Nissan Navara (2018) 4×4 Pick-Up I Road Test Review – Its Good, Its Very Good

The new Navara has really proven itself since its launch a year ago in South Africa.

To start things off, you immediately notice that the all-new Navara brings with it bold new styling. It all starts with its unique LED eyebrows which extend into the rugged yet sophisticated front fascia. The side profile and rear tailgate cluster tastefully incorporates into the new design and overall bolder styling which this new model introduces.

Nissan offers the Navara with one engine variant only, their 2.3-litre dual turbo powered engine. The engine produces impressive power and delivers 140 kW and 450 Nm of torque. Owing to its impressive torque, the power delivery is overall brisk and I found that most of the oomph comes from the 2000 – 4000 rpm.

The Navara is capable of towing loads of up to 3.5 tonnes and manages to retain a premium SUV style of power delivery and drive. The engine also proves to be very efficient. During my extended-testing time, which included putting the vehicle through very rigorous conditions both on and off-road, I was able to average 10.2-litres/100 km. A very impressive figure when you consider the type of vehicle and capacity it offers.

This latest generation Navara introduces premium interior build and design. The seats are very comfortable and supportive and Nissan has ensured that they add many creature comforts and a lot of smart technology, which will make living with the Navara a very easy and pleasurable task.

At the centre of the dash, you get the Nissan multimedia entertainment system. The system is touch-screen based and offers media through a wide variety of sources including USB and a 3.5mm auxiliary port. The on-board system also includes navigation with 3D mapping and Bluetooth mobile phone pairing as well as streaming and the ability to utilise DVD discs. The vehicle features a large colour centre display and information readout in the instrument cluster and a multifunction controlled steering wheel.

The Navara rides with 229mm of ground clearance, the new raised suspension set-up and smart design allows for a 3-degree improvement in the approach (33.0 degrees), ramp-over (25.2 degrees) and departure angles (27.9 degrees).

When you couple the improved clearance with Nissan’s 5-Link Coil suspension set-up, you get a vehicle which delivers unbelievable performance and control both on and off the road. The Nissan 5-Link Coil suspension setup is a world first and is sure to revolutionise the pick-up market space.

Nissan has come an incredibly long way in the pick-up truck market. With over 14-million pickup trucks sold in over 180-countries around the world, Nissan really is showing the world how to redefine rugged driving and setting new benchmarks.

Read our full written review of the 2018 Navara 4x4 with SA Pricing & Warranty info at:


And, our Navara sand dunes launch review can be seen at:

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[Metalbass]

I'm an American who is planning on moving to Kenya with my Kenyan wife and our daughter to start a rescue home for orphans and battered women. The Navara is at the top if the list on what I'm looking at to use as a rescue vehicle and family transportation. However, the prices in Kenya are nearly 3 times what they are in the USA for the equivalent truck. I'm seriously thinking of buying in South Africa and driving it to Kenya. Excellent review.

[georgelara]

Hi Jason. I've owned the new Navara as of September 2017. I had the previous generation Navara D40 and was very happy with it. When it came time to upgrade I was hoping to move to this new Navara which had just been released overseas. This was not to be as Nissan did not have plans to bring it into the country at that time, and couldn't give an estimated release date. I subsequently purchased a VW Amarok 4 Motion, and owned that for almost 3 years. In September 2017 I moved from the Amarok to my current Navara D23.
I would have to disagree with a few of the comments in your video. Having the 5-link rear suspension I believe is more of a drawback than the traditional leaf spring setup. I find it sags at the back quite a bit under a medium load and more so under full load, and in so doing makes the front end and steering feel very light and a bit hair raising at times. Added to that the power steering is the traditional hydraulic assisted and not electronic hydraulic assisted as compared to some other bakkies on the market, and doesn't tighten up accordingly with increase in speed. This comment is compounded by the fact that Nissan Global has addressed this with 3 series of the New Navara, last one being released in Australia in March 2018. Issues addressed, rear spring rates and steering. The X-Class Mercedes which you quite rightly stated is based on the Navara, has also addressed the rear spring rates and steering in their model, as well as widening the track. Being that mine is from September 2017, I would hope that it's the series 2, but no one as of yet can tell me if the Navara being sold in South Africa currently is the series 3 or not. Three series of the same model addressing the spring rates and steering in each one, tells me that they got something wrong. The Toyota Fortuna a few years back, which had rear coil springs and had issues of vehicles rolling comes to mind. With no load in the back, I feel my vehicle get quite unsettled and very gittery over badly potholed tar roads as well as dirt roads, which is unnerving. I've had to import coil spring airbags to level the rear under load as well as ordered active shocks to try and get correct the gittery feel of the front end over undulations and corrugations and settle down the front end feel, loaded or unloaded.
On another point. I've had complaints with Nissan South Africa with case number 00091146, and one of these issues was related to the towing capacity. First off it took them weeks to get back to me, and finally when a technical advisor did contact me his knowledge of the Navara was shocking. One question was the towing capacity. The Navara as you have stated can tow a 3.5 ton braked trailer, but according to the Nissan technician, it can only tow 3 tons braked. Quite an expert on the brand he represents wouldn't you say. That's besides the point though as my question was related to the tow bar capacity which is made by Bosal for Nissan. This is a manufacturer approved tow bar and the towing capacity is rated at 2910 kg, and says so on the tag attached to the towbar. That is not anywhere near the 3.5 tons or even the technicians 3 tons. This was not brought to my attention at all when buying the vehicle. The technician went as far as to say, that there are other towbars that can be used, but according to the Nissan approved accessories catalogue, there is only the Bosal or the Iron Man. The Iron Man can quite rightly tow 3.5 tons, but that is a complete replacement bumper for the serious Off roaders. I prefer the look of the standard rear bumper. Even the YouTube Nissan ads show the Navara towing a large boat with the standard bumper in place. There might be a tow bar out there that will have the right towing capacity while maintaining the standard rear bumper, but if it's not a Nissan Approved part, warranty issues come in to play.
These are just a few of my complaints regarding the New Navara. My opinions of owning the vehicle for almost a year are just the tip of the ice berg. I haven't even gotten to the service departments as yet. Besides having owned the Navara D40, I've also owned a Nissan 370Z and have enjoyed Nissan products for many years, but the ownership experience of this new Navara has depleted all my faith in the brand.
A return to the Amarok is about to happen very soon for me.