If you’re in the market for a subcompact sedan, 2023 might be the year to buy one. There’s a chance the all-new Toyota Vios might arrive here, as well as the updated Honda City. Not to be outdone, Nissan also wants a piece of the action by unveiling the facelifted Almera.
The subcompact sedan made its regional premiere in Thailand, and it’s possible that we could this model within a year. After all, the current Almera for the Philippine market is sourced from Thailand.
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Exterior changes made to the Almera are similar to the North American counterpart, the Versa. Like the US version, the 2023 Almera gets a new front grille with extra chrome slats. The bumper also gets smoother corners and a reshaped front apron, but the rest of the body is largely unchanged.
ASEAN-spec Almeras don’t get the American Versa’s wheel options, though. Instead, these are carried over from the current version. As for variants, there are four available for the Thai market. These are the E, EL, V, and VL. It’s possible that the Philippine spec Almera will adapt similar variant names. There are also new colors for the new Almera, namely Milk Gray and Gray Sky Pearl.
In terms of design, the interior appears to be carried over from the current model. However, the mid and high-spec versions of the Almera come with a new two-tone, black and blue interior. The base models have an all-gray interior without soft padding on the dashboard fascia.
But where the 2023 Almera made significant headway is in the tech and safety department. For the Thai-spec version at least, all variants now come with six airbags. A tire pressure monitoring system has been added, along with lane departure warning and high beam assist. Wireless charging is available for the higher trim levels and, finally, the Almera gets Android Auto.
There are no changes under the hood. The Almera keeps its 1.0-liter, turbocharged three-cylinder engine, and it still makes 99hp and 152Nm of torque. The manual transmission option appears to have been dropped in Thailand, leaving the CVT as the only choice.
