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Nissan Navara Pick Up Truck Road TestProduced by Peter Grunert
Pluses:
Huge load space, good passenger space, sharp styling, accomplished on and off-road. The real deal.
Minuses:
Insurance ratings are a little steeper than some rivals’. Upmarket kit can equate to upmarket prices.
Pick Up Trucks Direct Rating:
No arguing – the Nissan Navara is right at the top of its game. With sophisticated equipment and engineering, this one sets the standard.
Pulling Power
 Snapping at the heels of the Mitsubishi L200 like an angry Jack Russell, the Nissan Navara has swiftly established itself as the second best-selling pick up in the UK. Actually, that analogy is a little off the mark – this is a bull mastiff of a vehicle, a big brute with the largest loadbay in its class and ample passenger space.
It’s got the power to match. Under the bonnet is a 2.5-litre common-rail turbodiesel thumping out 172bhp and 297lb ft of torque, giving your choice of acceleration to see off many conventional cars, or strong towing abilities.
A six-speed manual gearbox makes an effective job of constantly keeping the engine in its power band and comes recommended, although a slick-shifting five-speed auto transmission is an extra-cost option worth considering on top Outlaw and Aventura double-cab models.
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Toughing It Out
While comparisons can frequently be drawn between modern, increasingly sophisticated pick ups and more luxury-focused SUVs, the Navara has a trump card up its sleeve – it actually is based on an SUV. That’s Nissan’s Land Rover Discovery rivalling Pathfinder, built alongside the Navara at a plant in Barcelona and donating its ladder frame chassis and double wishbone front suspension. Only the rear suspension diversifies, the Navara getting the solid axle and leaf springs it requires to cope with the payloads that it may be asked to carry.
All models come with four-wheel drive as standard, with a 50:50 front to rear split. Swapping between your choice of rear-wheel drive, high-ratio four wheel drive or low-ratio four-wheel drive is a simple matter of turning a rotary dial built into the dashboard. A standard limited-slip differential is also thrown in, improving traction off-road.
The Navara performs well back on-road too, with accurate steering and a relatively supple ride quality that proves its SUV genetic make-up.
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The Wide Open Spaces Two bodystyles are on offer here. Hell bent on maximising cargo space is the king cab variant, with short back-hinged rear doors giving access to a pair of seats suitable for kids, amputees or a pair of mates squeezing in for a short journey. The upside is a load length of 1,861mm and a particularly square-sided cargo area, giving space for 4ftx8ft sheets of plywood or a couple of motocross bikes.
Alternatively the double-cab offers good room for three full-sized rear passengers to stretch out, plus a still competitive load length of 1,511mm. There’s also a minimum of 1,130mm on offer width-wise between the wheel housings.
In no area does this pick up drop the ball. Maximum payloads range from 1,073kg for the basic king cab through to 1,123kg for the equivalent double-cab, with maximum braked towing weight at 2,700kg or 2,600kg for each.
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In For The Long Run It’s a subjective thing, but many regard the Navara to be the sharpest looking pick up on offer right now. The chiselled styling lends this pick up a distinctive, contemporary character, helped by the chunky 17-inch wheels fitted to all but the entry-level ‘Standard’ spec models.
Look to the top Aventura model and you’ll find upmarket features never before seen amongst pick ups. Try fast-reacting DVD-based satnav with 3D mapping, rain-sensing wipers, Bluetooth phone connection, and voice activation for the nav system and hands-free phone. Not to mention soft leather trim of a quality usually reserved for luxury cars.
Not that the Navara has lost touch with its roots. There’s a three year, 60,000-mile warranty, and lengthy 18,000-mile gaps between servicing mean that it will need few breaks from work, or play.
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Nissan Navara
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Ford
Ranger
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Mitsubishi
L200
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Toyota
Hilux
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Isuzu
Rodeo
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Mazda B Series
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Land Rover
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Nissan NP300
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Tippers
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