The Datsun Go gets an
A basic and entry-level car, designed with a few luxuries and ‘connectivity’ in mind
“WATCH this Go go” or words to that effect were said having landed late at OR Tambo, thanks to a six-hour delay out of Richards Bay.
The message was relayed through Bluetooth, which is one of the improvements that Datsun has made to its Go.
When it first arrived on our shores in 2013, the Go was pretty basic – which included the lack of a radio, ABS and airbags. South African buyers were undeterred, however, and the Go sold in large numbers, an indication that Mr and Mrs average are in dire need of affordable transport.
To put the Datsun Go into perspective, you can’t ignore the fact that millions of people rely on public transport to get to their destinations – whether for work or leisure.
Anyone who has to endure taxi queues, unroadworthy vehicles, abusive drivers, broken-down buses and arriving late for work, deserves their own wheels if they can afford it.
Even if it’s not the safest or fastest, your destiny is pretty much in your own hands and, added to that, you have freedom of movement and don’t have to endure the public transport lottery every day.
So, you get a 1.2-litre engine that gives you 50kw and 140Nm coupled to a five-speed manual gearbox. Not brilliant numbers, I agree, and, with the air con on up on the highveld, first gear is well geared to get you off the line quickly but it soon runs out of breath as you get closer to the speed limit.
Slight inclines will see you changing gears and having to thrash the gears to keep it up to speed. Again though, context.
You do get very good consumption, though, and, after a week of mixed urban and highway driving, we were just under 5.9l/100km not far off the claimed 5.2l/100km.
Compared with the previous model, the outward appearance has improved significantly – with redesigned front and rear bumpers as well as a new chrome-finished grille, some funky colours and 14-inch rims, with an alloy option.
Daytime running lights round off a pretty decent exterior look.
Inside, you don’t get soft-touch surfaces but rather hard-wearing surfaces adorned with a pattern and some silver borders around the centre console, gear lever, air vents and driver’s console, to break the monotony.
The current buzzword in vehicle manufacturing is “connectivity” and here the Go does well, with Android Auto, Apple Car Play, Bluetooth and USB. It’s all easily accessible through the touchscreen.
One or two things did bother me. Wind and road noise as you get closer to the speed limit made talking through Bluetooth rather difficult. The volume control buttons on the screen are quite small, which meant having to take your eyes off the road while adjusting the volume – not ideal under any circumstances.
You also get front and rear power windows, electrically adjustable mirrors, rear wiper and reverse parking sensors.
A handy feature, while we grapple with load shedding, are the follow-mehome headlights. They stay on after you have left the car and can be set in 30 second intervals, as needed.
More importantly, there is now a