Datsun starts pre-booking for the GO+ MPV

Datsun will start accepting bookings for its soon to be launched seven-seater MPV, the GO+, from tomorrow onwards until January 14. The GO+ will be launched on January 15 with a total of four variants and for the time being only a 1.2-litre petrol engine sourced from the GO hatchback.

Making the announcement, Guillaume Sicard, President, Nissan India Operations, said, "We are happy to offer our latest product Datsun GO+, a segment-creating Compact MPV to customers in India. The Datsun GO+ is our second product in the market after the Datsun GO and reiterates our commitment to India.”

The four variants of the GO+ MPV would be – D, D1, A and T, while we aren’t sure of its pricing as AC is not a standard fare on the initial two variants and it only gets power steering in the top-spec T. It is the same case with power windows that are reserved for the top-spec variant. While there isn’t much to look at the base models feature wise, the top-spec model gets an audio system and a USB port (charging only).

“The Datsun brand stands for affordable mobility and the Datsun GO+ is a product for those families who prefer a bigger vehicle for both in-city and long distance travel for work as well as leisure. We opened pre-bookings today for customers who would like to be the early ones to own the new Datsun", he added.

The MPV measures 3,995mm in length, 1,635mm in width, 1,490mm in height and a wheelbase of 2,450mm. It gets a ground clearance of 170mm that would be good enough to negotiate our roads. A turning radius of 4.6 metres ensures the car will turn tight and will be a boon in crowded cities. A fuel tank of 35 litres clearly emphasises the point of the vehicle being an urban crawler rather than a mile muncher on the highway. One disappointing fact would be the dismal luggage tow capacity of 48 litre with the third row in use but with the third row down it can go up to 347 litre.

Powering the vehicle is the same three-pot motor from the Datsun GO displacing 1,198cc churning out 67bhp and 104Nm of torque mated to five-speed manual gearbox. Surprisingly, the MPV has a fuel-efficiency rating of 20.62kmpl.

While we are eagerly looking forward to the GO+ MPV’s introduction in our market, it seems like cost-cutting has taken precedence over everything else. The only sore point is the safety, there are no airbags, or ABS available, even as an option. We aren’t sure about the pricing, but expect the top-spec GO+ T variant to cost under Rs 5 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).