Nissan Qashqai e-Power long-term test
Nissan's range extender family SUV promises EV driving manners and good economy, but what's it like to live with? We're finding out...
The car Nissan Qashqai e-POWER N-Connecta| Run by Claire Evans, consumer editor
Why it's here To see if a clever new hybrid family SUV can be a viable alternative to a pure electric model
Needs to Combine the performance and ease of use of an EV with the versatility of a hybrid
Mileage 6705 List price new £38,080 Best Price £34,999 Price as tested £38,825 Official mpg 62.8mpg Test mpg 53.7mpg
25 February 2026 – Majoring on practicality
Have you ever noticed just how well – or badly – things like your morning cup of coffee, phone or water bottle fit into the compartments in your car? I’ve been particularly impressed with the internal ergonomics of my Nissan Qashqai: the cupholder in the central armrest is big enough for my large water bottle and cosseting enough to keep takeaway cups upright, and there’s an additional divider in the boot that I can use to keep my muddy walking shoes away from other items.
So I decided to find out more about why my Nissan Qashqai is so easy to live with by talking to the man responsible for what the brand calls ‘marketability’.
Dan Connelly works at the Nissan Technical Centre Europe (NTCE) in Cranfield, Bedfordshire, and he’s responsible for a team of 35 people who spend all day checking all sorts of details to ensure the brand’s cars are as easy to live with as possible.
“We have a massive document that tracks the size of things. Once a year, someone will get the task of reviewing each aspect of the car. So for smartphones, we're constantly looking at the trends: are they getting smaller or bigger? We also look at the most commonly sold suitcases to ensure they’ll fit well into the boot, and the takeaway drinks people buy most often to ensure our cars can accommodate these,” he explained.
Daniel told me that his team started working on the latest Qashqai when it was a digital concept, because it’s much better to tweak things before they’ve been designed into a physical vehicle. One of the many decisions they made was to ensure all the cupholders and door pockets could take a 1.5-litre water bottle.
They also do lots of tests in pre-production cars, such as opening up a can of Coke and leaving it in the driver’s cup holder to see if it spills while the car is swiftly driven around a handling circuit.
He’s also rightly proud of the boot separation board in the Qashqai because it was designed by his team and patented to NTCE.
So next time a car fits into your life really well, spare a thought for people like Daniel and his team and the many hours they spent getting these things so right that you didn’t notice them.
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