Toyota Alphard test drive since 2002 Minivan
Toyota Alphald car review
General impression Toyota -Granvia and Grand Hiace - a comprehensive improvement, which coincided with the publication of a fully updated competent model, namely Nissan Elgrand, took place. The advanced version of the machine was called Toyota Alphad. Moreover, if Elgrand is a truly updated version of the old model, then Alphard, which had previously been intended for Europe in the cargo version and therefore had a rear -wheel drive, decisively broke with its past and turned into a passenger front -wheel drive minivan of a completely new development.
So, now it is a minivan with a drive to the front wheels equipped with a 3-liter 6-cylinder V-shaped or 2.4-liter 4-cylinder in-line engine. As you can guess on the history of the creation of this machine, and the main components and the wheelbase, everything coincides with a car such as Estima. Now about the style of Alphard. Imagine the silhouette of Voxy or Noah, but only slightly enlarged, add to it the front lining from the Toyota Crown car. This will be the Toyota Alphard car. True, the fairings of the wings of a very successful design are installed on it (in fact, they are not as far advanced as it seems at first glance). But this adds to the appearance of the vigor of stability and dynamism. He is fraught with a certain attractive force, different from the one that carries the Nissan Elgrand design.
External and interior design - everything in a traditional key to Toyota In contrast to the new Nissan Elgrand model, where there is a clear desire to master fashionable, before that unknown forms, the front panel in the Alphard salon is further, I would say, the grinding of ideas already tested by Toyota. The central place is again occupied by the monitor of the navigation system. The location of the ventilation windows of the air conditioner, the procedure for placing control handles, the zigzag -shaped panel of the transmission control handle - everything, including the dashboard under the tree and ending with color solutions, is made in the same way for modern Toyota models. This sequence is characteristic of Mercedes models. Unlike Nissan or BMW developments, nothing remarkable here happens. But, getting into such a salon, you can start using the navigation equipment installed there without any preliminary preparation.
The chairs of the second and third rows are on the elongated guide rails, and the third row in addition can also be removed upward up. This design of the chairs, applied for the first time by Nissan in the Elgrand model, has become the norm for modern minivans. The second -row chairs can be deployed 180 degrees, and then the car has 7 seats, but if you expand them back, the number of places will increase to 8. Another option is added to this - when a squeeze also installed on the slide is substituted in the second row of seats. With this option, the possibility of turning the seats of the second row is excluded. There are no new ideas as, for example, a multi-purpose average insert-peel that is available in the Nissan Elgrand salon, but in terms of volume and comfort of the chair, both Nissan and Toyota are equivalent. But the automatically closing the back door is available only to Alphard. Imagine how convenient it is, for example, for a weak woman with small stature. I believe that there is every reason to expect the introduction of this new product in the machines of competing companies.
Elgrand high -class drift, but lightness, of course, for Alphard In the latest Toyota models, great attention is paid to reducing the weight of the car. For example, if you take the ELGRAND with the rear-wheel drive and the 6-cylinder V-shaped engine, then its weight is approximately 2 tons. And the Alphard weighs with it weighs only 1850 kg. That is, Toyota is easier than Nissan by 150 kg. Let's look at the power characteristics of the engines of both cars. Of course, the Nissan Elgrand engine has a larger operating volume of cylinders. Therefore, it with its power (240 hp) and the torque (36.0 kg/m) should win the alpha (220 l. C and 31.0 kg/m, respectively) similar in terms of quantity and location of the cylinders (V6). But if you take such situations as maximum acceleration, acceleration during overtaking, lifting, etc., then there is no noticeable difference between two machines. In other words, although the Alphard engine has a working volume of 2.4 liters, its traction characteristics do not cause complaints. And if you take other sides, for example, the noise level, then the 6-cylinder V-shaped motor, standing on the TOP Toyota Top minive, seems to me preferable.
Recently, the controllability of tall cars Toyota has only caused positive grades. So the model we are considering is no exception. With such a slight rotation speed around the longitudinal axis (roll) and the speed of fading of oscillations, with such an accurate rudder reaction to the Alphard curvature, stability and provides a pleasant ride even on steep turns. The height of the driver's seat in the car is slightly higher than in Elgrand. But what is strange: when driving a machine, it seems that on the contrary, landing in Alphard is below. This is just how much more stable this machine is on the go. As for the noise level when moving in the high -speed river, which is the rear -wheel drive, they naturally win, here the advantage on the Elgrand side is.
Thus, two new items are simultaneously entering the minivans market, which I have decided this: if someone wants to drive along winding roads and enjoy it, then you should opt for Toyota Alphard. And if I went on a long journey along the high -speed highway, then I would be calmer at Nissan Elgrand. And one more interesting observation: the pleasure of driving on these two cars is almost similar to what you experience when driving Celsior or Cima cars.
Source: CarView.co.jp
