The Chinese version of the Nissan Pulsar gets dressed up at the Beijing Motor Show

The Nissan Pulsar is the Japanese brand’s bet for the C-segment, one of the most fiercely contested in the European market.

At the Beijing Motor Show Nissan unveils the revision of the Tiida, the Pulsar’s twin brother, which gives us a preview of the new features the Pulsar will soon receive.

It has to be acknowledged that Nissan has not enjoyed much success in the C-segment in recent years. It is a very competitive part of the market, with a huge amount of choice. Since the Almera was discontinued some time ago, the brand has not offered a robust alternative, as the Tiida hardly caught on.

Nevertheless, the Pulsar has enjoyed a more notable reception. It is one of the largest compact cars in the segment, with a pleasing design and a genuinely impressive interior space. Although it lacks a wide mechanical range or the latest personalisation options, its sales have been far better than those of the Tiida.

The Pulsar reached the European market in early 2015, although its design is already several years old. The result is a vehicle that now calls for an update, an update that Nissan has presented at the Beijing Motor Show first for its Chinese model, the Tiida.

The most obvious changes are at the front, with a more aggressive bumper featuring a central piano-black trim. The headlights now have a more attractive black background. The alloy wheels also get new designs, as does the rear bumper, which is also sportier.

The update refreshes the exterior look and improves the perceived quality inside

Inside, the changes are concentrated on the dashboard, where work has been done to improve the perceived sense of quality. These improvements are evident in the centre and front areas, where the materials used have been changed to make them more pleasant to the touch. The central-screen multimedia system also performs better, and the instrument cluster slightly modifies the dial graphics.

Some minor changes have been introduced, such as a new start button and a relocation of the USB-AUX ports, which until now were located in the central armrest and now sit beneath the climate controls, much closer to hand.

In short, these are minor changes that improve the user experience, making the Pulsar-Tiida a more appealing model in the eyes of its potential customers. No mechanical changes are expected, so, at least in Europe, it will keep the current line-up: one 110 CV dCi diesel and two DIG-T petrol engines of 115 and 190 CV.