The name Teana, according to Nissan marketing material, means "dawn" in a native American language. It's a good thing that they didn't use this car when native Americans still lorded over that continent, because they would go broke trying to fill up the car with fuel.
In the worst possible advertisement for the car, one of the first things one notices on stepping inside its admittedly luxurious interiors is the display panel above the centre console, which says the car is delivering 5.5 km to every litre.
That is not a pleasant number, even if that is pretty much average for a V6 engine-the Honda Accord V6 gives slightly more, but more on the competition later.
This car has several things going for it-it is very luxurious inside, rear-seat comfort is wonderful and the ride, even on some of the worse roads in Delhi, was surprisingly smooth.
The air-conditioner is absolutely superb; the mercury was inching towards 45 degrees on the afternoon BT Drive tested this car, but it still kept three occupants very cool.
The large and extremely quiet interiors, the very nice layout of the centre console and the superb ride are the Teana's best points.
The exteriors on the car are also quite nice, but subtle, and the car looks best when viewed from the rear three-quarters.
The gear-change on the Teana is slick, the four-speed auto moves smoothly up and down the gears. But this is not a box that likes to be pushed. Sure, it delivers 170 horsepower (PS), but even when you press the accelerator down to the carpet, the car does not have the seat-of-your-pants feel that the Accord V6 gives.
This car moves at a stately pace (it is not slow though), akin to the other Japanese car in the segment, the Toyota Camry. However, the Camry is a bit more economical on fuel.
This is a car whose keys you would hand over to the driver, but then again, you don't need to do that-because the keyless operation of the car is the Teana's best feature.
But there's another problem-at Rs 20.47 lakh, ex-showroom Delhi, the Teana is not cheap.
The Camry costs about the same, but the zippy Honda Accord V6 is a couple of lakh cheaper.
Then again, while the Honda is the best driver's car in its category by miles, comfort is not its USP.
The Teana and the Camry are fairly well matched when it comes to performance and price, but the Nissan is a bit more comfortable; however, there is the question of fuel economy.
In sum, the Teana is different and will stand out in a crowd of Camrys and Accords.
