Rumour: 4WD option for the Nissan Terrano under consideration

Badge engineering's biggest bane is the lack of differentiation that such an exercise entails. Renault and Nissan, much like Volkswagen and Skoda, have followed the badge engineering approach in India and this exercise hasn't exactly been the biggest of successes for these brands. However, efforts are underway to create a higher sense of differentiation among badge engineered cars from the Renault-Nissan car making alliance.

Notably, the managing director of Nissan India, Mr Kenichiro Yomura, has stated that the Terrano, a badge engineered version of the Renault Duster, will be the last Nissan product to follow such an approach. With the Terrano, Nissan has already gone to the extent of making sheet metal changes to the SUV, in order to create a visible difference from the Renault Duster in terms of styling. The front and rear of the car also receive stylistic changes, while the interiors get a makeover in terms of materials used. 

IndianAutosBlog reports that the Nissan Terrano could receive specific features such as the 4 wheel drive system, steering mounted audio controls and an optional touch screen infotainment system with USB, AUX-IN and navigation features. While the steering (column) mounted audio controls and the optional touch screen infotainment system are already available on the Renault Duster, they're glaring omissions on the Terrano.

This, considering that the Nissan SUV will actually sit above the Duster in terms of price and positioning. Nissan's sales force will have some convincing to do before getting SUV buyers to opt for the Terrano instead of lower priced products such as the Renault Duster and the Ford EcoSport. So, the addition of a four wheel drive system to the Terrano could be a major factor that swings sales as buyers who need an SUV that requires the use of 4 wheel drive function could gravitate towards the Nissan product. 

Currently, the only affordable SUVs (this side of off roaders such as the Mahindra Thar and the Force Gurkha) that offer 4 wheel drive functions are the Mahindra Scorpio, the Tata Safari, the Force One and the Tata Safari Storme. Given the fact that compact 5 seat SUVs such as the Renault Duster and Ford EcoSport cannot be ordered with a 4 wheel drive system even as an option, a Nissan Terrano 4WD model could be a good addition to the SUV's variant range. 

As of now, Renault offers a four wheel drive system on the Duster that it exports to markets in the United Kingdom. As the Terrano and the Duster share the production facility at Oragadam, deploying the four wheel drive system on the Terrano should be a straight forward affair. Bookings of the Terrano are now open with the launch of this SUV slated to happen in the coming weeks. Prices of the Terrano are likely to command a 50,000 rupee premium over that of similar variants of the Duster.