RACQ REVIEW

RACQ - Nissan X-trail - a winning city slicker that goes bush easily

By Chris de Fraga (07 June 2002)

More of a city car than a bush explorer wagon, the Nissan X-trail has a practical and well laid out interior that works well in a city environment.

There are little fold out cup holders below the speakers under the windshield and can holders in the dashboard centre that will chill in the cans and reasonable space for odds and ends. At $31,990, it is no wonder Nissan has found it a strong seller to the growing medium sized all wheel drive wagon market.

The load area in the rear has a sensible wipe-out interior rather than carpet and the rear door lifts to reveal a reasonably low loading height. Practical points include storage space within the spare wheel under that wipe-clean rear floor and reclining backs for the split bench rear seat.

An unusual point about the interior is the instrument pack�s location in the centre under the windshield�s lower rail. The Toyota Echo has the instrument pack there but that is electric and deeply hidden. The Nissan system is analogue, clearer and includes the usual four dials � engine and road speed, coolant temperature and fuel level. However, there is no trip computer or indication of outside temperature, a reading that can be a useful safety aid in winter mountain conditions. Putting the instruments in the middle has allowed a driver�s glove box in the top of the dashboard and this also has a power socket so mobile telephones can be stowed and charged.

Eager performance through a big 2.5 litre four cylinder engine allied to shorter gearing gives the new Nissan X-trail a lively and likeable personality. With 132 kW at 6000 rpm, its four cylinder engine is able to spur the light four wheel drive wagon to 100 km/h in less than 10 seconds. Torque of 246 Nm peaks at 4000 rpm but there remains useful torque at 2000 rpm which can be vital for slower, tougher going.

Most of the time the X-trail runs in front wheel drive with the rear wheels being hooked up either automatically when the appropriate button is pushed. This Automatic Selection button can be used on the move so arriving at the bottom of a steep muddy hill and being confronted with a bog-hole where the creek has almost dissolved the track is no longer a problem. A quick push on the Lock button alongside the Automatic button and the X-trail can probably clamber out of the gluey bits without getting any mud on the car crew�s gumboots.

This push-button off road ability is something of a sop to off-road enthusiasts who look forward to winching-weekends. They might regard the X-trail as something of a night-club cowboy able to handle only the wet grass of nature strips beside suburban streets and car parks. However, the X-trail was conceived as a city-slicker that will not be disgraced when shown a bush track. At least the X-trail�s dimensions are not so large that the usual narrow Australian bush tracks are a problem. Further, it has a 28 degree approach angle and a 26 degree trail angle on its bodywork so there is less chance of snagging the softly small-bump-deformable bumpers at each end. Ground clearance of 150 mm is nothing special. Even the Volvo Cross Country and the Audi All-Road manage 205 mm.

In some ways, the X-trail is like Nissan�s answer to the Toyota Rav4, a vehicle that will go to some surprising places with aplomb. It is not the ultimate for those mud-happy, winching weekends in low-ratio, high-country. It was designed to allow city slickers to clamber up snowy roads in added safety to reach car parks that fill early.

The X-trail has a lively performance too, that endears it when the roads turn to gravel and there are patches of snow about. Its five gear ratios are well balanced to keep the engine spinning fast enough to deliver ample performance. Fuel use is not too profligate due to the efficiency of its design.

There is ample engine noise to warn when the engine speed is approaching its red-line on the tachometer and the short gearing means most of the time the needle is swinging between 2000-4000 rpm in normal driving that usually takes 1500-3000 rpm. Rarely does the engine seem to strain and it feels encouragingly elastic, able to hang onto the shorter, higher gears in traffic or uphills. Variable valve timing and variable inlet tracts are part of the technology that smears the torque over a wide rev range. Starts in second are easy.

Coil spring rates in the X-trail are biased to comfort and highway use. MacPherson strut front suspension and struts with twin parallel links in the rear suspension means the X-trail will handle and ride like a car. Seats are padded and shaped to suit the bounce rates of the coil springs and shock absorbers and successfully make city use comfortable. On rougher roads, the ride remains comfortable but objects need to be well stowed to stop rattles. The raised sides on the front bucket seats are a little too widely set and soft to perform much more than visual reassurance.

Brakes � vented front discs, solid rear discs with ABS as standard � have quite a long pedal travel and feel softer than ideal. More power assistance, a shorter pedal arc and discs at the rear would improve them but then cost might be expected to intervene. ABS brakes are even better.

Driving controls are light to use and there are electric windows, mirrors, and a single CD player in the sound system that is mounted above the comfort heating and demisting system where it can be found easily within the driver�s sight lines.

On the highway, there is little enough noise from the engine and there seems to be plenty of torque available for holding the cruising speed. Cruise control and a trip computer that calculates the vital �Distance to Empty� readout are missed from the specification. The dearer TI model has cruise control, larger alloy wheels and climate control as well as the air conditioning of the ST.

Safety equipment includes twin airbags and pre-tensioners for the seat belts but not side or header rail bags. It is a handy device to have about whether transport for winter sports, gathering the winter wood or the supermarket-school-sport shuttle.

For its willing performance, easy parking, commanding driving position and practicality it deserves nine out of 10 but on the ST the lack of cruise control, trip computer and side or head bags pulls that rating back to eight out of 10.

PRICE: $31,990 including tax.

ENGINE: Four cylinder, DOHC, variable valve timing, 2488 cc, 132 kW at 6000 rpm, 245 Nm torque at 4000 rpm. Tank 60 litres, 9.7 li/100 km.

TRANSMISSION: Five speed, two wheel front drive or automatic all wheel drive or locked 57/43 front rear drive.

SUSPENSION: Independent, coil springs, MacPherson struts front, struts rear with twin parallel links.

BRAKES: Vented front rotors, solid rear rotors, ABS hydraulics.

SAFETY: Twin airbags, belt pre-tensioners, ABS brakes.

RIVALS: Toyota RAV4, Subaru Impreza, Suzuki XL7.