Nissan Qashqai marks 20 years since its 2006 Paris debut

To celebrate two decades of the Qashqai, Nissan has revealed a one-off ‘Y2K’ livery and launched the Qashqai Heritage Collection, a digital archive of the model’s design and innovation history. The compact crossover made its debut at the 2006 Paris Motor Show, combining the raised driving position of an SUV with the dimensions, efficiency and practicality of a family hatchback.

How the Qashqai replaced the Almera

In the early 2000s, buyers largely chose between a hatchback, saloon, estate, MPV or high-riding SUV. Instead of updating the Almera hatchback, despite having a fresh design almost ready, the brand’s European teams developed a new type of vehicle that cost no more to buy or run than a regular hatchback.

Demand was immediate. The car sold 100,000 units across Europe in nine months, and the Sunderland plant added extra shifts to keep up. By January 2011 it had reached a million global sales, more than 750,000 of them in Europe, making Nissan the first UK manufacturer to achieve this with a single model. More than 50 compact crossovers are now on sale from other makers.

Qashqai sales, awards and UK production

Every Qashqai is designed in London, engineered in Cranfield and built in Sunderland in the United Kingdom. Over 4.1 million have been sold in Europe, with another half a million produced for global markets, and the model is sold in more than 100 countries. It has collected over 110 international awards. Since launch, Nissan has contributed an average of £2.8 billion a year to the UK economy, supporting 6 000 jobs at Sunderland and 30 000 more across the supply chain.

Qashqai e-POWER hybrid figures

Now in its third generation, the crossover is offered with e-POWER, a hybrid system in which an electric motor alone drives the wheels while a petrol engine only generates electricity. Almost 250,000 of these have been sold in Europe since autumn 2022. Fuel economy is up to 65.7mpg, maximum range is 795 miles from a full tank (WLTP) and 0 to 62 mph takes as little as 7.6 seconds.

Massimiliano Messina, Chairperson for Nissan’s AMIEO region, said the model “challenged automotive convention and created a category that transformed the European market.”

Y2K livery and Heritage Collection

Digital artist @heymoonly created the ‘sticker bomb’ design using a neon palette inspired by early-2000s visual culture. Inside are purple seat covers, a fluffy steering wheel cover, pop CDs from the era and a working iPod with a mid-2000s playlist. Original sketches, rare photographs, historical videos and milestone moments can be viewed in the new digital Heritage Collection.

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Supplied by Newspress UK (Nissan)

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