WE’VE RECENTLY DRIVEN the pumped-up Nissan Navara N-Trek Warrior and were left impressed, but let’s not forget its little sibling and the car it’s based on, the more affordable Navara N-Trek. Just how much different is it to the Warrior, though?
THE GOOD: Value for money, the driveline is solid, infotainment upgrade is great.
THE BAD: No upgrade to off-road performance despite tough looks, lack of some ST-X features like a sunroof.
IN A NUTSHELL: The Nissan Navara N-Trek improves on the looks of the standard Navara range but don’t expect Navara N-Trek Warrior-level improvements to either on or off-road performance.
2020 Nissan Navara N-Trek review
This is the toughest-looking Nissan Navara behind he recently introduced Navara N-Trek Warrior – itself a properly beefed-up version of Nissan’s popular ute which has been specially engineered in Australia. But the key to this Navara’s appeal is cosmetic enhancements and an upgraded infotainment system as a value proposition. Is it worth it?
How much does Navara N-Trek cost and what do you get?
The N-Trek gives you most of what’s in the Navara ST-X – though notably there’s no sunroof – and then adds black 18-inch alloys, flared wheel arches, black and orange front fascia and black side steps, rear bumper, door handles, roof rails and fog lamp surrounds.
Extra standard gear includes leather trim, heated front seats, powered driver’s seat, sat nav, keyless entry, dual-zone ventilation and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity.
Pricing for the Navara N-Trek is from $56,450 (manual) or $58,950 (automatic) plus on-road costs.
Get a deal on the Nissan Navara N-Trek at Practical Motoring Live Deals
What’s the Nissan Navara N-Trek interior like?
Leather-wrapped seats with orange stitching sit around the familiar Navara dash. There are N-Trek flourishes about, so it feels nicer than – or at least different – to other variants in the range, but there’s not much improvement to comfort and practicality. That’s fine, because it’s already a very functional and comfy cabin, at least for a dual-cab ute.
It’s welcoming and isn’t far removed from Nissan passenger cars, using similar controls, dials and trims.
And storage is good, with rear air vents a plus and USB ports for charging devices (and connecting to Android Auto or Apple CarPlay. And as with other Navaras (and the Mercedes X-Class which is based on it), the rear window slides across to provide a handy tradie’s port.
What’s the Nissan Navara N-Trek Warrior infotainment like?
The N-Trek uses an improved 8.0-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. It’s a much nicer experience for accessing your apps for music, messaging and map services than traditional (read: old and out-dated) Bluetooth-only screens.
And navigating the screen is easy enough, with menu buttons and dials to adjust things such as volume. Combined with buttons on the steering wheel it’s identical to other Nissan passenger vehicles in the way everything operates.
What’s the Nissan Navara N-Trek engine like?
It uses the same 2.3-litre twin-turbo engine as the regular Navara.
The induction is via a sequential turbo where a smaller turbo spins up earlier in the rev range before a larger spindle adds top-end torque. The result is that the engine is on boost for longer than usual single-turbo setups.
The resulting power is 140kW and 450nm which gives predictable, smooth power and strong torque for lugging a load. The seven-speed automatic mated to the motor does a decent job of picking the right gear and the right time too.
Nissan Navara Warrior fuel economy
The official fuel consumption claim for the Navara is 7.0-litres per 100km on the combined cycle for the automatic transmission, and we returned a result of 8.2-litres per 100km after driving with some heavy items in the tray, both in city and on country roads.
What’s The Nissan Navara N-Trek like to drive?
The Navara is slightly unusual in the dual-cab ute market in that it employs a coil spring rear-end which provides a slightly more compliant ride though early examples tended to wiggle about and felt unconfident. That’s not the case anymore, and the Series 3 feels pretty well resolved for road comfort, though like just about any ute with a 3.5-tonne braked towing capacity it can be a touch firm on corrugations.
It’s also not bad around town, feeling easy to turn in tight spaces and the 360-degree birds-view camera making makes everything easy. We actually really appreciated it in a full Bunnings trade centre with people and cars going around everywhere.
But it’s also off-road where the Navara does well, it’s fine 228mm ground clearance helping it when in low-range gear on tough scraggly tracks and through the mud. The standard highway tyres on the N-Trek aren’t much chop for serious off-roading but a set of decent all-terrain tyres will fix that up. And from experience, gives the Navara much more nouse off-road, even in relatively standard trim.
But if you really value off-road ability above all else, the new Navara N-Trek Warrior is well worth a look.
How safe is the Nissan Navara N-Trek?
The Navara scored a five-star ANCAP rating in 2015 (when active safety features such as autonomous emergency braking weren’t required for the top rating).
It comes with seven airbags (including a driver’s knee airbag and full-length curtain airbags for head protection in each of the outer positions).
What are the Nissan Navara N-Trek alternatives?
Nearest contenders to the Navara N-trek include the Toyota Hilux Rugged X, Ford Ranger Wildtrak and Holden Colorado Z71 Xtreme, which all come with varying degrees of differences to their off-road ability, though like many utes, mostly go to adding looks and extra convenience features.
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Nissan Navara N-Trek Warrior Pricing and Specs
Price From $62,990 (man), $65,490 (auto) drive-away Warranty 5 years/unlimited km Engine 2.3L twin-turbo diesel Power 140kW at 3750rpm Torque 450Nm at 1500-2500rpm Transmission 6-speed manual or 7-speed auto Drive four-wheel-drive Body 5385mm (l); 1920mm (w); 1895mm (h) Kerb weight 2186kg Seats 5 Fuel tank 80 litres Spare Full size
Like nearly all of the dual cab pretenders, it is part time 4×4.
Once you have driven a full time 4×4 either:
a) On variable road surfaces
b) Wet bitumen
c) Gravel
d) Any other surface you might encounter
You would never go back to a part time 4×4 set up. “Oh look, this gravel is a bit slippery- hang on while I engage 4×4 and feel all manly about it”, then, 20k’s down the road it becomes a high traction gravel surface, or possibly tarmac, you’re still in 4×4 and can no longer turn corners as your part time 4×4 hero pig roots it’s way around.
The myth that part time 4×4 saves fuel is just that- all it saves is the manufacturers cost of a centre diff.
Any vehicle worth it’s salt built for time away from the tar runs full time 4×4- think rally cars, most 4wd wagons, even things like a Subaru WRX.
That manufacturers continue to roll out “big, masculine, Off Road Dual Cabs” in part time 4×4 is a sad indictment of manufacturers themselves and the posers who buy them. The best example being the Ranger Raptor- almost everything an overlander could want in a ute, but hobbled with part time 4×4, ostensibly so the w@nker owners can say things like “ugh, grunt, I’ll just stick me ute into 4×4 and we’ll be through this puddle and into that Macca’s drive through in no time… but, ugh, grunt, I can’t seem to make the turn… oh the grunting humanity”.
Essentially, if a vehicle manufacturer could man up and make something useful- like a full time 4×4 ute, with 600nm and suspended to soak up corrugations all day every day- it would be near perfect for the Australian Outback. That they haven’t, and stubbornly refuse to, can only mean that the majority of dual cab ute buyers are a bunch of posing wannabes who don’t actually use their vehicles in the manner or the places that they purport to. Soft.
Hmm – 30 seconds of my life I won’t get back reading your uninteresting rant
Feel better now?