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| Des Fenner with the Datsun Go. |
DATSUN on Wednesday launched its long awaited Go to an eager
audience in Johannesburg. Two models of the hatch are available at 44 Nissan
dealers across almost 90% of South Africa.
The entry level Go retails for R89 500 while the LUX model adds
R10k in kit, including electric windows. Datsun’s sales and marketing director
Stuart Norman told Wheels
these prices will last for at least this quarter, despite the pummelling the
rand has taken since Datsun promised to import an affordable vehicle for under
R100 000 two years ago.
The Go on average sells 1 593 units a month in India, where it is
made; and is also sold in Russia and Indonesia, where the citizens’ smaller
build allows a seven-seat model.
In South Africa the Go is aimed at Generation Y, the so-called
“Risers”, as well as pensioners. These twenty-somethings seem to be floating
without any direction in life, but they also make up 19% of South Africa’s
buying public.
“The Datsun Go enables GenY to break through, with low total cost
of ownership part of its affordability, backed by Nissan,” said Fenner.
“This can amount to about R3 500 a month over 72 months, with zero
deposit, no balloon payment, fuel and Datsun’s optional motorplan.”
Two Datsun dealers told Wheels
the pensioners have so far showed the most interest, all of them with their own
memories of being young with a Datsun.
Durban-based car parts price analyst Malcolm Kinsey said the Datsun
Go currently also had the cheapest parts basket against its competitors, which
include the Ford Figo, Polo Vivo, Honda Brio, Toyota Etios and Hyundai
i10.
Tony Minie, in charge of the Go’s accessories, said the hatch
offered its owners a long list of arfordable add-ons with which to pimp their
rides. These add-ons range from a rear spoiler (R1 198) to splash guards (R139)
and body graphics for R464.
The cabin
The first thing you
notice inside the Go is the lack of airbags. This scribe has long maintained
that airbags are a lazy American solution to the problem of people who refuse to
wear seatbelts, hence the lack of these explosive devices is not a problem in
our book.
The second thing one sees is the bench seat up front. The bench is
made possible with a dash-mounted gear lever and hand brake. Apart from the
obvious snuggle benefits this bench offers, the extra seat squab presses snugly
against the driver’s seat, which means keys, pens and cellphones will not fall
into the narrow crevice between the seat and handbrake, as happens often in
other cars.
The third obvious difference in the Go’s cab is the cradle for a
cellphone. It fits any smartphone, with a power-only USB socket and a sound-only
jack for an auxiliary cable.
Fenner said their market research shows the Risers prefer to listen
to their own music rather than a radio. The double set of USB and Aux cables
dangling around the gear lever can be avoided by asking the Datsun dealer (or
one’s cousin) to simply fit a radio with Bluetooth.
As for the rest of the cabin, rear leg room is more than
sufficient, the boot is large in this class, swallowing 265 litres; and the
plastics appear neat enough for this segment, although some sharp edges can do
with a bit of bevelling. One niggle is the roof lining, which moves to the touch
and may sag later.
The ride
Before handing the keys
to SA’s motoring media, product manager Sonke Dandala pointed out this was a
super mini aimed at first-time buyers who need wheels for city driving.
On the road the three-cylinder, 1 198 cc engine makes 50 kW and
104 Nm, with a long second gear that is designed for kerb crawling.
The zero to 100 time is therefore not applicable in this case, but
the fuel consumption is.
Fenner said the Go will go 5,2 l/100 km in the city and it can stop
in 13,2 metres from 100 km/h. The impressive stopping distance is due to the Go
not having ABS brakes. ABS brakes prevent wheels from locking during hard
braking, so that drivers can try to slow down while swerving around an obstacle,
but it also makes for longer braking distances in the majority of emergencies
where drivers just slam on the brakes to avoid a bumper bashing.
Around corners the Go … well, doesn’t go. The little car has a
suspension set-up that ensures a comfortable, soft ride at the expense of
handling in the hairpins and as a result the Go will always nose out the wider
line.
It is however around corners that one discovers the pièce de
résistance of the Go — its lumbar support on the front seats. Fenner said the
seats were designed to provide ergonomic support to the lower back to ensure a
comfortable drive.
The back seats have three seatbelts, but the person in the middle
needs to have slim hips, and the seatbelts do not have pre-tensioners, which
means all the pensioners can reminisce how their Stanzas and Pulsars also came
with dangling seatbelts.
The price
The sub R100k price and
backing of Nissan dealerships across South Africa put the Datsun Go streets
ahead of its competition in this price bracket and will enable its buyers to
turn a blind eye to the lack of airbags, ABS and seatbelt pre- tensioners that
other brands consider standard safety features.
As such the Go has all
the potential to become a cult car with young buyers who scoff at the fears of
their elders. That is if they are not beaten to the showroom by the pensioners,
who will be attracted by the excellent fuel consumption and a three-year or
100 000 km warranty. An optional service plan is also available.
Norman told Wheels
Datsun is importing 400 Go models a month and Datsun is confident of selling all
of them while the price can be held at this level. With the industry predicting
a 10% to 15% increase in car prices during next year, now is the time to go kick
some wheels at the nearest Nissan dealers. To encourage test drives, Datsun is
also running a competition with four Go models up for grabs, plus tablets and
airtime.
