Nissan Navara – Meet the Mother Trucker
Serendah, 20 October, 2008 – I got an invite from Tan Chong Motors to meet at their Serendah Plant today for a special and exclusive sneak preview of the long awaited Nissan Navara, and guess what greeted me at the front entrance – a huge banner that cheekily said, “Meet The Mother Trucker”
A little naughty, perhaps, but after getting to know the New Nissan Navara, I think the words couldn’t be better coined – This is the Mother of All Trucks. Read on and you will see why.
The powerplant of the All-New Nissan Navara is a 2.5 litre Common-rail diesel, but it produces a whopping 174 PS of power at 4,000 rpm, and a staggering 403 Nm at 2,000 rpm. These numbers would be meaningless to the uninitiated, but consider that the nearest competitor in this class has 143ps, while the rest are at around 136 PS, with one very popular model at a mere 102PS. In fact the Navara’s power surpasses that of even some of its larger engine-sized competitors. This means the Navara immediately moves to the top of the class insofar as power and torque are concerned. This is due in part to direct injection and the use of what Nissan calls a ‘variable nozzle turbo charger’ that has an effect that is much the same as what variable valve timing has on a gasoline engine. Basically it is like having a small turbo at low engine speeds to reduce the lag on initial acceleration, but by playing with the geometry, it becomes the equivalent of a much larger turbo as the engine revolutions pick up, allowing for bigger boost and therefore more power. The result is a more powerful engine, and fuel consumption is said to be better, although we did not have the opportunity to do a fuel consumption test.
To hammer home the message of Mother Trucker, the Navara comes packed with a car-like interior, a sporty three-spoke steering wheel and leather seats, an AM/FM 6-CD Disc Changer with MP3 and 6 speakers. A large rear passenger compartment provides plenty of legroom for occupants, and there are two glove boxes. In addition, the rear seats fold down to provide extra stowage if needed.
All of the above sounds like I am talking about a SUV, but in reality, the Navara is actually a double cab light truck, complete with a rubber-lined rear deck.
Suspension is double wishbone with coil-over springs at the front, with leaf springs attached to a solid axle at the rear. Front brakes are massive, with ventilated discs and twin-pot callipers. At the rear, huge drums do the stopping, aided by ABS and EBD.
Power is transmitted to the rear wheels under conventional conditions, through an electronically controlled 5-speed gearbox, and 4WD actuation from 2H to 4H is electronically actuated on the fly up to 100 km/h. 4L actuation requires the Navara to stop to avoid damage to the transmission due to sudden forced deceleration. A limited slip differential (LSD) at the rear axle is standard equipment. 16-inch alloy wheels with matching HT tyres.
In terms of night time illumination, the Navara sports Xenon lights, a first for a light truck, and dual SRS airbags are standard issue.
The Navara will be launched to the local public in the next few days, and although the official selling price for a Navara has not been officially announced pending approval from the authorities, there are already many enquiries for this new kid on the block! A little bird told me that it will be in the region of RM105k.
The official launch will be in a couple of weeks. Keep your eyes on this site.
