Perhaps we should have seen vehicles like the QASHQAI coming a while back when Nissan decided not to replace the Almera with anything directly comparable. That was one of the first signs that the Japanese company was ditching the traditional family hatch market and moving into producing more 'lifestyle' choices amongst its vehicle portfolio. The slow-selling Primera wasn't doing much for the company's bottom line and so it has devoted its attention to cars like the QASHQAI, the 350Z, the Pathfinder and the Navara. Initial financial reports look like that's been a smart move.

The QASHQAI in particular is fascinating, Nissan having produced a car that sits amid a range of big 4x4s yet acts as an articulate riposte to any all-wheel drive backlash. The diesel version we look at here boasts the ride height of a 4x4 and the same feeling of security, allied to a choice of all-wheel-drive or conventional front-wheel drive and a body that's manageably sized. Could it just be too clever for its own good though?

The 2.0-litre dCi engine generates 150bhp at 4,000rpm and a healthy 320Nm of torque at 2,000rpm. Nissan expects this to be the most popular pick in the QASHQAI range and with good reason. Co-developed by Renault and Nissan, the engine is decently refined, yet not slow to deliver its mid-range performance. Nissan hasn't skimped when it comes to transmissions, the QASHQAI 2.0 dCi being supplied with either a six-speed manual box or a six-speed auto option.

The ALL-MODE 4x4 system is available for an extra £1,600 over the base price. This is an electronic system which automatically engages four-wheel drive the moment a loss of traction is detected. It offers more safety and security in extreme weather on the road. Nissan makes no bones of the fact that the QASHQAI is anything but an off-roader, citing its lack of ground clearance. What precludes it from tackling rutted tracks makes it a better car on the blacktop, the hunkered down centre of gravity giving the Nissan the driving dynamics of a typical family hatch.

"It's a vehicle that's judged the public mood perfectly"

Nissan has built an enviable reputation for safety and the QASHQAI incorporates a number of noteworthy features. Accurate electrically-assisted power steering, multi-link rear suspension and beefy anti-lock brakes with brake assist and electronic brakeforce distribution could well be enough to keep you out of a prang in the first instance and there's also the additional safety net of eighth-generation ESP stability control from Bosch.

"There's change in the air. Thanks to the Nissan QASHQAI, something different has arrived. You need never drive a boring car again." That's quite the big build up from one of Nissan's senior product planners and it's driven home with claims that the QASHQAI is "a catalyst for change, a totally new vehicle in a totally new sector of the market", and a car which should be seen as an "urban nomad." There's even reference to the boldly asymmetric interior, which I took to mean a steering wheel on one side and a lack of one on the other. At this point any right-thinking person's capacity for hyperbole would overflow and it's my duty to tell it like it is.

The QASHQAI, in reality, is somewhere between an all-wheel drive-orientated family hatchback (like a Fiat Sedici or a Suzuki SX4) and a road-orientated compact 4x4 (like Toyota's RAV4 or Honda's CR-V). And, like all of the current versions of these cars, it incorporates MPV-style practicalities on board. Like many rivals of this kind, the QASHQAI offers the choice of a two or a four-wheel-drive platform, the front-wheel drive model being perfectly adequate for 95% of customer's requirements. In case you were wondering where the wacky name came from, it's pronounced 'kash-kai' and is named after a desert-dwelling nomadic tribe from South Western Iran.

Trim levels run from Visia through Acenta to Tekna but there are quite a dizzying range of variants depending on whether you want auto or manual gearboxes, sat nav or just a dog eared A-Z or whether you want to fork out for all-wheel-drive or stick with power going to the front pair of wheels only. Prices start at £16,499 and top out at £20,899 for a Tekna. Even the Visia models are well appointed with ESP stability control, 16-inch alloy wheels, a CD stereo with four speakers, Bluetooth compatibility on the audio system, air conditioning and a drive computer. Trade up to Acenta and you get features such as rain sensing wipers, cruise control, rear parking sensors, a better stereo and 17-inch alloys. Tekna models receive leather upholstery, funky interior mood lighting, heated front seats and xenon headlights.

The development of this model is illuminating. Despite its external similarity to the bigger Murano model, the QASHQAI is the first car designed from scratch by Nissan Design Europe, based in London. Home to more than sixty international designers, modellers and support staff, NDE's first brief was to convert the Micra hatchback into the convertible C+C. A much bigger project was to develop the QASHQAI as a vehicle not just for European markets but as a car that is sold globally. It's also the first European vehicle built on the Nissan/Renault Alliance 'C' platform and follows the launch in Japan of the Nissan Lafesta, a badge that probably wouldn't scan too well in English-speaking markets.

There's little doubt that the QASHQAI will find ready buyers when the time comes to sell as it seems to have struck a chord with British customers looking for a socially responsible alternative to the usual 'Chelsea tractor.' The front wheel drive cars are in even hotter demand than the four-wheel drive models as a result.

The front-wheel drive model with the manual gearbox returns 42.8mpg. To give you an idea of how easy it is to dent this once all-wheel drive comes into the equation, the automatic 4x4 car gets a mere 36.2mpg. The same goes for carbon dioxide emissions. Where the 2wd manual car emits a reasonable 174g/km, the 4x4 automatic isn't anything like so saintly at 208g/km.

When it comes to buying a QASHQAI, you've got to box clever. Buying the all-wheel-drive variant is, to not put too fine a point on it, a bit of a waste of time. It doesn't possess any real off-road ability, it puts a dent in the fuel economy figures and may be of benefit on the odd snowy day but the rest of the year it'll mean hauling around some largely redundant mechanicals. Save yourself the bother and go for a front-wheel drive model, with a manual box for mixed driving and an auto box if you're going to be stuck in the city for much of the time.

The QASHQAI 2.0dCi is a brilliant city scoot, being tall enough to spot a gap, narrow enough to fit through it and short enough to park once you get where you're going. It's also decently economical and doesn't draw the wrong sort of attention. I can see why Nissan sell every one of the 700 they make per day. It's a vehicle that's judged the public mood perfectly.