It’s been a long time coming but Nissan’s new generation X-Trail is certain to grab an even bigger slice of the compact SUV market. Part of a total overhaul of its SUV range, the new X-Trail follows the lead of the next Pathfinder - here late this year - by being less rugged and less angular.
The X-Trail takes on the Dualis’ clothes to appeal to a broader range of customers and will also replace the Dualis +2 model. Built on Nissan’s common modular platform (CMP) that is shared with Renault, the longer and wider --yet lower-- X-Trail has the option of seven seats with its two occasional third row accommodation.
Nissan Australia is being quiet about this car but expect it in July next year and priced at a premium of about $2500 on the current model. Drivetrains are yet to be announced.
The 2.5-litre petrol four remains though Nissan has refined further the CVT automatic for smoothness and less “flare’’. Nissan claims the big improvement in the new gearbox is low friction - down 40 per cent on the old unit - which has resulted in a 10 per cent improvement in fuel economy.
Nissan has also kept is relatively off-road friendly. It keeps the “All Mode 4X4’’ drivetrain that allows selection on the move between 2WD and AWD and has an auto mode for the undecided. The boot floor can be partitioned into two levels and the wagon gets a bigger and wider rear door. Cargo space is increased as has rear legroom.
Nissan will place the new X-Trail between the small SUV, the Juke that is due here later this year, and the new Pathfinder that is now based on the Maxima-Murano platform.
Neil Dowling
Contributing Journalist
GoAutoMedia
Cars have been the corner stone to Neil’s passion, beginning at pre-school age, through school but then pushed sideways while he studied accounting.
It was rekindled when he started contributing to magazines including Bushdriver and then when he started a motoring section in Perth’s The Western Mail.
He was then appointed as a finance writer for the evening Daily News, supplemented by writing its motoring column. He moved to The Sunday Times as finance editor and after a nine-year term, finally drove back into motoring when in 1998 he was asked to rebrand and restyle the newspaper’s motoring section, expanding it over 12 years from a two-page section to a 36-page lift-out.
In 2010 he was selected to join News Ltd’s national motoring group Carsguide and covered national and international events, launches, news conferences and Car of the Year awards until November 2014 when he moved into freelancing, working for GoAuto, The West Australian, Western 4WDriver magazine, Bauer Media and as an online content writer for one of Australia’s biggest car groups.
He has involved himself in all aspects including motorsport where he has competed in everything from motocross to motorkhanas and rallies including Targa West and the ARC Forest Rally.
He loves all facets of the car industry, from design, manufacture, testing, marketing and even business structures and believes cars are one of the few high-volume consumables to combine a very high degree of engineering enlivened with an even higher degree of emotion from its consumers.
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