 2011 Nissan Quest. Click image to enlarge |
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2011 Nissan Quest
San Diego, California – After a year’s absence from the Canadian marketplace, the Nissan Quest returns as a fully redesigned family-hauler with an emphasis on practicality. Not that the previous generation Quest wasn’t roomy, but it was something of an anti-minivan, what with its avant-garde styling both inside and out.
Now, to paraphrase Nissan Canada’s Ian Forsyth (Director, Corporate and Product Planning), Nissan is focusing on people who want a minivan, rather than trying to convince people who don’t that they should buy one. The result is a vehicle that is more conventional in conception and appearance, targeted to families who need the space and interior flexibility that only a minivan provides.
Powered by a 260-horsepower version of Nissan’s VQ-series V6 engine (up 10 per cent compared with the outgoing model), and mated to a continuously variable (automatic) transmission, the front-wheel drive Quest is built on the same platform as the Murano crossover and Maxima and Altima midsize sedans, but with a wheelbase extended to 3,000 millimetres.
  2011 Nissan Quest. Click image to enlarge |
Its exterior design takes advantage of the two-box form, rather than trying to hide the minivan’s inherent size and shape. The hood is longer than the previous Quest, and from the windshield back, the cabin is evenly rectangular, but featuring tasteful character lines along the sides.
The most distinctive visual elements are the tinted glass that wraps around the Quest, and the upright liftgate with its “boomerang” lights that give the impression of a somewhat severe face at the rear. At the front, the grille may appear to some as looking more “SUV” than minivan, but the overall effect is appealing and easily identifiable.
As with the exterior, Nissan designers have started over with the Quest interior. Long gone are the unusual cylindrical centre stack with its flat workspace, centre-mounted instrument panel, hard plastic surfaces and dark grey panels of early Quests, to be replaced with a more conventional and familiar instrument panel and controls, more luxurious soft-touch surfaces and brighter, warmer colours for the fabrics and panels. Nissan says the interior is designed to recall a house’s “great room,” but it seems more like a tidy condo to me. Either way, it’s airy and pleasant.
The Quest is a standard seven-passenger minivan with raised “theatre-style” second and third-row seats that optimize outward visibility for passengers and fold flat when required. A hidden cargo well at the rear remains accessible regardless of whether the quick-release second and third-row seats are up or down.
 2011 Nissan Quest. Click image to enlarge |
The front seats incorporate a “trilaminar” structure that uses three types of cushions to distribute body pressure more evenly than conventional padding, and on select models, power assist and the first application of Nissan’s new “Quick Comfort” front seat heaters.
The cabin includes six cupholders and six bottle holders, along with four coat hangers and two 12-volt power points. A removable second-row console is fitted between the captain’s style seats.
The available one-touch sliding doors open to present a low step-in height that will make entry and exit easy for both adults and children.
Additional standard features include an Intelligent Key system with push-button start, wood-tone interior trim, rear spoiler, roof rails, chrome door handles, dual power and heated mirrors, anti-lock brakes, electronic stability control, 16-inch steel wheels with covers, dual-zone air conditioning and audio system with six-CD changer.
 2011 Nissan Quest. Click image to enlarge |
Notable available features on the Quest include Nissan’s first use of a Blind Spot Warning System (as found on Nissan’s luxury Infiniti models), an Advanced Air Conditioning System (AACS) that purifies the air as it is circulated, a Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) with “Easy-Fill” technology that alerts when proper tire pressure is reached, dual opening sunroofs, power second-row windows, High Intensity Discharge headlamps, 18-inch alloy wheels, Bluetooth connectivity, DVD entertainment, navigation system, premium audio and third-row power seat return.
As promised by Nissan, on the road the new Quest is comfortable, smooth, quiet and spacious. A large vehicle at 5,100 mm in length, the turning radius is shorter than the previous Quest, and the vehicle drives “smaller” than its size. The interior is finely trimmed and road noise in the cabin is rarely detectable. The CVT transmission is likewise quiet in operation, generating engine sounds that are barely audible even when climbing hills. The ride is car-like and relaxing, and when parking, the Quest is easy to locate within parking lot spaces. Outward visibility is very good for a vehicle of this type, enhanced by the triangular windows at the base of the A-pillars, but the windshield washers are weak and directed somewhat low on the windshield surface.
 2011 Nissan Quest. Click image to enlarge |
The 2011 Quest will be available in four trim levels – S, SV, SL and LE – starting at slightly under $30,000 for the S and rising to slightly more than $45,000 for the LE (exact pricing has yet to be announced)
In addition to the S’s standard features, the Quest SV includes one-touch power sliding doors, 16-inch alloy wheels, tri-zone automatic temperature control, power driver’s seat lumbar adjustment, fog lights and a conversation mirror.
The Quest SL is equipped with leather seating and door trim, 18-inch alloy wheels, power liftgate, eight-way power driver’s seat, Quick Comfort heated front seats, Homelink, auto-dimming inside mirror with compass, auto on/off headlights, outside mirrors with integrated turn signals, rear-view monitor, Bluetooth and iPod connectivity, and remote steering wheel controls.
The Quest LE includes a hard-disk navigation system, Bose audio, satellite radio, HID headlamps, DVD entertainment system, blind spot warning and the advanced air circulation system.
  2011 Nissan Quest. Click image to enlarge |
Three option packages are offered: DVD Entertainment (SL), Bose audio and dual sunroofs (SL) and dual opening sunroofs (LE).
Although the market for minivans has declined significantly, Nissan’s data indicate that it has stabilized. Nissan joins Dodge, Chrysler Honda and Toyota in recently introducing all-new minivans, and has produced a fine vehicle that should appeal to families looking for transportation that can perform multiple roles, and perform them better than an SUV alternative. As Mr. Forsyth says, “This is a life-stage vehicle. Minivans have always seemed the perfect vehicle for Canadian families.”
Likely the base “S” version is not expected to be a volume seller, but it does seem a bit stingy to eliminate a conversation mirror and Bluetooth hands-free connectivity from a $30,000 minivan, as these are pretty much must-haves in a vehicle of this type. They can be supplied as dealer-installed accessories, however.
The 2011 Nissan Quest is now built in Japan and will be available in Canada in January, 2011.
