2011 Nissan Versa gets priced, includes minor updates

The Nissan Versa hasn't received any substantial updates since its 2007 debut. It's a shame, since there's some pretty stiff competition on the market these days, especially from the likes of the Suzuki SX4, Honda Fit and Ford Fiesta. Still, Nissan adds incremental updates annually, and the 2011 model year is no different. What's most important, though, is that pricing for the latest Versa has gone unchanged, meaning the bottom-end 1.6 Base sedan still rings in at $9,990, and the top-end 1.8 SL hatch commands $16,900, with a variety of models in both body styles in between.

Visually, nothing will change from the 2010 car (pictured), but some new standard equipment makes its way onto some trims. 1.8 S Versa sedans now benefit from an in-dash six-disc CD changer, and mid-grade 1.6 sedans now come with standard ABS (sorry, 1.6 Base, you still have to do without anti-lock brakes).

We find the Versa to be a rather pleasant little economy car, but with fresher, more attractive offerings on the marketplace, Nissan will be wise to accelerate the development of its next-generation car. Still, with an unchanged price and more standard equipment on deck, the Versa should continue to sell relatively well until a replacement crops up.

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Nissan Launches Super Clean Micra DIG-S Turbo with CO2 Emissions of just 95 g/km

With CO2 emissions of only 95 g/km, Nissan’s all-new Micra DIG-S has one of the cleanest petrol engines in the world. To achieve this, the Japanese firm's engineers used a 1.2-liter three-cylinder unit fitted with a supercharger and direct injection, which can be coupled either to a manual transmission or a CVT automatic gearbox.

The powerplant uses the Miller cycle and with a peak output of 98HP and 142 Nm (105 lb-ft) of torque, it’s said to be on par with a conventional 1.5-liter four-cylinder unit. Other technical highlights include the 13:1 compression ratio that increases combustion efficiency, the reduced heat, friction and pumping losses thanks to fewer moving parts, and advanced engine management systems with Start/Stop feature and energy regeneration capabilities.

When equipped with a manual transmission, the entry-level trim grade of the Micra DIG-S can hit a top speed of 180 km/h (112 mph), while returning estimated fuel consumption of 4.1 lt/100 km (57.4 US mpg) on the combined cycle with 95 g/km of CO2.

Manual variants with higher trim levels (Acenta and Tekna) emit 99 g/km due to the added equipment. The CVT version is the least efficient of the pack, but with CO2 emissions of 115 g/km is still a proper tree hugger’s car.

Depending on market, the Micra DIG-S is also exempt from road tax and/or congestion charges and customers can benefit from further tax breaks and governmental incentives.

Nissan will showcase the DIG-S at the Geneva Motor Show in March with European sales set to debut this summer. It will be only available in a five-door body style and with three trim levels. Besides the supercharged engine, the Japanese automaker is offering an 80HP 1.2-liter naturally aspirated variant as well.

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New 2012 Nissan GT-R: More, Better, Faster

The Nissan GT-R has been the darling of the frothing-at-the-mouth sports car crowd since it debuted in 2008. At the time, it offered the performance of an Enzo at a (small) fraction of the price. But no car is an island, and competition moves on – so the GT-R has been upgraded for 2012 to keep pace with it’s ferocious opponents.

From the outside, the car gets some almost-noticeable aerodynamic tweaks. The GT-R gets a new front and rear bumper, integrated LED running lights, and a claimed 10% increase in downforce with a minor decrease in aerodynamic drag. Changes on the front bumper also increase the amount of air passing through to cool the engine and brakes, and the rear bumper evacuates more air from the wheel wells for more downforce and brake cooling as well. The GT-R still isn’t pretty, but it’s “angry sumo wrestler” looks remain in full force.

On the performance side of things, prepare to be upset if you just bought a 2011 GT-R. Peak horsepower increases from 480 to 530, and torque jumps from 435lb-ft to 451lb-ft. If you opt for the Spec V model, torque peak bumps to 466lb-ft in the higher gears. The increase in output comes from higher boost pressure (obviously) as well as a reprogrammed ECU, larger exhaust piping and a less restrictive intake, and tweaks to the valve timing and air fuel ratios. There’s also a new catalytic converter, and surprisingly the GT-R qualifies as an SU-LEV (super ultra low emissions vehicle) – which is cool for a car than can run to 60 in close to 3 seconds flat.

The body itself has been stiffened, with a strut-tower brace in the engine compartment (which Nissan says is made of carbon fibre and aluminum honeycomb) as well as a support on the passenger side of the instrument panel. The changes to the suspension border on the obsessively nerdy, too. Front spring/damping rates and roll bar have been tweaked and the caster angle has been increased, while the rear suspension is re-engineered for a lower roll center height to improve toe. The shocks are a new low-resistance design that’s supposed to be more responsive. Finally, the 2012 gets a new brake rotor design for better braking force, less fade, and better wear characteristics. In addition, a new set of forged wheels (from Rays engineering) reduce unsprung mass and are stronger to boot.

There are minor changes to make the interior, long the GT-R’s weak spot, a nicer plate to spend time. Although things like a new seat design and a new finish for the GT-R logo don’t make the car lap the ‘ring any faster (which, by the way, is now down to 7:20 according to Nissan, irrelevant as that may be), it’ll be nice to not feel like you’re in an optioned-up Altima now.

The 2012 GT-R will be offered in a large array of models, from the stripped out Club Track model, through the Pure, Premium, and Black editions, the performance-tuned VSpec, and the exclusive customized EGOIST model. Pure, Premium, and Black editions are just trim levels with no real mechanical differences, but the VSpec and Egoist get a few changes. VSpec models continue to have the lightweight Rays racing forged alloy wheels as last year, painted black. There’s also the increased peak torque output as mentioned earlier, as well as a titanium exhaust system. The VSpec gets track-worthy brake pad composition, as well as re-calibrated VDC stability control for track use, and a dry-carbon rear spoiler.

The EGOIST takes all of the upgrades to the VSpec and adds some custom touches on top of them. Foremost is the custom leather interior with handmade quilt-stitched seats by craftsmen Muelheim an der Ruhr in Germany, available in 20 different upper and lower color combinations. The GT-R logo on the steering wheel is hand-lacquered by a master artisan in Japan, and the Bose stereo is – get this – custom calibrated for ideal sound depending on each specific customer’s driving position. Oh, and it has carbon-composite speaker cones.

The 2012 GT-R will be hitting markets worldwide in February of 2011, so if you were thinking about purchasing the Swiss Army Knife of sports cars, it might be worth it to wait a few more months.

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