Nissan Sylphy: Still relevant?

‘Time and tide wait for none’ - an important phrase for everyone to remember. This phrase applies to every aspect of life. The world automobile industry abides by it too. Car companies have to come up with new and interesting products if they want to stay in contention. This is one of the reasons why there is a new updated and facelifted model of a car getting launched every now and then.

Nissan Sylphy has been around in the Philippines for quite some time now and it has not received any major upgrade for a long time. This and new competition have certainly impacted the sales of this sedan. The Nissan Sylphy price starts at Php 908,000, so, is the Japanese sedan still relevant in today’s market? Let us find out.

The Sylphy might not be as exciting or dynamic to look at as some of its rivals, but that doesn’t mean it is unattractive or unpleasant. It has just aged. But even today, it looks quite handsome. It has a distinctive headlamp design that is further enhanced by the LED daytime running lights embedded inside the headlamp housing.

The simple chrome grille at the front gives the car a classy appearance. There’s nothing much happening on the sides though. The alloy wheels try to impress and the smooth lines that run along the doors look elegant.

The rear end of the Sylphy brings back its charm thanks to the large tail lights and the boot lid mounted rear spoiler. Just like the front, the rear bumper doesn’t impart any sportiness to the car. Overall, the Nissan Sylphy would somehow qualify the aesthetics round but it misses out on some necessary features of this segment like LED lighting, stylish alloy wheels, sportier bumpers, etc.

The Sylphy comes with a beige colour interior which doesn’t excite as much. Things like the steering wheel and dashboard design. look outdated. However, some elements like the chrome inside door handles, automatic dual-zone climate control, and an eight-inch touch screen infotainment system try hard to keep things lively.

There are many new features that the Sylphy misses out like electrically adjustable driver’s seat, steering mounted controls, infotainment system with smartphone integration, and so on. These features and many more have become common these days and are definitely included in Sylphy’s rivals.

 

As far as the Nissan Sylphy specs are concerned, it is available with two engine options - a 1.6-litre four-cylinder engine that has been tuned to produce 116 PS of maximum power at 6,000 rpm and a peak torque of 154 Nm that kicks in at 4,000 rpm and a much powerful 1.8-litre unit that churns out 131 PS at 6,000 rpm and 174 Nm at 3,600 rpm. For the transmission, you can either have the 5-speed manual or the XTRONIC CVT.

For the safety of the passengers, the Sylphy comes with dual SRS airbags and ABS with EBD and brake assist. These are the only primary safety features on this sedan. The Sylphy lacks in advanced safety features like traction control, stability control, blind spot monitoring, hill start assist, reverse parking sensors with camera, and much more.

It’s not that Nissan doesn’t have these technologies, it does. It has its own advanced Intelligent Mobility safety system that includes many latest safety features which are present on many Nissan products. It’s just that the Sylphy doesn’t come with any of those.

If Nissan wants to keep the Sylphy name alive then it has to take necessary action and update the car otherwise it won’t last much longer. Its rivals like the Toyota Corolla Altis and Honda Civic are similarly priced and come with a lot more advanced and modern features and refined engines. Right now, the Sylphy doesn’t seem relevant considering its price and the market situation.

However, Nissan unveiled an all-new model of the Sylphy at the Shanghai motor show last month and it’s really good. Nissan claims that it has a drag coefficient of 0.26, the same as the mighty GT-R. The new Sylphy is what we want. So, let’s see if and when Nissan brings it to the Philippines.

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