Sharing the same DNA as the sedan, the sedan comes as an extension of the first with the intention of appealing to a different buyer category rather than offering extra features. Designed as an affordable compact car, the Tiida/Versa was introduced in 2004.
The Tiida was based on the Renault-Nissan B-platform, used for the Renault Megane in Europe. It was a simple architecture that allowed the car-makers to offer enough features, plus a five-star rating in the EuroNCAP crash-tests program.
Speaking of which, the Tiida/Versa is the only car that comes with a standard manual gearbox. All specs asides, the Tiida also offers a suspiciously generous equipment range, coming with standard air conditioning and intermittent windshield wipers, among others.
The exterior design was not the most inspired part of the car. On the front, the hood looked too big, the headlights too small, and the three-slat grille was either gray or black with chrome surroundings, depending on the trim level.
The 5-door hatchback offered a more pleasant view from the side, but not enough to enter a beauty contest. In the back, the leaf-shaped taillights were stretched over the rear fenders.
Inside, the Tiida was very simple on the base trim level. The air-conditioning was fitted as standard from the second level. The dashboard design was not that simple and clean anymore.
The center stack, particularly, was crowded with a storage compartment on the upper side, audio controls, and a climate unit. The three-round, binocular-style instrument cluster offered the basic info for the driver. The plain seats and flat bench were wide and offered sufficient room for up to five passengers.
It was fitted with engines ranging between 108 hp and 112 hp. The latter was a 1.8-liter gasoline engine fitted with a variable valve-timing system built for fuel efficiency.