The fuel-friendly Nissan Skyline

The Skyline 250 GT S is part of Nissan’s V35 model series. Its 6 cylinder, double overhead camshaft naturally aspirated engine has four valves per cylinder and a displacement of 2.5 litres.

Anthony Katabazi describes his Nissan Skyline 2001 model as a saloon car whose durability is determined by how you service it. Having owned one since 2009, Katabazi says the 2.5cc GT engine size car is just as sporty with a powerful engine. However, he says, it consumes less fuel, despite its somewhat big engine size. He says it defies the monotony of big engine sizes consuming a lot of fuel when you accelerate.

“It uses one litre of fuel to cover 12 kilometres. It uses the fuel injection system that has fuel sensors to ascertain how much fuel is in the system. The more fuel air in the system, the less fuel it will consume to run the engine. It also uses radium X1 plugs which have a pin at the head. These plugs allow the engine burn little fuel. Its fuel consumption is as good as someone driving a Toyota Corona,” Katabazi says.

Ground clearance
Like most saloon cars, Katabazi says he raised his car to give it a reasonable ground clearance so that its lower parts do not rub against road humps which would otherwise increase on the maintenance and service costs. The marrum and tarmac humps would scratch the lower part of the car and this would damage the exhaust system.

Spare parts accessibility
Katabazi says the Skyline’s spare parts can be accessed by either buying or importing them online from Japan and Dubai or sourcing them from Kenya. It also shares spare parts with other cars of the same brand. For example, the air and oil filters of most Nissan Saloon cars such as the Almera are compatible with the Skyline.
According to autoevolution.com, what changes about these cars are the shapes and a few interior specifications. It has a big and long trunk and comfortable soft seats almost similar to those of the Progress. It pulls from behind and this makes it extremely stable. It comes in black, dark blue, red, maroon, white and metallic grey colours.

Dashboard
Because it is a car that is fully sensor-driven, Katabazi says the Nissan Skyline has a lot of signals that show on the dashboard signs such as engine check and old oil. It also alerts you when you have driven past the recommended servicing schedule. It comes with an eight CD changer where they are loaded at once and also has an economy air conditioning system.
This system does not use a lot of engine power yet still gives you the air conditioning in the car that it makes it hard to notice any change in fuel consumption by using the air conditioner throughout. If it is serviced well and on time according to the service manual, it can take between two to three years without having to replace any of the parts.

Lights
Autoevolution.com states that the Skyline comes with white xenon lights that allow you to have clear vision for a distance of approximately 30 metres when driving at night. The distance between tyres is wide and this improves on its stability on the road.

Safety
Abby Ddungu, a car dealer, says the advantage the Nissan Skyline has over other saloon cars such as the Toyota Mark X and Mark II is its stability. He says even when you are driving on a slippery road, its tyres tend to emerge out of the car body so that you do not skid off the road.
“It is equally a fast car just like the Toyota Mark II, Mark X and the Toyota Corolla. Its body was built out of hard metal material and this gives it an added durability advantage over most saloon cars in the same class and category,” Ddungu explains.

Price
The Nissan Skyline costs between Shs40m to Shs48m depending on the year of manufacture and where you buy it from, either locally in bonds or online from Japan.