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Interiors – The Evalia is big on space and the clever engineering ensures maximum interior room for passengers. The MPV’s underpinnings are very different from its biggest competitor, the Toyota Innova. While the Innova is a rear-wheel drive with a body-on-frame layout, the Evalia is the exact opposite. The Innova is longer and wider, but the Nissan Evalia is taller. The rear suspension of the Evalia is compact which helps in to pack more luggage in the boot. The rear doors slide open, which gives better entry to third row passengers. The fuel tank is placed below the front seats, resulting in a flat floor. So does all this help in making the Evalia class leading in terms of space and comfort?
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Certainly yes. The Evalia is the most spacious vehicle in its segment. It is the only vehicle which offers proper seating for adults in the last row. The seats are comfortable and the visibility at the front is very good. All the seven seats recline and offer excellent headroom, legroom and knee room but not the best under thigh support. The rear windows are a tad small and don’t roll down, instead open like a flap, which is extremely inconvenient. The middle row of seats have no sliding option either and there is no AC vent there either. Instead the AC vent for rear passengers is placed in the third row and it does manage to cool both the second and third row very effectively.
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[flickr size=”center” float=”medium”]http://www.flickr.com/photos/motorbeam/7753518826/[/flickr]
Right behind the front seats are trays with cup holders. This has been added so that second row passengers can eat on the go. There are 10 cup holders too, nicely positioned across the three rows. Every passenger has a cup holder. Even with the last row seats up, the Evalia can swallow significant amount of luggage. Flip down the last row of seats, and you can carry furniture. The loading bay is wide and low which helps in easy luggage retrieval.
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The dashboard is quite basic and features two-tone arrangement. The steering wheel is from the Micra and so are the side AC vents. The center console has silver finishing along with a 2-din audio system (Aux port present but no USB), flanked by vertical AC vents. None of the sun visors have a mirror. The Evalia has iKey and one need not insert the key to start the car. However there is no engine start stop button but instead there is a knob which needs to be turned to switch on the car. There is something similar to the Sunny but a cheaper alternative. While the Sunny has a clutch lock (car won’t stop till clutch is depressed), the Evalia doesn’t!
[flickr size=”center” float=”medium”]http://www.flickr.com/photos/motorbeam/7753515560/[/flickr]
[flickr size=”center” float=”medium”]http://www.flickr.com/photos/motorbeam/7753515320/[/flickr]
The instrument cluster has a simple arrangement divided into three distinct sections. The left most is almost always blank because that is where the tell-tale lights are displayed. At the centre is a large speedometer with two buttons. One button is to activate the follow me home headlights, while the other button is to navigate through the cars information display. This information display is displayed on the left most side. It features many interesting things such as trip meter, distance to empty, real time fuel efficiency, average fuel efficiency, digital fuel gauge, digital tachometer, clock, shift indicator and reverse guide camera.
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The gear knob extends from the centre console rather than being on the floor. The glove box has no cover, which is very surprising. There is a small storage area above the center console for storing files and papers. There is storage area near the hand brake too, where an inconveniently positioned charging socket is present. The driver also has a card holder near the door, right underneath the cup holder, which is placed below the right most AC vent.
[flickr size=”center” float=”medium”]http://www.flickr.com/photos/motorbeam/7753525608/[/flickr]
The interiors have been spruced up for India but are average in overall design and finishing. There are absolutely no arm rests in the car, which is a surprising omission. Lot of equipment has been skipped as well such as climate control and audio controls on the steering wheel. The Evalia doesn’t score highly in interior design but the high amount of space and comfort for seven passengers and their luggage makes up for it.
Head over to the next page to read about the driving dynamics of the Nissan Evalia.
