Nissan Serena 2024 Review — The e-POWER 8-Seater That Beats the Tax Stack

The Nissan Serena is Japan’s quiet best-seller in the full-size MPV class — and the 2024 C28 generation brings the one feature that makes it genuinely clever for a Sri Lankan buyer: an e-POWER drivetrain built around a 1.4-litre generator engine.

That number matters more than any spec sheet headline. Sri Lankan excise is levied on engine displacement, and the 1500cc band is a hard cliff — cross it and the tax stack jumps sharply. The Serena e-POWER’s 1.4L petrol engine never drives the wheels; it exists only to generate electricity for the motor. But for tax purposes it is a 1,400cc car. The result is a full eight-seat people-mover that slips under the cliff that punishes nearly every rival its size.

This review covers the 2024 Serena e-POWER in the volume grades landing in current Sri Lankan import inventory.

What you get

The Serena worth importing is the e-POWER. There is also a 2.0L petrol S-Hybrid (mild-hybrid) grade, but its 2,000cc engine sits in a far higher tax band and erases the Serena’s whole cost advantage — leave it on the auction floor.

Spec	2024 Serena e-POWER
Drivetrain	Series hybrid (1.4L generator + e-motor)
Engine (tax basis)	1.4L — under the 1500cc cliff
Drive feel	Full-electric (engine never drives wheels)
Real-world economy	17–20 km/L
Seating	8 (2-3-3) or captain-chair configs
Length × width × height	4,690–4,765 × 1,715 × 1,870 mm
Wheelbase	2,870 mm
Doors	Dual power sliding
Driver aids	ProPILOT / ProPILOT 2.0 (grade-dependent)

The e-POWER system is Nissan’s signature series hybrid. Unlike a Toyota THS-II car, the petrol engine has no mechanical link to the wheels — it runs only to charge the battery, which drives the electric motor. The practical effect is a car that drives like an EV: instant torque off the line, smooth and silent at city speeds, and a one-pedal e-Pedal mode that handles most stop-start Colombo traffic without touching the brake.

How it drives

The e-POWER difference. Pull away from a Maradana junction and the Serena moves like an electric car — no gear hunting, no CVT slur, just immediate, linear shove. For the stop-start reality of Sri Lankan city driving, this is the most relaxing drivetrain in the segment. The generator engine kicks in to recharge as needed, and on a steady cruise you will hear it; under hard highway acceleration it can intrude as the engine spins up to feed the motor.

Cabin and flexibility. The Serena’s body is among the most space-efficient in the class. The dual power sliding doors open wide for child seats and elderly passengers — directly relevant to the multi-generational SL household running kids to school and grandparents to the pansala. The second and third rows are genuinely usable for adults, not the token jump-seats some rivals offer.

Comfort over corners. This is a tall MPV; it leans in fast corners and is happiest driven calmly. That is exactly how it will be used. ProPILOT’s lane-centring and adaptive cruise take the strain out of the daily expressway slog.

Real-world economy in Sri Lanka

A full-size eight-seat MPV returning 17–20 km/L is remarkable, and it is the e-POWER drivetrain that delivers it. A conventional 2.0L petrol MPV of this size struggles to beat 11–13 km/L in SL traffic. Over a high-mileage family duty cycle the difference compounds into real money — and it stacks on top of the lower landed price the 1.4L tax basis already buys you.

What this costs in Sri Lanka

Here is where the Serena’s engineering choice pays off. Because the e-POWER is taxed as a 1,400cc car, it ducks under the 1500cc excise cliff that a 1.8L Voxy or a 2.0L petrol MPV sits above.

Component	LKR (Serena e-POWER)
Typical CIF (Japan auction + shipping + insurance)	7,200,000
Excise (under 1500cc band)	~2,050,000
VAT + surcharge + levies	~2,150,000
Business costs (port, customs agent, RMV, registration)	~165,000
Service margin (sourcing, JAAI inspection, delivery)	~350,000
Indicative landed	LKR 18–24M

At the 60% LTV cap, a LKR 20M Serena needs roughly LKR 8M cash down and a LKR 12M lease — about LKR 222,000/month on a 7-year NBFI term. See the bank vs NBFI decision guide for the lender play, and landed price explained for the full tax-stack mechanics.

A comparably-equipped Voxy Hybrid — 1.8L, above the cliff — typically lands LKR 22–28M. The Serena’s tax-band advantage is real money, traded against Toyota’s deeper service network.

How it compares

• Toyota Voxy Hybrid 2024 — the direct rival. Toyota parts ubiquity and stronger resale, but the 1.8L drivetrain sits above the excise cliff and lands LKR 22–28M. The full head-to-head is in our Serena vs Voxy Hybrid 2024 comparison.
• Toyota Sienta 2026 — one size down (compact 6/7-seat MPV), cheaper to land but a tighter third row. Reviewed here.
• Honda Freed / Step WGN — the other Japanese MPVs in SL inventory; Freed is smaller, Step WGN closer in size.

Who should buy this

The 2024 Serena e-POWER is the right answer for the high-mileage, multi-generational Sri Lankan family that needs eight genuine seats, values running cost and cabin space above badge liquidity, and is comfortable using an independent Nissan specialist rather than a main-dealer network. It is a particularly strong diaspora-funded family buy — the one car in the class that combines EV-like refinement with a tax structure that keeps the landed price honest.

It is the wrong answer for the buyer whose primary concern is five-year resale liquidity and main-dealer convenience — for that buyer the Voxy Hybrid is the safer, if pricier, choice. And the petrol S-Hybrid Serena, whatever the salesman says, is not the version to import — only the e-POWER makes the tax case.

As always, these are Japan imports sourced to order from live Tokyo auction stock — never local showroom cars.

See live Serena inventory · Serena vs Voxy Hybrid 2024 · Best seven-seater cars 2026