Rent Nissan Sunny 2021 in Dubai

The Nissan Sunny 2021 is about as cheap as a sensible automatic sedan gets to rent in Dubai, and we deliver it to your door in one to two hours with a no-deposit option. The case for the Sunny is running cost. If your week is school runs, grocery trips, and the odd drive across town, this is the car that does all of it for the least money and barely troubles a fuel station. It's an economy sedan, not a comfort cruiser, and we'll be straight about where that shows. But for a single driver or a couple who want a boot, four doors, and an automatic gearbox without paying for anything they won't use, it's hard to beat.

Running cost, and how rarely you'll stop for fuel

The Sunny runs a 1.6-litre engine making 118 hp through a CVT automatic and the front wheels. Nobody buys this car for the way it accelerates, and you shouldn't rent it for that either. What it does well is sip fuel. The tank is small at 41 litres, but the engine is so frugal in city driving that a fill still lasts most renters the better part of a week of normal running.

That's the real selling point. You're not feeding it constantly, the petrol bill stays low, and the CVT keeps the revs down in traffic so it isn't thirsty crawling along Al Wasl Road at rush hour. For the kind of driver who wants the cheapest way to get around the city for seven days, the maths works out in the Sunny's favour.

Spec at a glance

Space, the back seat, and the boot

For a small sedan the Sunny is roomier inside than its price suggests. The N17 generation was always known for back-seat legroom, and it holds up. Two adults in the rear are genuinely comfortable, which is more than you can say for a lot of cars at this rate. Three across the back works for kids or short hops.

The boot is 416 litres, which is a proper sedan boot rather than a hatchback's afterthought. Two large suitcases plus a couple of soft bags go in without a fight, so an airport run to DXB or DWC for two people travelling with luggage is no problem. That separate, lockable boot is one reason we'd point a value-minded renter at the Sunny over a tiny hatchback: same kind of money, far more usable luggage space.

Parking, speed bumps and city roads

At just under 4.5 metres and narrow with it, the Sunny is easy to place. Tight multi-storey bays, the steep ramps in Marina car parks, and busy mall lots are all simple, and the light steering makes U-turns and parallel parking a non-event. The 161 mm of ground clearance clears Dubai's speed bumps and mall entrance lips without scraping.

Out on Sheikh Zayed Road it's a different story, and this is the honest caveat. The Sunny cruises fine at 100 to 120, but it's an economy car with a modest engine, so overtaking at speed needs planning and the cabin gets noisier the harder you push. It's happiest in town. If most of your week is long highway stints rather than city errands, you'll want something with more under the bonnet.

Staying cool in the heat

This matters from May through September, when a parked cabin in 45-degree sun turns into an oven. The Sunny's AC is up to the job for a car this size. The cabin is small enough that the front vents pull the temperature down quickly once you're moving, so a few minutes with the doors shut and it's comfortable. There are no rear vents, but in a cabin this compact the cold air reaches the back seat without much trouble. Park in shade where you can and it recovers fast.

The costs that fall to you

Salik tolls are charged to you as you pass the gantries, and any RTA fines during the rental period are yours as well. Seat belts are required in every seat, and a child under four needs a child seat by law, which we can fit on request. None of this is unusual for renting in Dubai, but it's worth knowing before you set off.

Who should rent it, and who shouldn't

Rent the Sunny 2021 if you want the cheapest sensible automatic sedan for a week of city driving, you value a real boot and a comfortable back seat, and you don't need pace. For a single driver, a couple, or a small family doing mall runs and the school drop-off, it does the job for less than almost anything else on the lot.

Size up if your week leans on long highway drives or you regularly carry four adults who'd appreciate more refinement, in which case a larger sedan earns its extra cost. And if you want a newer cabin and a bit more room for the same kind of budget, look at the Nissan Versa instead, which is a roomier, more modern take on the same idea.