Nissan Townstar Review 2025: Price, specs & boot space

Written by Ivan Aistrop
Quick overview
Pros
- Comfortable ride
- Competitive practicality
- Generous equipment
Cons
- EV much more expensive than petrol
- Low payload on EV
- Bland interior colour scheme
Overall verdict on the Nissan Townstar
"The Nissan Townstar maybe isn’t the first name on the lips of many people looking for a compact van for their business, but perhaps it should be. It’s a very good all-rounder, but has a couple of areas of real strength that make it really compelling. Find out what they are in our 2024 Nissan Townstar review."

Like with most vans, though, the Nissan Townstar isn’t exactly unique. The process of badge-engineering - where manufacturers team up to share the costs of developing and building a vehicle, resulting in those companies selling mechanically identical vehicles differentiated only by the badges they wear - is common throughout the motor industry, and is especially rife in the commercial vehicle sector. So, just like a Ford Transit Connect is mechanically identical to a Volkswagen Caddy Cargo, and a Citroen Berlingo Van is mechanically identical to a Peugeot Partner (And a Vauxhall Combo. And a Fiat Doblo. And a Toyota Proace City), the Nissan Townstar shares its innards and oily bits with the Renault Kangoo and Mercedes Citan. And what’s more, all of these vehicles could be considered rivals.
So in such a crowded marketplace, how does the Nissan Townstar stand out? Well, for starters, by being competitive in pretty much every area. Practicality and versatility is perhaps the most important area for any commercial vehicle, and the Townstar is right up there on that score, with generous load bay dimensions and capacity, plus thoughtful touches to make the space more usable.
It’s also solidly built from durable (if not particularly plush) materials, so it’ll stand up well to hard daily use, and it comes with a better-than-average five-year, 100,000-mile warranty.
It also offers you choice over how you want your van to be powered. For those who need to cover longer distances, a petrol engine is offered (there’s no diesel option, though), while those whose work is concentrated within the city limits can take advantage of a Nissan Townstar with an all-electric powertrain.
As well as being competitive in most areas, the Nissan Townstar also manages to excel in a couple. First off, it’s well equipped: the entry-level version comes with all the essentials, plus a couple of luxuries you might not expect, while the high-end versions feel borderline luxurious.
It’s also an immensely comfortable vehicle to pootle around in thanks to a soft suspension that’s brilliant at soaking up lumps and bumps. Chuck in accurate steering, light controls and reasonable performance, and it’s also a very easy vehicle to drive, and all that is super-important when you spend large portions of your working day at the wheel.
Okay, so the Nissan Townstar is not perfect. The electric version is lots more expensive than the petrol, and has a significantly reduced payload. Even so, though, for the right sort of person with the right sort of business, the Nissan Townstar will still suit.
Looking for a used van for sale? We've got 100s of Nissan Approved Used Cars for Sale for you to choose from, including a wide range of Nissan Townstar vans for sale.
Is the Nissan Townstar right for you?
What’s the best Nissan Townstar model/engine to choose?
What other cars are similar to the Nissan Townstar?
Comfort and design: Nissan Townstar interior
“There’s plenty of adjustment on both the driver’s seat and steering wheel, so drivers of all shapes and sizes will be able to get comfy. In some vans, tall drivers are prevented from sliding their seat back far enough by the metal bulkhead behind them, but that’s not the case in the Townstar because there’s a decent amount of space between those two items.”

Obviously, that bulkhead means your rear visibility is limited to what you can see in your door mirrors, which aren’t as large as they are on some vans, but they can be adjusted electrically. The entry-level Acenta version has rear parking sensors to help with manoeuvres, while the Tekna gets a reversing camera and all-round sensors, and the Tekna+ gets a 360-degree camera system. Visibility to the front, meanwhile, is splendid thanks to the perched-up driving position and thin windscreen pillars with large quarter-light windows just behind them.
The Townstar can be had with either two- or three seats in the front, or as a Crew Van that sacrifices some of the loadbay for a second row of three seats . The one we tested was a two-seater, and had plenty of space for those two, but we reckon things might be rather more snug with three seats crammed in.
There’s a decent amount of storage, with shelves above the windscreen, reasonable door bins, a big glovebox, a cubby under the central armrest, a couple of shallow cupholders, and a large lidded cuddy on top of the dashboard behind the steering wheel. Rivals have more areas for odds and ends, though, and if you specify the three-seater version, you’ll lose half the ones we’ve mentioned.
Quality and finish
Infotainment: Touchscreen, USB, nav and stereo in the Nissan Townstar
Space and practicality: Nissan Townstar boot space
Handling and ride quality: What is the Nissan Townstar like to drive?
“If you’re spending large portions of your working day at the wheel of your commercial vehicle, then comfort is by far and away the most important dynamic attribute it can have. Happily, that’s precisely where the Townstar excels.”

The softly sprung suspension does a brilliant job of isolating you from the effects of a scruffy road surface, smoothing out bumps and potholes in a really effective manner at all speeds.
However, that doesn’t come at the expense of sloppy body control. It doesn’t bounce you around over the dips and crests of an undulating road, staying controlled and stable at all times. Of course, the tall body will lean over a bit as you turn a corner, but it feels far from untidy and you’ll like how easy the steering is because it’s quick and light. There isn’t much feel, granted, but that’s hardly a pressing concern for a panel van.
What motors and batteries are available in the Nissan Townstar?
Maximum electric range in the Nissan Townstar
Refinement and noise levels
Safety equipment: How safe is the Nissan Townstar?
MPG and fuel costs: What does a Nissan Townstar cost to run?
"Not all that long, actually, because as we’ve already said, the Townstar EV’s battery isn’t all that big at just 45kWh."

The CCS charging port, which has now become the European standard, is concealed behind the Nissan badge on the nose of the Townstar, and your standard equipment includes two charging cables. One is a Type 2 to Type 2 cable for plugging into home wallboxes and slower AC public chargers (on higher powered DC public chargers, the cable is usually built into the charger itself), and a cable with a Type 2 plug at one end to fit the vehicle, and a three-pin domestic plug at the other to fit into a regular household plug socket.
Use the latter, and a full charge will take ages (this is known as ‘granny charging’, somewhat uncharitably) due to the slow flow of domestic power. This 2.3kW hookup will take 26 hours to fully charge the battery. Do what most owners will do, however, and get a home wallbox charger fitted, and your charging speed will jump up to 7.4kW, meaning the time needed for a full charge comes down to seven hours.
Find yourself a slightly faster outlet, like you might get at slow public chargers or industrial sites, and the same charge comes down to four and a half hours on an 11kW hookup, or if you can find a 22kW outlet, then you’ll get a 15-80% charge in an hour and a half. The Townstar’s maximum DC rapid charging speed of 80kW isn’t great in the scheme of things, but the small battery means that same 15-80% top-up can be delivered in just 37 minutes.
How much it costs will depend entirely on how much you pay for your power. Charge the car at home on a tariff priced at the UK national average, and a full charge will cost about £12. Get yourself on a household tariff that allows you to charge overnight at a discounted rate, however, and you’ll probably pay half that, maybe even less. It flips the other way if you use public rapid chargers on a regular basis, because these can easily cost double what you’ll pay for domestic electricity.
If you buy the petrol-powered Townstar, you’ll probably want to know what kind of fuel economy it gets. Well, there’s a very slight difference between the L1 and L2 models, but both have an official WLTP figure of around 41mpg.
How reliable is the Nissan Townstar?
Insurance groups and costs
VED car tax: What is the annual road tax on a Nissan Townstar?
How much should you be paying for a Nissan Townstar?
"Brand new prices for the petrol-powered Townstar begin at around £21,000 for the Acenta, rising to around £22,500 for the Tekna and £24,000 for the Tekna+. The electric versions are, predictably, more expensive, with prices starting at £34,000 for the Acenta. That’s quite a jump."

Take to the used market, though, and there are some huge savings to be made on the electric version. Take a look at the heycar classifieds, and you’ll find lots of as-new pre-registered examples with single-digit mileages, and some of them can be had for less than £20,000. These will be Acentas in a pretty bog-standard shade of white, but another £2,500 will get you into a Tekna-trimmed EV.
Petrols are in much shorter supply on the used market, partly because they haven’t been around as long, so the discounts are nowhere near as huge. In fact, you’ll be paying pretty much the same as you will for a brand new one.
Trim levels and standard equipment
Ask the heycar experts: common questions
What is the Nissan Townstar?
Is the Nissan Townstar the same as the Renault Kangoo and Mercedes-Benz Citan?
How big is the Nissan Townstar?
Nissan Townstar cars for sale on heycar
Nissan Townstar90kW Tekna Van Auto 45kWh
20242,073 milesElectric£20,970
inc. VATCR26EUNissan Townstar90kW Tekna Van Auto 45kWh
20235,551 milesElectric£20,370
inc. VATSE91DHNissan Townstar1.3 Tekna Van
20245,150 milesPetrol£476 mo£21,528
inc. VATLN63TANissan Townstar90kW Tekna+ Van Auto 45kWh
2025747 milesElectric£572 mo£25,884
inc. VATOX51FJNissan Townstar90kW Tekna Van Auto 45kWh
2023947 milesElectric£437 mo£19,438
inc. VATLN63TA
Nissan Townstar Alternatives
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