Topic: Test Drive: 2011 Nissan Quest LE

[Autos_Editor]

Though roomy, comfortable, and quiet, the new Quest minivan has less cargo space than some of its competitors, says Peter Bleakney.

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[theonlydt]

I'm not a fan of full-size vans, as currently no annoying screamy things to put in the back, but if I were I'd definitely cross-shop this with the competition. I like Nissan, this looks half decent. Handling that's more squishy than the Caravan would have me concerned though...

[Ex-airbalancer]

I took one out for a drive out for a drive
It was very nice for a van ,
Driving position and feel were great
The middles seats I would not want to send much time in as the seat are low
You can get a 3 foot cart stand up in and a 8 ft ladder in with no problem
Mileage I think if you were doing the limit, u could easily get under 9 l/100km

[spidey]

Typical, make something that would work for a family and over price it.  Never fails.  While in my mini-van stage I went domestic.  Just no two ways around it, its all we could afford.  While the Honda and Sienna were better at least on paper, the more than 10K price difference made us not buy one.  As it was we got 9 years out of our Pontiac Montana, and its still on the road as I see it around town.  Maybe minivan makers should remember that a lot of families are on a budget and cant afford a 50K minivan

[Shnak]

An ergonomic misgiving is the dash-mounted shifter that partially obstructs the audio and HVAC controls.

That was my thought when I first saw the shifter, too. Stupid placement for it, IMO. Last thing I want to do when driving a big minivan is struggling to find controls because I can't see all of them and having to reach around a shifter to get to them.

and the flip-up third row (powered in the LE) is habitable by smallish humans.

I'm very disappointed with this... what's the point of a minivan if only 4 people can be comfortable in it? If I've got two baby seats in captain seats of the second row, where am I suppose to put my parents or in-laws for family trips? And what if I have three teenagers? A minivan with 6 usable seats, is that really too much to ask?

[nlm]

^ I agree.  It seems to be below average for family utility.

[whaddaiknow]

An ergonomic misgiving is the dash-mounted shifter that partially obstructs the audio and HVAC controls.

That was my thought when I first saw the shifter, too. Stupid placement for it, IMO. Last thing I want to do when driving a big minivan is struggling to find controls because I can't see all of them and having to reach around a shifter to get to them.

and the flip-up third row (powered in the LE) is habitable by smallish humans.

I'm very disappointed with this... what's the point of a minivan if only 4 people can be comfortable in it? If I've got two baby seats in captain seats of the second row, where am I suppose to put my parents or in-laws for family trips? And what if I have three teenagers? A minivan with 6 usable seats, is that really too much to ask?

I am with you 100%. I currently have 2 car seats in the second row and the in-laws are VERY comfortable in the third rown in my Entourage. Even with the 3rd mini-me on the way, the 2 adult (medium sized) occupants are quite comfortable sharing the third row with an additional car seat on shorter trips.

As nice as a van can be, when form goes over function, the sales are limited to luxo buyers who will only carry hockey gear for their only child in the back.

One other thing I really don't understand. The vans that carry large(r) families with kids tend to get somewhat messy pretty quickly. What's the point in trimming the interior in all the light shades of colours?

I'd say give me a good looking van with a usable third row and a set of useful features (power sliding doors, heated mirrors and seats, ability to carry an odd 4x8 sheet of drywall) and I won't mind setting the temp manually or be happy to live without XM radio.

[spidey]

An ergonomic misgiving is the dash-mounted shifter that partially obstructs the audio and HVAC controls.

That was my thought when I first saw the shifter, too. Stupid placement for it, IMO. Last thing I want to do when driving a big minivan is struggling to find controls because I can't see all of them and having to reach around a shifter to get to them.

and the flip-up third row (powered in the LE) is habitable by smallish humans.

I'm very disappointed with this... what's the point of a minivan if only 4 people can be comfortable in it? If I've got two baby seats in captain seats of the second row, where am I suppose to put my parents or in-laws for family trips? And what if I have three teenagers? A minivan with 6 usable seats, is that really too much to ask?

I am with you 100%. I currently have 2 car seats in the second row and the in-laws are VERY comfortable in the third rown in my Entourage. Even with the 3rd mini-me on the way, the 2 adult (medium sized) occupants are quite comfortable sharing the third row with an additional car seat on shorter trips.

As nice as a van can be, when form goes over function, the sales are limited to luxo buyers who will only carry hockey gear for their only child in the back.

One other thing I really don't understand. The vans that carry large(r) families with kids tend to get somewhat messy pretty quickly. What's the point in trimming the interior in all the light shades of colours?

I'd say give me a good looking van with a usable third row and a set of useful features (power sliding doors, heated mirrors and seats, ability to carry an odd 4x8 sheet of drywall) and I won't mind setting the temp manually or be happy to live without XM radio.

Sometimes I think designers of family vehicles dont have familys or small kids.  Give me a van that from the front deats back, there is no carpet, just wipe down rubber or neoprenne.

Same as the seats, have them with covers you can take off and wash, or leather so you can just wipe stuff off.

Another bonus would be a slide down clear but soundproof barrier, so they can make each other as mad as they want, while the parents drive in silence

[Spec5]

An ergonomic misgiving is the dash-mounted shifter that partially obstructs the audio and HVAC controls.

That was my thought when I first saw the shifter, too. Stupid placement for it, IMO. Last thing I want to do when driving a big minivan is struggling to find controls because I can't see all of them and having to reach around a shifter to get to them.

and the flip-up third row (powered in the LE) is habitable by smallish humans.

I'm very disappointed with this... what's the point of a minivan if only 4 people can be comfortable in it? If I've got two baby seats in captain seats of the second row, where am I suppose to put my parents or in-laws for family trips? And what if I have three teenagers? A minivan with 6 usable seats, is that really too much to ask?

And this is exactly my issue with most cross-over vehicles. What if you have 2 kids and still want to bring an in-law (or god forbid 2) along with you? This thing is the H1 in terms of physical size compared to its competitors but offers only a crappy third row!? How is that even possible in a van (I refuse to call this thing a minivan because there's nothing mini about it)? Where's the utility? $50k will buy you some pretty nice 3 row SUVs that will go alot more places than this thing will and for less fuel to boot!

I know I've said this before but clearly auto manfs. don't get the message - minivans are NOT cool. SURELY someone other than GM can build a true comfortable 3 row SUV that still has a decent amount of storage behind the 3rd row. (Acadia, Enclave, Traverse) Again I have nothing against minivans but there's no way in h3ll my wife will spring for one - not so long as part of her pay cheque is going towards paying for it. (all 50k of it according to this horrific example) $50k and no AWD?! C'mon Nissan who are you trying to sell this thing to?

[Sir Osis of Liver]

Still my favourite van.

Very quiet, plush but pretty well controlled ride, upscale interior, lots of usable room and the seats are comfortable. I sat in the third row and it seemed fine as far as space.

It has the only implementation of the CVT that I could live with. I never had an issue with the placement of the shifter, or the controls around it. The guy from the hose-reel commercial might have a problem with it, but regular folks shouldn't.

[Arthur Dent]

My Quest has the same shifter arrangement it doesn't offer any issues with stereo or climate control usage.

[Travel360]

We love the shifter position of our 04 Sienna too! As a minivan lover the Acadia,Enclave etc are not even considered-especially when they have a turning radius like Nimitz class carrier!

[ArticSteve]

Maybe minivan makers should remember that a lot of families are on a budget and cant afford a 50K minivan

Look at the MB/BMW/Lexus model.  Do they concern themselves with family budgets?  Are they still in business.  Volume does not necessarily equal profits.  GM a case in point.

All these upmarket vehicles are designed for the US market where at the moment there are enough well off families that can afford these units.  If all cars were designed solely for the Canadian market we'd all be driving Scodas.

[Spec5]

Maybe minivan makers should remember that a lot of families are on a budget and cant afford a 50K minivan

Look at the MB/BMW/Lexus model.  Do they concern themselves with family budgets?  Are they still in business.  Volume does not necessarily equal profits.  GM a case in point.

All these upmarket vehicles are designed for the US market where at the moment there are enough well off families that can afford these units.  If all cars were designed solely for the Canadian market we'd all be driving Scodas.

True Canadians typically are much more frugal it would seem. But I dont think anyone is doing well in the US economy right now - at least not if you believe the news.

Didnt GM just announce they're on track to retake #1 spot from Toyota? although you could argue thats got more to do with the earthquake than anything. Still last year Toyota sold 8.42 million cars and trucks compared to GMs 8.39 million.

[spidey]

Maybe minivan makers should remember that a lot of families are on a budget and cant afford a 50K minivan

Look at the MB/BMW/Lexus model.  Do they concern themselves with family budgets?  Are they still in business.  Volume does not necessarily equal profits.  GM a case in point.

All these upmarket vehicles are designed for the US market where at the moment there are enough well off families that can afford these units.  If all cars were designed solely for the Canadian market we'd all be driving Scodas.

Do they minivans though, no.  They makes CUVS, etc.  A lot of Candian familiys are looking for a hauler they can afford.  And yes while minivans dont have the cool factor and have the image thats associated with them, theres no denying they are good family hauler, ugly and uncool or not.  To many they arent a status symbol, they are a point a to point b type of vehicle that can handle the family and all the stuff they take with them.  When we had ours I could care less, its not like I was trying to cruise town to pick up chicks.  It did the job that was needed, and then we moved on when we didnt need on anymore.

Minivanas are for families, so yes they should concern themselves with families budgets.

[E!Power]

The Styling is nice, Way better than the old quest. I test drove the previous model and the quality was mediocre. The interior looks as if it was from the New QX56. Very nice.

[Snowman]

I have been on many road trips in every type of van. If you need a van the only choice is a Honda Odyssey.

[Travel360]

?

[Frontier1]

Odyssey??  eeeeeshhhhh....another product butchered by Honda designers.  As for interior, nothing is even close to the Quest right now, on the outside it may not be for everyone but at least we have cohesion

[ArticSteve]

True Canadians typically are much more frugal it would seem. But I dont think anyone is doing well in the US economy right now - at least not if you believe the news.

The USA has 10 times the population.  Their underclass is much worse off than ours.  Permanent "tent cities" in many US centres.  However, their upper middle class is proportionally much wealthier than ours.  No doubt it would exceed our entire population.

Nissan already has the platform and the power train.  They are going for the high margins and leaving the "dry wall and plywood" crowd to Chrysler.