One Car, One World: New Nissan Magnite unveiled and destined for new left-hand drive markets

Nissan last week pulled the cover off its New Magnite compact SUV in Delhi, the capital of the vehicle’s home country. And building on the Magnite’s popularity in India, this milestone also signifies the introduction of the left-hand drive version, which will take Magnite exports from Nissan’s world-class Chennai plant to a total of more than 65 markets.

The new model combines sleek new styling, innovative advanced technology features, optimum efficiency, and smart safety features to deliver the best Magnite yet. The introduction of new Magnite across Africa, Middle East, and India comes as part of the broad product offensive within the Arc, Nissan’s new business plan.

Guillaume Cartier, Chairperson, Nissan AMIEO (Africa, Middle East, India, Europe & Oceania) Region, said, “The Magnite is already well established in India and other right-hand drive markets, but today’s unveil is an important landmark for Nissan in the region. Under the strategy of what we call ‘One Car, One World”, we will now export the new Magnite to a total of more than 65 markets from our state-of-the-art factory in Chennai. With this, India will become an export hub for Nissan. We are confident that the new Magnite will be equally loved and appreciated in markets like South Africa and Saudi Arabia as it is in India.”

 Bold styling & advanced tech

 The Magnite is a striking compact SUV, with robust exterior styling complemented by LED lights front and rear, alloy wheels and roof rails.

Inside, tech-savvy customers will love the digital TFT configurable driver display, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, for seamless smartphone integration, as well as the wireless smartphone charger. For the comfort and convenience of rear passengers, there is also a USB charger and air vents. And life-on-board has been enhanced with the addition of four-colour adjustable ambient lighting.

Customers will appreciate other seamless and sleek innovations, such as remote engine start, walk away lock and approach unlock functions, cooled glove box storage, and an on-board air ionizer – ideal for customers with allergies or respiratory conditions.

With customers’ reassurance in mind, the Magnite’s bodyshell uses reinforced steel for impressive structural integrity. Six airbags are standard across all variants while three-point seat belts are offered for rear passengers. And demonstrating that close attention has been paid to driver comfort, the rear-view mirror is frameless, giving a wider field of view and it automatically dims to reduce distracting dazzle from cars behind.

Efficient performance

The Magnite is powered by an advanced turbocharged 1.0-litre engine which can be paired with either a manual or advanced Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT). Offering the optimum balance of fuel economy and responsive performance, the engine generates 74kW (99hp) and 160Nm – impressive figures from such modest displacement. (Fuel economy*: MT: 20 KMPL. CVT: 17.4 KMPL)

Thanks to independent Macpherson strut suspension with anti-roll bars and rebound springs at the front and semi-independent coil spring suspension at the rear, occupants will enjoy a comfortable, calm ride without excess roll or pitch, even in the most challenging road conditions.

Ideal for urban mobility

Despite its compact dimensions of less than four metres in length, a width of 1758mm and height of 1572mm, the Magnite can accommodate five passengers – thanks to its generous wheelbase of 2500mm – making it ideal for urban mobility. This urban focus is enhanced further with the inclusion of Around View Monitor – one of Nissan’s iconic technical innovations – which generates a bird’s-eye-view of the car from four cameras, parking in tight spaces is a low-stress exercise.

Frank Torres, Divisional Vice President, AMIEO Region Business Transformation & President-Nissan India Operations,: “The Magnite represents everything Nissan stands for in a really compelling, compact package. It projects a confident attitude thanks to its striking design. This is combined with great tech innovations, while peace of mind comes from numerous safety features. And performance from its downsized turbo engine is lively, but economical. And we’re delighted to bring that unique combination of qualities to so many new global markets.”

”One Car, One World”

Nissan’s “One Car, One World” approach comes to life through the Magnite, which has not only established a strong presence in India but has gained traction globally as well. Since its launch in December 2020, the Magnite has achieved a cumulative sale of over 150,000 units across India and international markets.

Until now, Nissan Motor India had only produced Magnite in right-hand drive configuration, with export to 20 right-hand drive markets. Thanks to the world-class manufacturing capabilities at the Nissan Renault Alliance plant in Chennai, Magnite production has now expanded to cater for left-hand drive markets, which represents an additional 50 markets. Exports to left-hand-drive markets from will begin in 2025. And with export volume to more than 65 markets sitting at nearly 100,000 units in total by 2026, the New Magnite will represent the largest coverage for a vehicle produced in Nissan’s Africa, Middle East, India and Oceania regions.

Nissan’s Chennai manufacturing facility, Renault Nissan Automotive India Private Limited (RNAIPL), is a unique and world-class plant dedicated exclusively to Nissan and its Alliance partners. Spanning a sizeable 600 acres, or 4 million square metres, RNAIPL has exported more than 1.2 million vehicles to over 100 destinations around the world since production started in 2010. With the additional export opportunities available through New Magnite, India will join the UK as a key export hub for Nissan in the Africa, Middle East, India, Europe and Oceania (AMIEO) region.

While acting as a flagship manufacturing hub, RNAIPL also plays a key role in Nissan’s sustainability ambitions through a commitment to achieving carbon neutral operations by 2025 – achieved by increasing the share of green energy in the overall mix, aggressively improving efficiencies in energy usage, and continuous adoption of energy efficient technology. As of this financial year, the plant sources over 75% of its total energy from renewable energy sources, and now plans to push this even further by expanding its in-house solar plant capacity from 2.2MW to 14MW. This ambitious project includes the construction of panels across its largest buildings throughout the facility, as well as floating panels on the surface of water features across the grounds, supporting goals to transition the plant to 100% renewable energy usage by 2045.