The Nissan Charged Tour was a real showcase for engineering prowess writes Chris Lilly.

The guys in the engine department have really been earning their wages recently.

The headline offering was the new Micra DIG-S as it becomes the Micra’s flagship engine.

Nissan has placed a 1.2-litre powerplant up front and supercharged it. Thanks to supercharging and efficiency-biased technologies, the Micra DIG-S has almost 100bhp, a 0-62mph time of 11.3 seconds yet 63mpg on the combined cycle and emissions below the key 100g/km mark.

The ride and handling are set up for town driving but Nissan would have made a mistake had it tried to make the DIG-S a hot hatch. The Micra has a decent amount of grunt but isn’t sporty, which means it will cope with potholes and speed bumps. The steering is light and accurate and good all-round visibility makes parking nice and simple.

The excellent engine is the main feature. It pulls well when needed but will run about town in low revs easily, conserving petrol. It is one of the best in the supermini class. To put it into perspective, the emission and fuel figures are close to matching the diesels, with better performance and it has made a good all-round small car even better.

Almost overshadowing the Micra DIG-S was the Leaf, Nissan’s all-electric family car. No fuel is burnt under the bonnet and no emissions leave the exhaust pipe either – partly because there is no exhaust pipe.

The Leaf is, electric considerations aside, a good family car. There’s plenty of space for four adults with good boot space, though that’s to be expected with the Mégane-style, big-bum boot. One thing that must be considered is the rear footwell. Because the batteries fit under the floor, it’s shallow and gives little space for toes under the front seats.

Otherwise, legroom is good in a stylish and practical cabin. The cream interior adds to the light and airy feel and the dark centre console is a practical information centre.

There is so much information from the dashboard that it really helps maximise the amount of power you can get from the Leaf’s batteries.

The best way to save is to avoid the open road. Staying at constant speed and revs gives little or no chance to regain energy as there are few opportunities to brake. The other way is to put the gearbox into eco-mode, which limits power used, and use the normal mode like a supercharger you turn on and off when you want acceleration.

When you put your foot down, you see the electric motor’s party trick – a lot of torque instantly available for pleasantly surprising acceleration. It helps make the Leaf a viable, if initially pricey, alternative if you rarely go more than 80 miles or so per trip.

Talking of surprising acceleration brings me to the Juke DIG-T. The turbocharged engine in this small SUV makes the Juke seem like a hot hatch. More surprising is that Nissan has designed the handling to match the performance.

The 1.6-litre turbo engine gives an acceleration of eight seconds from 0-62mph and the handling suits the engine’s responsiveness with impressive grip and lack of body roll.

If you want performance, the most startling engine of all was squeezed under the bonnet of the Nissan GT-R – a superb piece of engineering.

The twin-turbocharged V8

The twin-turbocharged V8 produces 523bhp which offers simply stunning acceleration. Every time you decide to accelerate hard, you feel yourself hanging on tightly, and grinning madly before you realise the speed limit is rapidly approaching.

In short, Nissan’s engineers are pulling out the stops in every department – from eco-friendly family models to supercars through the challenges of combining efficiency with performance. On this evidence, the Japanese manufacturer is setting itself up nicely for the future.