Introduction

It's no surprise the SUVs are gaining rapid popularity all over, and you'd be only living under a rock to not know about this. The highly competitive compact SUV segment has seen so many manufacturers making their foray into it, and Nissan also decided to bite the bullet.

The newly-developed Nissan Magnite is quite an enticing option offered as a petrol model mated to a manual and optional CVT gearbox. We've tested both of them with our V-Box and shall compare various parameters. The main rationale behind doing this comparison is to portray the straight difference between performance figures, which many prospective buyers may seek before finalising.

Acceleration

0-60kmph

0-100kmph

We'll start with the first most commonly looked at performance measure to figure how quick the car is off the line. The 0-60kmph sprint times don't show a very big difference as the manual did it in 4.23 seconds and the AT in 4.72 seconds. But, as you take a look at the 0-100kmph sprint times, the benefits of having a stick shift over the automatic are clear here with slightly superior acceleration. The CVT accelerated to 100kmph in 11.14 seconds, while the manual darted in 10.28 seconds. Well, we are yet to test its cousin the Renault Kiger, but interestingly, the Magnite remains to be the fastest in its segment yet.

Roll on times

20-80kmph in third gear/kick-down

40-100kmph in fourth gear/kick-down

Here the difference will obviously be quite apparent as the tests for the automatic happen in kick-down. On the other hand, for the manual, the 20-80kmph run is done in third gear which took 11.08 seconds in this case, and 15.32 seconds for the 40-100kmph sprint that happens in fourth gear. As you know in an automatic, you can shift into a lower gear just with the help of throttle inputs. And you can rely on this CVT without manual interventions as lower gears are engaged immediately. As a result, the acceleration is faster here and the CVT managed the same feat in kick-down in 6.22 seconds and 8.38 seconds respectively.

Conclusion

The manual version of the Magnite is slightly quicker, gives more control, and is even a little cheaper than its automatic counterpart. However, the latter version does have its advantages for the premium you pay, including hassle-free gear-shifts, driver comfort, and all of this without being too slow than the manual version.

Hope this comparison gives you a gist of what to expect while considering these two variants of the latest compact SUV from Nissan. For in-depth performance reports of the Magnite, the following links will give you a detailed opinion on how the variants behave on the road.

Nissan Magnite 1.0 Turbo CVT First Drive ReviewNissan Magnite 1.0-litre Turbo Manual First Drive Review Nissan Magnite Turbo: Pros and Cons review