This week we have been spending some time with the new Nissan Navara. This is a pick-up that we have seen on Irish roads for many years and they have always been a great workhorse. Prices start at €34,995 for this 12th generation model and with 80 years of global knowledge and strong reliability Nissan are confident this latest variant will fit your needs. All Navara’s are powered by a 2.3 litre diesel engine only the XE model has a single turbo pushing out 160hp whilst the SV and top of the range SVE have two turbos bringing the power up to 190hp. Prices for the SV are €36,250 and the SVE automatic comes in at €39,250 respectively. Naturally there is a specification jump with various additions according to the price but don’t be put off by the basic XE because you still get pretty much everything you would need for a pick-up!
Our SV was a pleasure to live with over the duration of a week. A good friend of ours has a 2009 Navara and it was nice to compare the two. The new version is much more comfortable to drive thanks to a new coil-spring axle with five-link coil-sprung rear suspension making this new model unique in the pick-up segment. It also has a fully boxed ladder chassis rather than the three-sided channel-section frame found on some other pick-ups making it feel much more car-like on the road. It has also been developed to handle tough jobs and heavy payloads up to 1T and towing up to 3.5T. The new lighter tailgate makes loading and unloading simple and we even took time out to load a dirt bike, which with the tailgate down it swallowed with ease.
Nissan’s now have this revolutionary C-channel tie-down system which features adjustable hooking points that can be locked anywhere on a special rail system in the floor. This makes it super easy to tie down any load, of any shape or size. This was no doubt another feature that helped the Navara win the much-coveted International Pick-up Award 2016 at a ceremony in Lyon, France. Getting dirty was our next mission and with the dirt bike mounted we went in search of some tricky conditions only to be met by a hard frost that left the hills slippery but not so muddy. Like with most of these pick-ups now there are three driving modes which include 4WD High for light off-roading, 4WD Low for serious off-road driving in sand, snow or deep mud, or 2WD for when you’re on the road making the daily commute. To be honest what surprised us most was just how capable it was in 2WD mode with normal road tyres! The clever eLSD system still got us half way up a rather sharp incline before we needed to stop and engage all-wheel drive. Then using the Hill Start Assist we were up to the top before entering Hill Descent Control to get us back down. It’s pretty capable to say the least!
Inside the Navara it’s a nice place to be with ample legroom in the rear and all the creature comforts you would expect to find up front. The dual-zone Automatic Temperature Control works well but sadly there is no wing mirror de-mister, which isn’t ideal on a frosty morning. With that said the driving position is comfortable and the infotainment system is very easy to navigate. Our seven-day test drive came to an end all too soon. For us it is one of the original hard working pick-ups that still serves very well in this sector. Right now Nissan are offering 0% APR across the entire commercial vehicle range which is very enticing. If you are a business owner and can come up with a 25% deposit you can then agree a fixed term of 24 or 36 months of payments. For more information contact your local Nissan dealer but either way, the new Navara is well worth a test drive.
Technical Specification
Engine Size – 2.3TD
Fuel Type – Diesel
Power – 190hp
Torque – 450Nm
Acceleration (0-100km/h) – 10.8 seconds
Top Speed – 180 km/h
Consumption (Combined) – 7.0L/100km
CO2 Emissions – 159 g/km
Road Tax – €333 Commercial
Base Price – €34,995
Price as Tested – €36,250
