MUSCAT: Nissan Oman, from the house of Suhail Bahwan Automobiles (SBA), unveiled the all-new Altima, creating a new standard of design, driving enjoyment and technology within the mid-size sedan segment. The car features expressive styling, an uplifting interior, a new powertrain, and advanced Nissan Intelligent Mobility features. The 2.5L 2019 Altima is now available across Nissan Showrooms in the Sultanate.

The sixth generation of Nissan’s best-selling sedan made its world debut at the 2018 New York International Auto Show, alongside the first North American showing of Nissan’s Formula E race car.

Most innovative Altima ever
“All new Nissan Altima 2019 is a complete technological package – it over delivers on the basics, boasts features and innovative technologies never seen in its class before. The new Altima also offers outstanding drive, enhanced handling, acceleration and thoughtful technology solutions not currently found in the segment”, explained Suhail Bahwan Automobiles (SBA) senior spokesperson.

“We took one of our most successful model, kept its DNA and changed nearly everything – the visual appeal, the driving experience and, of course, the technology. The new Altima by far is the most engaging vehicle in its class,” said the SBA Spokesperson.  “If you liked the previous Altima, you’ll love this one even more.  And if you’ve never driven an Altima before, get ready to have your notion of a mid-size sedan redefined.”

“This stand-out offering broadens Altima’s appeal beyond our current customer base and it will play a key role in our plans for future growth. With its class-leading offering, we are confident that the All new Altima will be an increasingly dominant player in the mid-sized sedan segment attracting new private and business customers”.

“All new Altima is a premium mid-size sedan like no other”.

A premium presence
Among the all-new Altima’s many new features, perhaps the one that stands out most is its ‘class above’ appeal, which is apparent at first look and first touch of both the exterior and interior executions. Ensuring these are right is critical to success in this segment as mid-size sedan buyers are traditionally motivated first and foremost by the rational aspects of the purchase decision – excellent value, reliability and comfort. This is particularly true of Altima buyers who are typically well-informed on the segments’ competitive offerings.

New standard 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine
Reflecting the Altima’s importance to the Nissan brand, the company is also making its biggest investment ever in a new model powertrain development – introducing for the first time two completely new engines for one model change.

Standard on all grade levels is the new 2.5-liter DOHC inline 4-cylinder direct injection engine, which is rated at 188 horsepower (versus the previous 2.5-liter’s 179 hp) and 180 lb-ft of torque (versus the previous 177 lb-ft) and features 80% new or redesigned parts.

More than just the gains in horsepower and torque, the new engine offers improvements in noise, vibration and harshness, along with enhanced fuel economy and cleaner emissions. It also has a lower profile through adoption of a “reverse” cylinder head with integrated exhaust manifold and low engine mounting into the new platform’s engine bay for quieter operation.

Key changes to the engine’s design include a thermal-insulated resin intake port, Direct Injection Gasoline (DIG™) system, variable tumble control valve, mirror bore cylinder coating, variable displacement oil pump, intake e-VTC and cooled external EGR.

Nissan’s development of the new 2.5-liter engine started with reviewing the basic specifications on an individual basis, such as the combustion chamber design. The result is an enhanced combination of high output and low fuel consumption versus the previous engine – with the bonus of improved NVH and front-end styling flexibility.

Key interior comfort and convenience features include upgraded seats with added bolstering for improved holding and support. The car also features Apple CarPlay™ and Android Auto™ and an 8-inch multi-touch colour display for complete in-car entertainment and ease of driver control.

Advanced Nissan Intelligent Mobility Safety
Cutting-edge Nissan Intelligent Mobility technologies have been integrated into the 2019 Altima as standard. These include Nissan’s Rear Cross Traffic Alert, which helps drivers to detect stationary objects when reversing. When an object is detected, the system warns the driver with visual and audible warnings. The all new Altima also provides front, side and rear safety monitoring and intervention technologies – including Automatic Emergency Braking with Pedestrian Detection, Lane Departure Warning (LDW), radar-based Blind Spot Warning (BSW), Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA) and High Beam Assist (HBA).

Sporty Exterior
The all-new Altima takes its inspiration from the award-winning Nissan Vmotion 2.0 concept, which debuted at the 2017 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Like the show car, the production Altima attracts immediate attention with its athletic stance and proportions – lower, wider and more dynamic than previous generations, thanks in part to new platform packaging and the use of two new low-profile engine designs.

Compared with the previous generation, the new Altima is 1.1 inches lower in height, 1.0 inches longer in length and 0.9 inches wider – while also featuring a smaller front overhang thanks a 1.9-inch longer wheelbase and the rear wheels being pushed farther to the corners. The result is a dramatically sleeker yet more sophisticated look. The coefficient of drag is just 0.26. Larger, available 19-inch wheels and tires really help elevate the vehicle’s appearance, giving it a more linear, tailored feel that’s emphasized by the sharp horizontal lines, and signature Nissan design cues such as the V-motion grille and streamlined boomerang lights.

Available exterior elements include the expressive V-motion grille with dark chrome finish, LED projector headlights with signature Daytime Running Lights, LED fog lights, floating roof with slim pillars and single panel moonroof. A range of available exterior colours –including a deep-tinted Scarlet Ember red that changes hue with the light, and a new vibrant Sunset Drift orange with unique reflective pigment – help bring out the exterior’s sculptural details and highlights.

Premium Interior
The uplifting interior design also offers a high level of comfort and convenience amenities and connectivity features are offered – including standard 7.0-inch Advanced Drive Assist Display, enhanced NASA-inspired Zero Gravity seat design with dual-density foam and added bolstering for improved holding and support, available perforated leather-appointed seat inserts, available remote engine start with Intelligent Climate Control and new available 8-way driver’s seat with memory.

2019 Altima also comes equipped with Apple CarPlay™ and Android Auto™, with 8-inch multi-touch colour display, Bluetooth® Hands-free Phone System and Streaming audio via Bluetooth®.

The new Altima’s selection of audio and infotainment choices include a Bose® Premium Audio system with nine speakers, including a new digital amplifier with eight channels of custom equalization.

Enhanced dynamic performance and chassis control
Along with the all-weather traction offered by the new all-wheel drive system, 2019 Altima benefit from a range of enhanced suspension, steering and chassis control systems. Key suspension changes include the first Altima application of monotube rear shocks, added suspension reinforcements to improve vehicle response without impacting harshness, and suspension geometry adjustments to improve steering feedback. The goal in the chassis development is to provide a more comfortable, controlled and confident driving experience – not just for the higher grades but for every 2019 Altima.

The steering system has been upgraded to a new dual-pinion electric power steering design (DP-EPS), which enhances steering feel performance and reduces steering system noise. Steering effort is reduced at low speeds for ease of driving, and effort is increased at higher speeds for improved feedback and control.

The 2019 Altima includes a new, advanced Integrated Dynamics Module (IDM). It includes three unique systems – Intelligent Ride Control, Intelligent Trace Control and Vehicle Dynamics Control – similar to those found on the flagship Nissan Maxima sedan.

Three wheel and tire size combinations are available – 16-inch, 17-inch and, for the first time, 19-inch.

The 2019 Altima will be offered in a range of trim levels – S, Sport (SR), SV and SL in the 2.5L segment.