The idea of one car being sold by two different manufacturers is no longer particularly big news, but it was a significant development in the early 1990s when Ford and Nissan joined forces to create a lifestyle off-roader which Ford called the Maverick and Nissan the Terrano II (there was a Terrano I but it was never sold in the UK.)Ford has now gone its own way with the Maverick, producing a new version in conjunction with Mazda, a far more closely related company than Nissan, which is now of course tucked up under the sheets with Renault.The Terrano, however, carries on much as before, though a brief drive in the new limited-edition Sport model suggests that Nissan should get a completely revised version in the showrooms quickly, before this one falls completely off the sport-utility graph.There are two versions, the three-door as tested here and the £21,555 five-door which can seat seven people. If those prices look familiar, it's because the SE versions of the Terrano cost exactly the same, even though the Sport has £600 worth of extra bits and pieces added on.These include 16" alloy wheels, a body-coloured grille, smoked headlights with integral spot lights, two-tone paintwork (the lower part being a dark metallic grey), side steps and a revised interior.In all other respects, though, these cars are identical to the equivalent SE models, which means they use a very noisy 2.7-litre turbo diesel engine (when is Nissan going to find out how to make an acceptably quiet diesel?) and suspension which gives a very jiggly ride.There is also no way of disguising the fact that the Terrano is a tall but narrow car which feels as if it is tottering even when being driven along a flat, straight road. None of this seemed to matter much when the Terrano was introduced all those years ago, but the game has been raised massively in the intervening period, and there are much better rivals on the scene.Visibility is splendid, and access - particularly for the stiff of limb - is absolutely excellent. However, the stiff of spine will not appreciate the seats, which combine a very hard back with virtually no side support at all. This is one of the quickest routes to backache I know of, and I had not been driving the car for more than five minutes before I was wincing at the pain.There was neither time nor opportunity on this occasion to test out the Terrano's off-road capability, but there's nothing to suggest it is any different from what it was a decade ago, which is to say not great but not bad.That will be good enough for most owners, no doubt. On the other hand, they will probably be considering the Terrano in terms of visibility, space, practicality and the like. In which case there is absolutely no reason to buy this car when Nissan already sells the vastly superior Almera Tino. Engine 2664cc, 4 cylinders Power 122bhp Fuel/CO2 28.8mpg / 260g/km Acceleration 0-62mph: 15.7 seconds Top speed 96mph Price £18,995 Details correct at publication date
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