GOING FOR GOLD

The Nissan Qashqai was the best-selling car in the UK last year, so to mark the occasion, we take a road trip to all the places in Britain that are behind the success

- Tristan Shale-Hester

THE Nissan Qashqai has been with us for more than 20 years and is a common sight on British roads. The Mk1 model was one of the first crossover SUVS to go on sale in the UK, and it sold in greater numbers than Nissan could ever have anticipated.

Last year, however, the third-generation Qashqai achieved something rather special, officially earning the title of the UK's best-selling new car in 2022, with no fewer than 42,704 examples going from the factory in Sunderland to people's driveways.

Nissan may be a Japanese company, but today the brand has an incredibly strong design, engineering and manufacturing presence in the UK. Indeed, looking back at the Qashqai's origins and development over the last two decades, there's no doubt that this car is very much a British success story.

To find out a bit more and see if we can get to the roots of the Nissan's popularity, we're setting out on a journey across the country to meet the people involved at every stage of the car's inception and development. Of course, there's only one vehicle suitable for this trip - a brand-new example of the latest Qashqai wrapped in an appropriately gleaming shade of gold.

NISSAN DESIGN EUROPE PADDINGTON, LONDON

EVERY car's story begins with a pencil being put to paper, and the Qashqai is no exception. The original model was the first vehicle to originate at Nissan Design Europe in central London. Set in a concrete labyrinth below the A40 flyover, it must be one of the trendiest offices in the capital.

We leave our gold Qashqai in the car park alongside a handsome R35 GT-R, and walk into the building, where young, well dressed employees sit sketching exciting new designs on graphics pads or carving shapes out of clay, all while blasting loud, thumping music on their speakers.