The MPV segment is heating up. Maruti has launched the Ertiga, Chevrolet is testing the Enjoy, Nissan is testing the Evalia. Other automobile manufacturers like Fiat and Ford are also planning on bringing their MPVs. In such circumstances one cannot afford to waste time. Nissan is doing exactly that, its MPV the Evalia is in final stages of testing and the launch could happen any time soon.
The above picture was shared by the editor of Autocar show on her twitter wall. This incidentally is the first time that the interior of the Evalia have been revealed. The interiors are well lied out and are dual tone with a combination of light cream and dark plastics. The center console is finished in silver and looks good. It houses the air-con controls and music system. The gear lever is placed on the center console as opposed to the conventional, between the front seat arrangement. Those of you who have driven the i10 or the Ritz will be familiar with such arrangement.
The steering wheel and the gear lever on the Evalia are the same as the ones found on the Micra and the Sunny. The instrumental cluster too looks similar and we expect the Evalia to share quite a few parts with the Micra and the Sunny. Using the same parts bin is a strategy which is successfully used by other automakers like Maruti, Toyota and Nissan seems to be following suit.
When launched the Evalia will be powered by the 1.5 litre K9K dieselengine, running in the same state of tune as the Nissan Sunny. Evalia is a very spacious car with 3 rows of flexible sitting but is boxy and looks too much van like. It is not as up market as the Innova and is expected to be slot below the Innova in the 7-10 Lakh price range and will compete head on with the Ertiga and the soon to be launched Chevrolet Enjoy.
