C O V E R     S T O R Y

This is probably the most anticipated replacement for a Japanese car here in the Philippines.  After a nearly seven year stint, the outgoing Nissan Sentra Series III will be replaced by the Nissan Exalta.  Before actually looking at this new gem from Nissan, let’s take a short trip back memory lane to look at how Nissan repeatedly tried to gain the upper hand in the 1.6-liter segment with their Sentra. 

Launched in 1995, the Nissan Sentra Series III was originally meant to be just another ordinary challenger to the likes of the Toyota Corolla and Mitsubishi Lancer.  However, it soon lost out as the Sentra’s lack of rear space made it a less practical buy than either of its two main competitors.  When the Honda Civic came into the Philippines, the Sentra ended up as a road kill.  A face-lift two years later failed to lift its image, especially when the safety minded SE Saloon disappeared from their line-up.   

Things turned around when the company launched the Sentra Exalta in 1998.  Badged as a mini-Cefiro (or coining a worse term, the poor-man’s Cefiro), the car soon became another huge success.  Think about it, for a price similar to the Honda Civic, the Exalta just had everything: leather seats, sun roof, speaker-phone system, a 10-disc CD changer, ABS, driver’s airbag and more.  Dynamically, however, the original faults of the Sentra Series III couldn’t be eradicated, but it seemed that Filipinos didn’t care. 

Now, the all-new Exalta is here to carry the mantle handed out by the Sentra.  Much like its predecessor, it has everything but the kitchen sink.  For the standard 1.6-liter Grandeur model, I’ll probably have to dedicate one whole paragraph just for its features: wood grain interior panels, chrome instrument surrounds (ala BMW), all-leather interior, rear sun shade, a heads-up digital speed display, 6-disc CD / VCD changer with 6-speaker system and 6-inch LCD pop-up monitor, automatic climate control, steering-wheel mounted audio / video controls, rear back-up sensor, four-wheel disc brakes with anti-lock braking system, electronic brake distribution and brake assist system, speed-sensing door locks and driver’s airbag.

An asking price of 875,000 may seem a lot to get all of this stuff, but then again, the comparatively Spartan Honda Civic VTi-S is already 823,000—and this doesn’t even have four-wheel disc brakes and a CD changer, much less a VCD player.  So, in terms of value for money, it seems that the Nissan Exalta ranks as a good buy.  If you find the top-of-the-line Grandeur too much, you can always opt for the 1.6-liter GS swapping the VCD player for a stereo cassette and a sun roof for only 835,000. 

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