Nissan Kicks Variants Explained: XL, XV, XV Premium, XV Premium+

The Nissan Kicks has finally been launched in India at a starting price of Rs 9.55 lakh. It’s available in a choice of four variants - XL, XV, XV Premium and XV Premium+. While the Kicks is offered with a choice a 1.5-litre petrol and 1.5-litre diesel engine, the petrol motor is only available in the entry-level XL and the XV variant. Now, let’s find out which variant and engine combination suits your budget and needs the best.

But before we proceed, here’s a look at the colour options on offer.

• Pearl White

• Blade Silver

• Bronze Grey

• Amber Orange

• Deep Blue Pearl

• Night Shade

• Cayenne Red

• Pearl White with Orange Roof (XV Premium+)

• Pearl White with Black Roof (XV Premium+)

• Bronze Grey with Orange Roof (XV Premium+)

• Cayenne Red & Black Roof (XV Premium+)

Standard Safety Kit

• Dual front airbags

• ABS with EBD

• Manual day/night IRVM

• Adjustable headrest at front and rear

• Speed-sensing door locks and impact-sensing unlock

• Rear parking sensors and defogger

• Central locking

• Front seatbelts with pretensioners, load limiters and reminder

Nissan Kicks XL: Covers all bases; good option for those looking for a compact SUV on a budget

Exteriors: Body-coloured bumpers and outer door handles, halogen projector headlamps, LED tail lights and 16-inch steel wheels with covers.

Interiors: Chrome inside door handles, fabric seats with dual sun visors. Also gets a vanity mirror for the front passenger.

Convenience: Electrically adjustable ORVM with blinkers, all four power windows with driver side auto up/down, remote key, six-way manually adjustable driver seat, cooled glovebox, front center armrest, auto AC, rear AC vent, cruise control and tilt-adjustable steering wheel.

Audio: 2-DIN audio system (MP3, AUX, USB and Bluetooth), front and rear speakers and Nissan Connect telematics support.

Is it worth buying?

The base variant of the Nissan Kicks gets all the basic features that we expect from a modern-day compact SUV. If you have zeroed in on the Nissan Kicks but have a limited budget, then you may go ahead and buy this one.

If you are buying this vehicle and won’t be driving it most of the times, then you will miss out on a rear center armrest, which is available from next variant onwards.

Nissan Kicks XV: Gets useful additional features, but incremental cost over XL variant is too high

Exteriors: 17-inch machine-cut alloy wheels, front fog lamps, roof rails.

Convenience: Rear wiper, fabric seats with single stitch, rear centre armrest with cupholders, front seat back pocket, diesel version gets ECO Mode.

Safety: Rear parking camera,  VDC (vehicle dynamic control) for diesel variants.

Infotainment: 8-inch touchscreen unit with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, voice recognition, Bluetooth, USB and AUX-in connectivity. Also gets steering wheel-mounted controls.

Is it worth buying?

The Rs 1.4 lakh to Rs 1.64 lakh premium is plenty high and the jump up in terms of features doesn’t really justify the hike. It, however, gets useful features, some of which are not available in the aftermarket as well. Although you will end up appreciating these features in the long run, they are just too pricey when you take into account the incremental cost over the base variant.

Since the base variant is fairly loaded, we’d suggest you you pick that instead and personalise it to your needs, thereby saving some cash in the process.

Nissan Kicks XV Premium: Added features add to the novelty factor, albeit at a high cost

Exteriors:  LED projector headlamps and electrically foldable ORVMs.

Interiors: Leather wrapped steering wheel and gear knob.

Convenience: Key card for entry, push-button start/stop,

Audio: Two extra tweeters

Safety: Hill start assist control

Is it worth buying?

This variant commands  premium of a whopping Rs 1.16 lakh over the previous one with features that are more of a novelty than being outright functional. Except the hill start assist, of course. The additional features that this variant gets don’t justify the huge hike in price. However, if you are willing to stretch your budget for this variant, we would recommend that you stick with the Kicks XL and save some money in the process.

Nissan Kicks XV Premium+: Feels safe and luxurious, but it’s yet another expensive upgrade

Exteriors: Front fog lamps with cornering function, dual tone colour scheme (option).

Interiors: Leather wrapped seats, steering wheel and front armrest with double stitching.

Convenience: Auto headlamps with follow-me-home function, rain-sensing wipers and armrest storage light.

Safety: 360-degree parking camera with bird’s eye view and dynamic guidelines, front side airbags and rear fog lamps.

Is it worth buying?

The premium for upgrading to the top-spec XV Premium+ over the previous XV Premium variant is steep, but there are some additional safety features and a segment-first 360-degree parking camera on offer. The extra set of airbags will ensure you feel safe, while the ‘Around View’ monitor will come in handy while parking the SUV in tight spots.

If you look past the premium that you have to pay for this variant, the Kicks XV Premium+ does impress as a package. If it had a few more goodies (like a sunroof and ventilated seats, for eg.) at the same price, or if it was priced lower by around Rs 40,000, we would have gone ahead and recommended this variant without any hesitation. For now, buying the top-spec variant of the Nissan Kicks is a tad too expensive for the premium feel it offers.

Source: cardekho.com