Nissan Qashqai e-Power: Hybrid with a difference

0 0 September 17, 2025 Edit this post

by Chris Riley

What is it?

Qashqai is the not so small member of the Nissan lineup, sitting between the Juke and X-Trail, and sharing a platform with X-Trail.

Originally known as the Dualis in Japan and Australia when it was launched way back when, it was called Qashqai in every other country where it was sold.

The second generation, launched in 2013, was not sold in Japan and lo and behold was badged as the Qashqai everywhere this time, except that is for the United States where it was known as the Rogue Sport.

Confusing? Thankfully, the third and latest generation of the car, launched in 2021, has adopted the Qashqai name globally.

It takes its name from the Qashqai people, who live in mountainous regions of central and south-western Iran.

What’s it cost?

Qashqai seats five and comes in five grades: ST, ST-L, Ti, Ti-L and N-Design.

Previously, Nissan’s hybrid e-Power drivetrain was available only with the flagship Ti-L and sporty N-Design, but it is now also offered with the Ti.

Having said that, Nissan has just announced that the whole Qashqai range will be going hybrid from next year.

It's the Ti that we are looking here at today, priced from $47,165 plus on roads.

Two-tone paint like our Fuji Sunset Red and Black Onyx Roof adds $1995 to the price.

Ti e-Power delivers the same generous equipment list as the petrol-powered Ti and benefits from range-wide updates to design, technology, safety and connectivity that arrived with the MY25 Qashqai.

Standard equipment for the Ti includes leather accented seats, two-zone climate control with rear air vents, heated front seats and steering wheel, frameless auto-dimming rear-view mirror, eight-way power-adjust driver seat with memory function, plus ambient interior lighting.

There's also 19-inch alloys, adaptive cruise control, auto high beam, speed sign recognition, walk-away locking, LED head and tail lights, auto lights and wipers, rear privacy glass, electric parking brake with auto-hold, and front and rear parking sensors.

Infotainment comes in the form a 12.3-inch touchscreen, with Bluetooth,voice recognition, satellite navigation, AM/FM and DAB+ digital Radio, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, plus six-speaker audio.

There's also wireless phone charging, two USB-C ports and a 12 volt socket in the front, another two USB-C ports in the back, and a second 12 volt outlet in the luggage area.

Ti-L adds a 10-speaker Bose audio system.

Nissan’s Connected Car Services (CCS) and the Nissan Connect app give owners remote access to their vehicle, with the ability to access key health and status information, trip history and any disturbances, including theft and tow alert.

Qashqai scores a full five stars for safety, with seven airbags, intelligent around view monitor with moving object detection and autonomous emergency braking (Car-to-Car, Vulnerable Road User, Junction Assist and Backover).

There's also a lane support system with lane keep assist (LKA), lane departure warning (LDW) and emergency lane keeping (ELK), Blind Spot Warning & Blind Spot Intervention, Cross Traffic Alert & Intelligent Rear Automatic Braking, and an advanced speed assistance system (SAS).

There are ISOFix tethers for the outer rear seats and top tethers for all three second row positions.

Qashqai qualifies for a 10-year/300,000km warranty provided you get the car serviced by Nissan, otherwise it reverts to 5 years/unlimited kilometres.

Servicing with Nissan also qualifies you for 10-year roadside assistance (otherwise it's 12 months).

Service is fixed price for five years.

What’s it go like?

The hybrid setup in the Qashqai is different from most.

It's different in that the electric motor does not assist the petrol engine.

Rather the petrol engine generates power for the electric motor which in turn turns the wheels.

This is what is known as a 'series' hybrid. In contrast, the setup pioneered by Toyota is 'parallel' hybrid because the engine does turn the wheels.

Why the need for two systems?

In theory, because the engine is not tied to the speed, a series hybrid can enhance fuel efficiency and reduce engine emissions because it doesn't have to work as hard.

It can also operate in all-electric mode for much longer, making them ideal for city driving where stop-and-go conditions prevail.

The series hybrid in the Qashqai e-Power consists of a turbocharged, variable compression 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol engine, together with a power generator, inverter and electric motor, producing a combined output of 140kW and 330Nm.

Electricity generated is transferred via the inverter to either the 140kW electric motor or the 1.8 kWh battery (or both, according to the driving scenario), with drive to the front wheels.

Nissan’s e-Pedal Step and regenerative braking is said to enhance the EV feel.

Contributing to that feeling is a CVT-style continuously variable transmission, with no gear changes as we know them, delivering smooth, instant acceleration similar to a fully electric vehicle.

There's no steering wheel mounted paddles for gear changes or moderating the regenerative braking for that matter.

The transmission incorporates auto engine stop-start, with Standard, Sport and Eco drive modes.

Nissan says the result is a smooth, quiet drive, improved efficiency and complete range freedom, without ever needing to plug in.

Sounds pretty good and it would be with a larger motor that delivered more punch.

Performance is okay, but nothing special. An electric motor might be driving the wheels, but it can't match it with the response of a true EV.

The ride is on the firmer end of the scale, jarring on Sydney's Parramatta Rd and becoming bouncy at speed on back roads.

Measuring 4425mm long and 1835mm wide, interior space is good for what used to be the baby of the range.

But the boot is small and that lump you see in the photo houses the traditional 12 volt car battery.

Cargo space is 479 litres with seat backs upright or 1422 litres with them folded.

A space saver spare is located under the floor.

It's becoming increasingly difficult to tell whether trim is real or artificial leather these days.

Either way the finish is classy and it probably doesn't that much.

Ti adds suede touches on the dash, door inserts and armrests, centre console storage lid and knee pads.

Both front seats are heated with power adjustment for the driver's seat and manual adjustment for the front passenger (but they do get lumbar adjustment).

The rear doors open to almost 90 degrees, making it easier for parents to get kids in and out of car seats.

Bottle holders in the front doors are large enough to accommodate larger drink bottles.

The classy touchscreen is designed to resemble the look of Android Auto which is kind of confusing when switching between the two.

At least physical controls are provided for the air and volume, along with a row of other shortcut keys.

The look of the instrument cluster can be changed, while we found the tiny transmission lever annoying.

One pedal driving is easily selected via a switch in the centre console, but does not bring the car to a complete stop.

Cruise control takes some figuring out. It's the blue button that looks like a fingerprint scanner.

The electric parking brake releases with a thud when parked on a slope.

With a 55-litre tank, claimed fuel consumption is 5.8L/100km.

It will take standard unleaded, but premium 95 unleaded is recommended.

We were getting 5.5L/100km after 334km.

That's a little better than claimed, but still not as good as the similarly-sized Corolla Cross Hybrid that we drove -- and remember, the Corolla is a parallel hybrid!

What we like?

Looks great
Good fuel consumption
Long equipment list

What we don’t like?

That lump in the boot
No power tailgate
Misses out on head-up display

The bottom line?

Although a little on the small side, the Nissan Qashqai has matured into an attractive, fully featured wagon over the past 20 years.

There will be many buyers looking to this car as a cheaper alternative to the X-Trail which continues to grow in size and price, leaving some buyers behind.

But at more than $50K by the time you put it on the road, it's something of a big ask for a car this size and Qashqai is sure to come under pressure from cheaper Chinese rivals.