#TDOTD Test Drive of the Day: Nissan Sylphy 1.8 V, One competitive compact sedan

MANILA, Philippines - Creating a competitive compact sedan is perhaps the hardest chore that automakers face today. Shoppers in this segment require a single vehicle that’ll do just about everything for them: get great fuel economy, give a comfortable and confident ride, have a usable backseat with plenty of cargo space, offer an abundance of technology. And at the top-end of the segment, compacts actually face competition from crossovers while at the bottom, they must compete with smaller, often more efficient subcompacts that are better than they’ve ever been. Further complicating things, this is a segment that’s cut-throat competitive in terms of pricing. And yet, buyers aren’t willing to cut corners.

Enter the Nissan Sylphy. Distancing itself from the utter disaster that was the last-generation Sentra, the Sylphy is Nissan’s way of starting fresh; creating a brand-new market image that sorely lacked with the Sentra. And it all starts with the looks. Knowing quite well everyone else has ‘sportiness’ nailed down tightly; Nissan went for something refined and stately. The overall silhouette looks elongated giving emphasis towards the Sylphy’s planted stance. The rounded frontend gives it visual height while the bulging character line does the same from the profile. The rear successfully echoes the front but adds that signature touch: arrow-shaped LED tail lamps. The larger greenhouse lends a more top-heavy look, but it’s thankfully balanced by the 17-inch rollers.

This feeling of stateliness is carried to the Sylphy’s roomy interior. The rear seats, with ample seating for three abreast, is as capacious as you’ll ever get in this segment. Sadly, you only get two headrests and two three-pointed seatbelts over there (the middle guy has to settle for a lap belt). The room upfront is equally large, though perhaps not to the same generous levels as the back. The light-toned interior gives a feeling of airiness, but the sharply raked roofline does rob the driver of usable headroom. Not to mention, the light and dark beige cabin is truly a pain to maintain. Thankfully, Nissan didn’t put an ounce of fake wood.

As the top-spec 1.8V, it gets a nice, solid list of interior amenities and creature comforts. Leather comes as standard as does dual-zone climate control (with rear vents), a keyless entry system with push-button engine start/stop, and a Sony 2-DIN audio system with six speakers. It feels like a solid, well put together car with great fit and finish and material choices used throughout. The only gripe is that at P998,000, it desperately needs Bluetooth, something that’s available in sub-P 500,000 cars.

On the road, the Sylphy surprises with its great road manners. NVH are exceptionally well managed with only the exhaust note barely audible when accelerating hard. When keeping the throttle steady though, it feels remarkably solid and quiet. The ride is also as impressive as it gives the Slyphy the feel of a larger, more expensive vehicle. Suspension compliance over potholes is excellent and will only be upset by cracked asphalt. At the same time, this supple ride doesn’t come at the expense of floatiness. During more aggressive cornering, the Slyphy will tend to lean, but it feels planted and secure.

However, this fine balance shouldn’t be confused with an overly sporting character. It delivers nice balance between ride and handling, but it won’t set the loins of enthusiast drivers on fire. For instance, the steering is overboosted and lacks feedback. At moderate speeds, it does alright but increase the pace in the corners and you’ll soon find the response time between input to reaction a bit too slow.

And of course, the 1.8-liter motor and the Xtronic CVT also play a huge part in determining the Sylphy’s less than sporty nature. When not pressing it, the drivetrain is smooth with good power. The transmission’s also tuned for low-end response and highway cruising fuel economy, both of which the Sylphy does well (highway mileage for instance is at an amazing 18.2 km/L). However, for that 10 percent you want to gun it, you’ll only be rewarded by an engine drone coupled with a car that doesn’t have any sense of urgency.  Still, if you’re a Point A to Point B driver, the Sylphy’s more than enough, enabling you to squeeze out not less than 10 km/L in heavy traffic. The overall mileage figure is 13.7 km/L which is pretty amazing considering it doesn’t use any fancy fuel-saving mechanism.

Nissan has done its homework and has come up with a fresh design that’s engineered to be a solid, spacious, and commendable compact sedan.  It’s refined and confident. Above all, it’s very well priced and packed to work well in the “do-everything” mold that compact car shoppers seem to desire. The Sylphy opens up a fresh new start at Nissan—one that’s actually worth your hard-earned money.