Nissan Teana locks horns with Camry

Nissan Teana and Toyota Camry are luxury mid-size saloons (sedans) which are an ideal choice of a transport for the young corporate executive or business person as official or private transportation.

“Teana” is a small village in Italy where Nissan got the design inspiration to suggest that the Teana was capable of carrying its passengers comfortably despite its mid-size. Teana also got performance inspiration from the Nissan Cefiro.
Powering the Teana was either a 2.0-litre, or a 2.3litre four cylinder belonging to the QR family or the 3.5-litre VQ35 V6.

Toyota named this car “Camry” which is the English
transcription from the Japanese word “kanmuri” which means crown, to suggest that it was a symbol of leadership in excellence. The US and some parts of the world received three Camry engine options, a 115 kW (154 hp) 2.4-litre inline-four, a 142 kW (190 hp) 3.0-litre V6, and a 157 kW (210 hp) 3.3-litre version. Nissan and Toyota developed these two models to cover the market segment between the smaller saloon vehicles like the Nissan Altima or Toyota Corolla and the bigger ones like Nissan Skyline or Toyota Mark II.

They are not so big, or comfortable and run on efficient engines. In this edition, we compare the 2003 first generation Nissan Teana QR25DE 2.5 litre V6 against the seventh generation Toyota Camry with the 2AZFE 2.4 litre line 4 engine.

Performance
Nissan Teana’s 2.5-litre V6 engine does not hesitate when the need to summon extra speed arises. Power delivery is silky smooth, and there is actually a pleasant rumble in the engine note when you floor the accelerator pedal. Teana’s QR25DE engine partnership with a Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) ensures a smooth power transition from low to high gears. The Teana’s 2.5litre engine’s strong mid-range torque ensures strong acceleration on-demand.

However, this performance is slightly un-sporty as you do not get the sensation of the transmission kicking down and watching the revs pull across the tachometer when you floor it. Toyota Camry’s 2AZFE engine is slightly less aggressive but has almost the same engine power as the Teana. This is achieved with a smaller engine at lower revolutions.

Thanks to the Camry’s multi point electronic fuel injection, Variable Valve Timing (VVTi) and Double overhead camshafts (DOHC) it has a better balance between performance and good fuel economy.

Handling
The Nissan Teana and Toyota Camry are independently sprung all-round, featuring the usual MacPherson front and multi-link rear layout found in front-wheel drive cars. Both cars provide good highway handling manners.

On the Ugandan highways, which have winding bends and sudden bump stops in trading centres, the Teana and Camry have good response and maintain firm but comfortable road holding. wSteering response of both cars is good and there is no sway typical in smaller cars with a narrower wheel base when driving through sharp bends.

Styling, comfort and safety
The Nissan Teana is the most photogenic car out of the two Japanese barges in this two-way test, because it has a clean cut no-frills look with a big prominent chrome grille up front and sizeable headlamps.

Teana’s side angle is the best as it looks grand and almost American. The Teana rear end also looks more outstanding when parked next to the Camry – the LED design in the rear tail lamps give it a lot of character and style especially at night.

The Camry although not the most exciting, looks solid like its carved from a solid mass of metal. The lines and flow-through textures work very well, and arguably this is a shape that will retain its appeal best as time goes by. The interior designs of both cars are classy and elegant. All the modern comfort features for entertainment and convenience such as CD audio, automatic air conditioning, electric windows and mirrors with soft touch are provided. Modern safety features like the four channel anti-lock brakes (ABS), air bags for the driver and passenger are standard features.

Reliability and resale value
The Teana and Camry are reliable cars if bought in a good condition. You can ensure that you get a good buy from the bond by insisting on a technical inspection report by an independent technician.

It is important to consider the mileage of the car as it will determine how soon you have to replace a lot of expensive parts. Overall the Teana and Camry have good availability of fast moving service parts like engine service filters.

However, Camry has a better availability of suspension and body parts especially with the dealers of used parts downtown. Camry therefore has a better resale value. The CVT gearbox on the Teana performs well but can be expensive to service as it requires expensive CVT oil only available at Motorcare the local Nissan dealer, an attempt to use wrong oil breaks it down.

Verdict
The Camry has four star points for a better engine economy, good styling and comfort, good safety standards and a more reliable maintenance parts supply hence a better resale value.
Teana has three star points for better engine power, good handling on road, good styling, comfort and safety standards.