we are with another 18,000 miles on the clock so thought I would give some updates...

Engine: The car seems to get better engine-wise with the more miles it covers - it really does seem to rev and pull better and have to say I started to notice this from around 25k - 30k miles. Either that or it's taken me an inordinate amount of time to get used to the engine characteristics which are effectively no torque below 1500 rpm and then the torque curve is like an on/off switch! That said, it still delivers 50-60mpg day in, day out at not too shoddy pace (mostly fast A & quite a few B roads). I don't think I've ever got less than 580 miles to a tank with the exception as once having a car full of camping stuff and 4 adults onboard down to Cornwall at a good pace in the rain!

Cabin - still looks fresh as the day I got it when cleaned - I've had a rattle fixed behind the dash and when they did that they obviously tightened everything up as it's as good now as the day I got it. The seat still creaks and they are replacing this next week - they tried to fix it on the first service but failed. The carpet in the boot area seems to be showing some wear so try to keep the hard side up on the boot floor panels where possible. I am on my second set of mats - the first OEM runner ones lasted less than 15000 miles before they had a hole an didn't really fit the well - cheap ebay carpet ones are still like new!

Tech: Seems to still work ok - a few times I've had 'radar obscured' or something come up on the dash but this was just dirt and road grime in the winter. The bluetooth is still rubbish and they are also replacing this next week - to be honest, I just use my phones headphones in my ears if I need to take a call.

Consumables: Brakes are only worn 30% over 37,000 miles which I find amazing for such a big vehicle - that said I tend to be gentle on brakes and much of my mileage is M/Way/A roads with the off B road thrown in for good measure. Tyres - changed the fronts at 18,000 to Nexen and these look set to pass 20,000 miles before they get to 2.5mm so very pleased with how these have lasted. I'll be replacing all 4 next time round for the same again.

Bodywork: It's made of cheese - the paint chips and swirls easily but can still be brought up to a high shine with a good polish. I have a small dent on the front wing where some twunt opened their door on it - I can probably push it out with the right tool when I can be bothered but shows how fragile the bodywork can be on the crease lines. The plastic things on the rear doors are still there....just - I will glue these on when I get a moment as they look cheap.

That's about it for now - onwards to the next 18,000 miles :)
Last edited by rm0rgan on Tue Apr 05, 2016 8:35 am, edited 2 times in total.
ThreeSixty
Posts: 100
Joined: Mon Oct 19, 2015 3:56 pm

Post by ThreeSixty »

Nice review r0morgan. I must say "she" is ageing gracefully :) . BTW, is yours a 1.5 or 1.6?
1.5 dCi 360. Ink Blue; Mud Flaps and Internal rubber mats & after market door sill plates.
Image
rm0rgan
Posts: 287
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2014 4:33 pm

Post by rm0rgan »

1.5 :-)
DaveBerlin
Posts: 8623
Joined: Wed Mar 19, 2014 12:39 pm
Location: Berlin, Germany
Qashqai Model: Mk.2 Qashqai Facelift - J11b (2017–2021)

Post by DaveBerlin »

rm0rgan, just read through both of your "Road Tests" and found these to be really honest and IMHO the QQ has not done that bad. Just referring to your comment in the 1st Test regarding Door Locking, I found this see if this helps ! Here is to the next 18,000 miles - Dave :D

image.jpeg

11.19/1.3L/160PS/Tekna+/DCT/PrOPILOT/KAD Gun Metallic/Trunk Lower Finisher/Rear Glass Finisher/Ambient Lighting-LED’s Innen/Entry Guards Illuminated/Sport Pedals/Front Styling Plate/LED No.Plate/Chrome Door Handles/Rear Valance/Giacuzzo Alloys + Falken
Locked