Nissan Magnite

The Nissan Magnite is the Japanese carmaker’s first attempt to gain a market share in the popular sub-compact SUV segment. It is also Nissan India’s main product for India and has been since it was first launched in 2020.. It competes with the likes of Tata Nexon, Maruti Brezza, Kia Sonet, and Hyundai Venue, but it is much more affordable than its rivals, and that’s its biggest USP.

I recently spent some time with the Magnite to see where it does well, what compromises it makes to achieve its aggressive price and who the Magnite ultimately makes the most sense for.

It’s a little difficult to figure out if the Magnite you’re looking at is the latest one or not, and that’s because of the minor changes Nissan made in its 2024 facelift. The current Magnite looks nearly identical to its previous version,save for a few tweaks that make it look flashier.

At the front, you get sleek LED headlights, L-shaped LED DRLs, and a wide grille. All of these things are the same as before, save for the grille, which is now a little wider. The grille also gets a chrome surround, which is further surrounded by a gloss black strip. The Magnite does not look bad from this angle, but it lacks the premium and modern appeal which its rivals like the Tata Nexon and the Mahindra XUV 3XO offer.

The profile gives you a crossover SUV look, similar to what we’ve seen in the Fronx, and here the highlights are the 16-inch stylish alloy wheels. Lower variants of the Magnite get 16-inch steel wheels, and the spare is a 14-inch steel wheel available with all variants.

At first glance, the rear profile looks unchanged with its rear spoiler, thick bumper, and a flat boot lit. But Nissan has changed the lighting elements inside the LED tail lamps.

Nissan is offering the Magnite in 7 monotone shades: Blade Silver, Storm White, Pearl White, Vivid Blue, Onyx Black, Flare Garnet Red, and Sunrise Copper Orange. Save for the Onyx Black and Storm White, all other shades are available in a dual-tone version.

The Magnite does not look bad, and neither does this design split any opinions. Given the sub-4 metre length limitation, Nissan has delivered an SUV that looks well proportioned with a good stance which is appreciable.

Design & Quality

Just like the exterior, the interior design is also nearly identical to the pre-facelift version. Nissan has made subtle changes to the dashboard, which includes adding more soft touch padding. . 

The design in itself is pretty simple, with a flat dashboard, a small screen in the middle, hexagonal AC vents, and a dual-tone black and brown theme (lower variants get an all black theme). While the dual-tone theme does look good, there is a lack of contrasting elements, and you only get brushed aluminium inserts around the AC vents and in the centre console.

Nissan has used soft touch padding on all touch points, which includes the entire dashboard, door pads, steering wheel, and gear knob. The seats are also covered in dual-tone black and brown leatherette upholstery. This does make your experience feel more premium, and the plastic quality is also acceptable for the price.

However, when it comes to fit and finish, Nissan needs to make some improvements. The knobs of the AC controls do feel solid, and so does the entire centre console, but the window up/down buttons feel cheap, AC vents don’t have the required weight and feel flimsy, and the dashboard soft touch panel has gaps and comes loose.

Front Seats

Getting in and out of the Magnite is fairly easy. Due to its size and large doors, getting in and out does not require much effort, and you don’t need to bend your back much in the process. The seat height also makes it easier on the knees for the elderly to get in and out of than hatchbacks you can buy for a similar price.

Once you enter the Magnite and sit on the driver’s seat, you notice that these seats hold you very well. The large bolsters grab on to you and keep you in place. There is no issue regarding the headroom or underthigh support, as both are adequate for the price and size of the car. The driver seat is manually adjustable (including height), the cushioning is balanced, and the adjustable headrest provides good support. 

What does irritate are two ergonomic issues. First, from the driver’s line of sight, the hand brake blocks the view of the gear lever’s indication (automatic variant), which means you have to peek over it to see if you’re in drive or neutral. Second is the front armrest, which is too small and non adjustable, so even people of average height (around 5’8”) will not be able to keep their hand on the armrest properly while driving.

Other than this, there are no major issues. The steering wheel has tilt adjustment from the base variant onwards, so finding your ideal driving position is fairly easy. Also, you sit at an average height, where you get a good view of the road with minimum blind spots.

Rear Seats

Unlike the front seats, the rear ones don’t hold you well. Nonetheless, this seat provides good space for two, and average space for three passengers. There is a good amount of legroom, kneeroom, and underthigh support, and headroom is also sufficient, even for taller passengers. 

However, the rear seat is a little upright, which can become slightly uncomfortable in longer journeys. We’d recommend you use this car as a 4-seater, but if you need to seat 3 in the back, you can. The middle passenger will struggle for shoulder room, and there is no dedicated middle headrest, but the floor is mostly flat which will provide the necessary footroom.

Big windows ensure good overall visibility, and due to the brown theme of the cabin, it does not feel dull, compared to an all black one. The rear passengers also get a centre armrest which will provide a more comfortable seating position during longer journeys, and they also get rear AC vents for additional comfort.

Storage Options

Just like any other car in this segment, the Magnite covers all the basics when it comes to storage options and cabin practicality. 

Front passengers get 1-litre bottle holders in both doors with some space on the side for smaller items. They also get a decent-sized cooled glovebox, a small storage in the centre armrest, two cupholders in the centre console, and two trays below the climate control panel to keep their phone, wallet or keys.

Rear occupants get 1-litre bottle holders in the doors, two cupholders in the rear centre armrest, and seat back pockets.

Charging Options

To charge your phone in the Magnite, you get a 12V socket and a USB port in the front, and one type-C port at the back.

Overall, the Magnite’s cabin experience has a contrast. On one hand, you get a good looking cabin with soft touch materials in all the right places. But on the other hand, there are fit and finish issues along with some ergonomic flaws. Nissan has managed to make it look good, but there is still room for improvement.

Features

The Magnite is not a feature loaded car when compared to the competition, but does offer the equipment you’ll need in your daily drives.

It comes with an 8-inch touchscreen, which is paired with an ARKAMYS 6-speaker sound system. The screen is easy to use, but the user interface feels outdated, and the screen takes some time to respond to your inputs. There is support for wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay as well, both of which work seamlessly as intended.

Lower variants of the Magnite get a bigger 9-inch touchscreen, but the resolution is not as crisp as the 8-inch one.

You also get a 7-inch digital driver’s display, which shows all your drive information in a neat and clean manner.

Nissan has also included a 360-degree camera in the mix, which is a useful feature if executed properly. However, in case of the Magnite, you get grainy camera feed, occasional lag, and a low light camera quality which does not show anything with the required clarity. Also, there is no dedicated 3D mode and you only get specific views like top and front, top and back, and front and left.

Standard safety features of the Magnite include 6 airbags, ABS with EBD, hill hold assist, traction control, a tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS), ISOFIX child seat anchors, and rear parking sensors.

Higher variants add a rear view camera, rear defogger, and a 360-degree camera. The Magnite was crash tested by Global NCAP in 2022, where it secured a 4-star safety rating.

Magnite comes with a boot loading capacity of 336-litres, which is enough to keep an entire suitcase set along with one or two soft bags. If you need to carry more luggage, the rear seat  has a 60:40 split, but you don’t get a flat floor once the seat is folded.

Also, due to the high loading lip, loading and unloading luggage requires you to make additional efforts, especially if you're carrying heavy suitcases.

Specifications

Nissan offers the Magnite with two petrol engine options, one turbo and one naturally aspirated (NA). However, unlike some of its competitors, the Magnite does not bring a diesel or a CNG powertrain to the table.

1-litre NA Petrol

This engine lacks the refinement you’d want in a car. Even while idling, you’ll notice vibrations on the steering wheel, gear knob, and in the footwell. The power available here is just enough to give you a relaxed drive experience, but nothing more than that.

City Performance

Inside the city, you have enough power to go about your daily commutes without facing any performance issues. The acceleration is linear and it picks up speeds gradually. You can overtake others at city speeds with no issues, but at slightly higher speeds, you’ll need to plan those overtakes.

Cruising inside the city is also easy, but the engine tends to get stressed easily, so you’ll need to change gears often. The manual has a light clutch, which is easy to use, and that’s what we’d recommend as well. The AMT is very jerky, takes its sweet time to change gears, and even the manual controls feel slow.

Since it is a naturally aspirated unit, you can get a good fuel efficiency out of it. With the manual, you can get around 12 kmpl in the city, and the AMT offers similar 12-13 kmpl.

Highway Performance

As soon as you hit the highway and try to get to high speeds, you realize how underpowered this engine is. While driving on the highway, acceleration will feel slow, the engine will feel stressed in the process, and getting to triple digit speeds will require patience. Even average speed overtakes will require some planning, and you’ll need to wait a lot to perform overtakes beyond the speed of 80 kmph.

Even here we’d recommend the manual over the AMT. The AMT will take a lot of time to change gears, and even downshifts will require your manual input. For fuel efficiency, you can expect around 16-17 kmpl with both manual and AMT.

1-litre Turbo-Petrol

This is the more powerful engine option, and with this engine you don’t need to worry about a dull highway experience. Also, instead of an AMT, this engine comes with a proper CVT. The refinement levels are the same as the NA engine, and you do feel vibrations throughout the cabin. The noise levels are also high in this engine, and the lack of adequate cabin insulation will remind you of that everyday.

City Performance

The city drive experience is evidently better as you can easily overtake others. The power delivery is linear but it picks up speed quickly, which allows you to get to high speeds easily. Even in bumper to bumper traffic, this engine does not feel too eager, and you can easily drive it around for your regular city commutes.

Here, the manual has a light clutch, and the gears shifts are slick. But, we’d recommend the CVT for the most convenient experience. It's mostly jerk free, allows you to speed up quickly, and it's easier to live with if you drive in the city a lot. While this engine is more powerful, it makes an impact on your pocket, as the fuel efficiency will be under 10 kmpl with both transmission options.

Highway Performance

This is where a big difference comes. Compared to the NA engine, the turbo-petrol accelerates much quicker, and you can get to cruising speeds with ease. Here, you don’t need to plan your overtakes much, and even high speed overtakes can be done easily.

While the NA engine gives you a relaxed drive experience, the turbo-petrol brings in a dash of excitement. If you want driving convenience on the highways, or if you just like to cruise around, the CVT will be a better option for you.

The downside of this exciting drive experience is lower fuel efficiency, as it will give you around 13-14 kmpl on the highway.

With these engine and transmission options, the Magnite does give you the convenience of choice, but still, with no diesel or CNG, the options are limited. Also, both engines need better refinement, as the constant vibrations and noise hampers your drive experience.

The Magnite is a fairly comfortable car as its suspension handles regular road bumps and city potholes with ease. While there is noticeable body roll during sudden lane changes, it's overall a comfortable experience on smooth highways and regular city roads. The suspension also does a great job of isolating passengers from bumps on rough roads; however, tire noise and suspension sounds are more audible inside the cabin than the competition.

Handling-wise, the Magnite is designed as a family-friendly vehicle rather than a sportier drive. At higher speeds, the steering feels light and could benefit from more weight for a more confident feel. In tight corners or sharp turns, it’s not quite as precise and confidence inspiring for the enthusiast and so we recommend sedate driving and slower speeds for a better experience

The Magnite is offered in 7 variants: Visia, Visia+, Acenta, N-Connecta, Tekna, and Tekna+.

Visia

• Gets 16-inch steel wheels, black bumpers, black ORVMs, halogen headlamps, and chrome elements around the grille.

• Comes with an all-black cabin, grey inserts, and chrome inserts on the steering wheel.

• Basic features include all power windows, tilt adjustable steering wheel, and a 3.5-inch LED MID.

• Safety kit gets 6 airbags, traction control, tyre pressure monitoring system, ABS with EBD, hill hold assist, ISOFIX mounts, and rear parking sensors.

Visia+

• Gets a shark fin antenna as part of exterior upgrades.

• No changes to the cabin design.

• New features include a 9-inch touchscreen, 4-speakers, and wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.

• Additional safety features include a rear defogger, rear wiper and washer, and a rearview camera.

Acenta

• Base variant for the turbo-petrol engine, but only available with an automatic.

• Gets 16-inch steel wheels with wheel covers and silver skid plates as part of exterior upgrades.

• Feature upgrades include auto AC, keyless entry, height adjustable driver seat, electrically adjustable and foldable ORVMs, and steering mounted controls.

• Turbo variant additionally gets push button start/stop.

• No major changes to the safety kit.

N-Connecta

• Base variant for the turbo manual powertrain.

• Exterior updates include LED DRLs and 16-inch alloy wheels.

• Cabin gets a patterned dashboard and fabric padding on door pads.

• Gets an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system, a 7-inch digital driver’s display, 6-speaker ARKAMYS sound system, rear AC vents, and voice recognition.

Tekna

• Exterior gets bi projector headlamps and LED tail lamps.

• Comes with a light grey cabin theme with a leather-wrapped dashboard and orange stitching.

• Gets black fabric seats with leather accents.

• Additional features include remote engine start (turbo-only), auto headlamps, cruise control, and a 360-degree camera.

Tekna +

• Gets a more premium cabin with a black and brown cabin theme and leatherette seat upholstery.

• Comes with front armrest with storage and adds ambient lighting to the feature list.

CarDekho Recommends

• If you’re on a budget, go for the Visia+ variant as it covers all the basics, and gives you the option of both manual and AMT. Go for the Acenta variant if you want the turbo-petrol engine on a budget.

• The N-Connecta variant feels the most value for money as it offers a complete package with all functional features, and only misses out on a premium cabin experience.

• If you want the most features, pick the one-below-top Tekna variant. You get the best features for the price, and a more premium cabin experience. Go for the top-spec variant if you want the black and brown cabin theme.

The Nissan Magnite competes with SUVs of a similar size while beating them significantly on price. While this does make it seem like better value for money, it is noticeable where the price savings come from.

The cabin fitment quality, engine refinement and noise insulation fall short of the competition and it misses out on some premium features as well. That being said, it is as good as or even better than some rivals when it comes to cabin space and practicality and is a sensible small SUV with a reasonable dose of features to make it more appealing. The Magnite is more about being sensible than sensational. While it isn't the most polished product for the price, it does offer strong value for money.

Other Options To Consider

Tata Nexon

Reason To Consider

• More premium cabin

• Better feature package

• Option of diesel and CNG powertrains

Reasons To Ignore

• More expensive

• Less rear seat space

Kia Sonet/ Hyundai Venue

Reason To Consider

• A more premium experience

• Better feature package

• Option of a diesel engine

Reasons To Ignore

• Less rear seat space

• Not as comfortable

• More expensive

Maruti Brezza

Reasons To Consider

• Traditional big SUV look

• More comfortable ride quality

• Competitively priced top-spec variant

Reasons To Ignore

• Not as premium on the inside

• No flashy features

Mahindra XUV 3XO

Reasons To Consider

• Better rear seat space

• Offers flashy features

• Better safety package

Reasons To Ignore

• Less boot space

• Polarising design

Kia Syros

Reasons To Consider

• Best rear seat experience in the segment

• Feature rich package

• Option of a diesel engine

Reasons To Ignore

• Looks polarising

• Most expensive in the segment