1996 NISSAN Terrano II 5 Doors 2.4L 5MT (118 HP)

Vehicle Overview

Nissan introduced a mid-life cycle refresh for its European SUV Terrano II built in Spain along with the Ford Maverick.

The Japanese carmaker managed to grow in the hearts of the European and British car buyers that were looking for a family-oriented SUV. Its comfortable front independent suspension and roomy interior, combined with fuel-efficient engines, were well received by the market. After just three years since it was introduced, it received a mid-life cycle refresh meant to improve the engines and made them Euro 2 compliant. The new emission rule was mandatory from January 1997.

From the outside, the main difference was at the front, where the car adopted four round headlights instead of the rectangular ones used on the previous model. Also, the grille got wider gaps to allow better cooling needed, especially in rough terrain. Depending on the trim level, the Terrano II featured plastic side moldings to protect the doors and panels from scratches and bush-markings. Even though its longer wheelbase and cabin allowed the carmaker to move the spare-wheel inside the trunk, Nissan chose to leave it attached to the rear on a separate cradle.

Some visual changes were on the interior, where Nissan mounted a new dashboard and instrument cluster. The carmaker introduced an LCD for the odometer on top of the instrument panel. An important addition was the airbag introduction for both front occupants. Nissan even tried to offer more comfort and luxury-inspired features such as the wood-trims on the center stack and door panels.

Under the hood, Nissan installed a 2.7-liter turbo-diesel engine, which gained 24 hp over its predecessor. It was the main engine choose by the European customers. On the other hand, the 2.4-liter gasoline unit lost six horsepower due to a catalytic converter.