Owner Review: One of the best investments of my family - 2015 Nissan Grand Livina 1.8 AT

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Basic information about my car:

2015 Nissan Grand Livina 1.8 AT

Reasons why I bought this car(purpose)

This is my family's humble MPV my parents bought back in 2015. That was when my mother obtained her first few promotions after working as an office clerk for over 20 years, becoming more financially stable. My parents want to finally realise their dream of owning a Japanese car that they've always coveted to replace our aging, problematic and underpowered 2008 Exora 1.6; although that car has served us well for years.

We only looked at Japanese cars because we want a car that is reliable, flexible and not underpowered; all of which are important points and we will immediately eliminate any choices if it doesn't meet these 3 criteria.
Car selection process

● I had a budget of: RM 99,999.

● Models that I have considered include: Vios, City, Almera, Avanza, Exora

Reasons why I chose this car

Reliable, flexible and not underpowered. These are the three criteria that the car must posess to be on our list. And at that time in 2015, the Nissan Grand Livina 1.8 was the only car within our budget that checks the list. The choice came with a short story time on my parent's usual husband and wive car selection process.

At first my mom didn't even bat an eye to the Grand Livina, thinking that it was too small and was busy talking to the sales agent (which will soon become a family friend) about purchasing the Almera. At that time me and my dad were inspecting and admiring every corner of the Grand Livina in the showroom and showering it with praises. Her choice was initially the Almera because of it's impressive legroom and affordability, while our choice was the Grand Livina because it's a refined and comfortable MPV with a 1.8L option.

The Almera was a close contender followed by the Vios (we didn't know Nissan was having problems at that time because the last time my parents looked at foreign cars was the 90s, although we did bought the Almera as a 2nd car 2 years later and it has had great reliability for us since as well). We were also tempted by the Exora turbo but decided against it as my parents wanted an upgrade.

Eventually, she relented to our not-so-subtle hints and we went ahead with the Grand Livina; our family's first ever purchase of a foreign car model.

User Experience

I have already done: 80,000+ km, and my average fuel consumption is 9.2 L/100km.

It has been almost 6 years since the day my parents bought the Nissan Grand Livina, the day when my parents were beaming with pride all along the drive home. Having grew up dirt poor to being able to afford their own foreign car, this meant a lot to them. Since then, the car has rewarded us for the pride and care we have shown it.

Starting with the reliability criteria, this car has delivered our expectation of a Japanese car with bulletproof reliablity. For our entire ownership period, this car has been with us through the steep and winding roads of Cameron Highlands as well as clocking in long trips to the furthest reaches of the peninsular. With 80,000km on the odometer not a single major part has broken nor had the car ever given us "unfortunate" surprises, with only the usual wear-and-tear items being replaced here and there. We treat it as a pump petrol and drive car, with the occasional visit to the ETCM service centre for regular maintenance; it starts everytime without hitches and drives as if it's still the same car all these years.

Being an MPV, this is also a really flexible car. Sure the legroom isn't as great as our old Exora, but it's enough. During long road trips it really didn't bother us because the seats were so comfy, although we only had 2 passengers in the midrow seats as having 3 was quite uncomfortable; extra passengers sat in the third row. The interior is also nice especially after the black leather seats upgrade option, no fancy infotaintment but we've been used to not having anything at all. Folding down the third row gives us all the space we need for most of our cargo. But once the mid-row is folded down as well it becomes a dad's paradise; I'll leave it to the reader's imagination to all the happy hardware store visits we did on this car. We even once carried a whole single mattress in the back.

But the best part is the 1.8L NA engine paired with 4AT transmission. I know, 4AT isn't fancy but it is enough. This car just gets up to speed quick, and handles as easy as any sedan given it's low and sleek profile for a wagon. A trip up to Genting Highlands fully loaded with 5 people in the first two rows of seats with accompanying luggage, we did  that run easily while overtaking the majority of the cars on the way up. My dad always dissapears to the horizon in this car when we drive together, while my Almera 1.0T is barely pulling itself. You cannot buy an MPV with a suitably sized engine anymore in today's market.

Pros and Cons

Pros of my car

1. Comfortable family car with dad energy (Lots of happy hardware store trips)
2. 1.8L engine is a great matchup
3. Drives and handles like a sedan
4. Is an MPV
5. Has been our reliable workhorse
6. Within budget

Cons 

1. Legroom is a bit cramped
2. Cupholders are small and there's not enough of them
3. Fuel economy averages at 9.2L/100km for us. We don't know is it good or bad but it's higher than our Myvi

Ratings:

Total Score: 5

Performance: 5

Quality & Features: 5

Space: 3

Ride comfort: 5

Fuel Economy: 3

Price & cost: 5

Summary:

What's the alternative nowadays? The BR-V is comfy but is underpowered. The Aruz/Rush is not comfy and underpowered. I guess only the X70 low-spec can compete with this car as an alternative although there's no third row. But is a kosong spec X70 really better than a full spec Grand Livina? Sure, if you really want a taller ride and more electronics pizzazz. The X50? It is well-powered yes, but guzzles petrol like beer and rides like a wooden cart. I can boldly say that the Grand Livina 1.8 achieves everything the X50 can do but better in terms of a car's fundamentals. A reliable sedan like wagon that is comfortable paired with a solid powertrain that will take you through any road trips, that is the Nissan Grand Livina 1.8

Sure, it's not flashy, it's not the latest and greatest with all the bling factor. There are no big rims or quad exhaust pipes, it's just average and does everything quite well. It isn't the best at everything, but it also isn't the worst at anything; and that's okay, because to us that's a perfect car. Hence, the 2015 Nissan Grand Livina is the 2nd best investment my family has ever made. (The first was buying our house)

Interesting Events:

We once shoved a whole single mattress to the back of the car because we didn't wanna pay for a lorry. It fits just fine. That's why we love MPVs.

There was also once my mom was rushing for work in the morning and the car had a flat tyre. A quick 15 minutes tyre change and off to work, only getting the tyre patched up a few days later. That's why we love full-sized spare tyres.

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