2023 Nissan X-Trail ST-L review

More than 2 years aft it rolled into US showrooms, the caller 2023 Nissan X-Trail mean SUV has yet arrived successful Australia – the archetypal caller exemplary successful astir 9 years.

Arriving alongside new-generation versions of the smaller Nissan Qashqai and larger Nissan Pathfinder SUVs, the caller X-Trail adopts a bold caller look, much luxurious and tech-laden interior, the latest information technology, a caller petrol engine, and (soon) the enactment of hybrid powerfulness for the archetypal time.

It volition vie successful 1 of Australia’s astir fashionable new-car categories against the likes of its Mitsubishi Outlander duplicate nether the skin, the top-selling Toyota RAV4, and the 2022 Drive Car of the Year-winning Kia Sportage.

There are 4 models successful the caller Nissan X-Trail range. We are investigating the ST-L, which is 1 exemplary up from the basal variant, successful five-seat format and front-wheel thrust (FWD).

Priced from $43,190 positive on-road costs, it is $3100 little than the seven-seat, all-wheel-drive (AWD) mentation of the ST-L – but $4515 much costly than the aforesaid exemplary people successful the outgoing Nissan X-Trail line-up.

Although it is positioned adjacent to the basal exemplary successful the caller Nissan X-Trail range, it is priced likewise to – oregon somewhat much costly than – middle-of-the-range, petrol-engined, automatic versions of rival mid-size SUVs.

These see the Toyota RAV4 GXL 2.0-litre FWD ($41,600), Kia Sportage SX+ 2.0-litre FWD ($41,750), Hyundai Tucson Elite 2.0-litre FWD ($39,900), Mitsubishi Outlander Aspire 2.5-litre FWD ($43,240), Mazda CX-5 Touring 2.5-litre AWD ($43,700) and the Volkswagen Tiguan 110TSI Life 1.4-litre turbo FWD ($42,490). All prices listed are earlier on-road costs.

The Scarlet Ember reddish overgarment connected this trial car is simply a no-cost extra, truthful the conveyance amounts to astir $47,000 drive-away, utilizing a metro Sydney postcode connected Nissan Australia’s online terms calculator.

The X-Trail ST-L people adds 18-inch wheels (up from 17s connected the basal ST), synthetic leather-look trim, an electrically adjustable driver’s seat, heated beforehand seats, dual-zone climate-control air-conditioning, a leather steering wheel, beforehand parking sensors (in summation to the rear parking sensors already modular connected the basal model), a 360-degree camera (in lieu of lone a rear camera connected the basal model), tyre unit monitors, and lane-centring exertion for road driving.

Features shared with the $6440-cheaper X-Trail ST basal exemplary see an 8.0-inch touchscreen with wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto (but nary in-built navigation), a 7.0-inch instrumentality display, dusk-sensing LED headlights, six speakers, sensor-key entry, push-button start, rear parking sensors, power-folding mirrors, and a suite of precocious information technology.

The caller Nissan X-Trail’s compartment looks and feels overmuch newer than its predecessor – due to the fact that it is. Big show screens, a curated enactment of well-presented dials and switches, and plush-looking materials implicit the picture.

Most surfaces supra the waistline of the compartment are covered successful a leather-like worldly (even if it is conscionable upholstered implicit hard plastic). Perceived build prime is just for the class.

The beforehand seats successful this ST-L exemplary people are trimmed successful faux leather – which feels plush capable for the terms – and connection bully comfortableness connected agelong trips, with capable enactment for driving connected winding roads. Front-seat heating is besides standard.

Eight ways of accommodation successful the driver’s seat, and tilt and scope accommodation successful the steering instrumentality – which doesn’t consciousness excessively heavy successful the hand, and is trimmed successful a brushed leather worldly – let drivers to find a comfy position.

The driver's spot has tallness adjustment, yet adjacent successful little settings it delivers a commanding presumption of the roadworthy ahead.

Visibility is bully acknowledgment to the ample windows successful an epoch of sleek designs, and over-shoulder checks are aided by blind-spot and rear cross-traffic alert systems (activated by ample sensors down the rear bumper fascia). 

Nissan should beryllium commended for resisting the impulse to determination the air-conditioning controls into the touchscreen, and alternatively opting for a wide enactment of dials and buttons that are casual to usage connected the move.

To support phones charged for front-seat occupants, determination are 2 USB ports (one USB-A and 1 USB-C) and a 12-volt socket.

Comfort and convenience features see dual-zone air-conditioning, 4 one-touch powerfulness windows, a proximity cardinal and push-button start, and a grippy rubber tray to spot your telephone oregon wallet.

Storage abstraction is bully for the class. The centre console is large, the beforehand doorway bins are large capable for 2 bottles each, determination are coin holders successful the doors, and beneath the centre console is simply a ample retention country for handbags oregon different ample items.

The glovebox is connected the tiny broadside – but the retention abstraction elsewhere, and the rubberised tray up of the gearshifter, means determination is capable abstraction to store wallets, keys, phones, and more.

In the rear, there’s plentifulness of abstraction for taller passengers – I tin beryllium down my 183cm driving presumption without touching the beforehand seats oregon the roof, and determination is capable country to comfortably descent my feet nether the spot successful front.

However, the little cushions – oregon spot bases – successful the backmost enactment deficiency support, peculiarly nether the thighs.

For kid seats, determination are 3 top-tether points down the rear backrests, and 2 ISOFIX anchorages successful the outboard seats. The rear doors unfastened to 85 degrees for casual entree erstwhile loading kids and kid seats.

Three passengers crossed the rear seats tin question successful tenable comfort, arsenic the car is wide and determination isn’t excessively overmuch intrusion from a cardinal transmission passageway successful the floor. When determination isn’t idiosyncratic sitting successful the mediate spot position, an armrest tin beryllium folded down.

The rear seats tin besides split-fold 40:20:40 to accommodate a premix of cargo and passengers.

Features for rear-seat passengers see representation pockets connected some beforehand seats, 2 much USB ports (one USB-C and 1 USB-A), doorway bins ample capable for a vessel each, 2 cupholders successful the centre armrest, and rear aerial vents.

The materials utilized successful the rear aren’t arsenic bully arsenic the beforehand – the tops of the rear doors are hard plastic, though determination is immoderate faux leather further down the doorway panel.

Boot abstraction is rated astatine 585L down the 2nd enactment successful five-seat petrol Nissan X-Trail variants, but it is worthy noting Nissan measures this to the extortion of the car, alternatively than the parcel support arsenic different manufacturers do.

The manual tailgate (power-operated tailgates are reserved for dearer models) opens wide to a broad, rectangular country that’s ample capable for 2 full-size suitcases broadside by side. ST-L models and the adjacent grades up person a two-piece adjustable footwear level to make maximum retention capableness – oregon usage the screen to fell a decent-sized retention country below. There’s besides a 12-volt outlet successful the boot.

The flexibility of the cargo clasp comes astatine a price: arsenic with galore SUVs, the Nissan X-Trail ST-L lacks a full-size spare tyre and alternatively comes with a skinny space-saver.

The 2 cheapest versions successful the caller Nissan X-Trail scope are fitted with an 8.0-inch infotainment touchscreen, wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Bluetooth, and AM, FM and DAB+ integer radio.

The strategy is casual to usage and the graphics are wide – but if you are keen connected the latest software, and it’s wrong your budget, see stepping up to the $7000-dearer Ti exemplary that gains a larger 12.3-inch show with wireless Apple CarPlay, built-in outer navigation, and newer, faster software.

We encountered nary issues with wired Apple CarPlay during our testing, and the clarity of the parking cameras is supra average. The fitment of a 360-degree camera and some beforehand and rear parking sensors astatine this terms constituent is simply a invited inclusion.

The driver’s instrumentality binnacle consists of 2 analogue dials and a 7.0-inch surface betwixt them.

As with the infotainment screen, the instruments are clear, elemental to read, and offer the cardinal driving accusation – speed, substance economy, information systems, tyre pressures – but the Ti’s sharper and much feature-rich 12.3-inch widescreen clump volition entreaty to tech fans.

We weren’t near longing for the Ti’s 10.8-inch head-up display, arsenic the ST-L’s operator show is configured to amusement a elephantine integer velocity readout that’s casual to comprehend astatine a glance.

All X-Trail models but the top-of-the-range Ti-L are equipped with an unbranded six-speaker dependable system, which does the occupation good – peculiarly fixed the car is quiescent astatine freeway speeds – without bursting an eardrum.

The Nissan X-Trail earned a five-star information rating from the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) based connected the just-superseded 2020–22 protocols.

But it’s worthy noting the standing is based chiefly connected investigating of the smaller, related Nissan Qashqai SUV – and “ANCAP was provided with method accusation and further tests were conducted to amusement that the Qashqai standing is besides applicable to the X-Trail”, the information assemblage says. 

The X-Trail carries scores of 91 per cent for big occupant protection, 90 per cent for kid occupant protection, 74 per cent for susceptible roadworthy idiosyncratic extortion (pedestrians and cyclists), and 97 per cent for information assistance technology.

The X-Trail’s kid occupant extortion people is 3 percent points little than the Qashqai (90 vs 93 per cent), portion its information assistance effect is the second-best nether the 2020–22 criteria, tied with the Qashqai and down the Tesla Model Y (98 per cent).

Seven airbags are modular – dual frontal airbags, broadside (torso) airbags for the beforehand occupants, curtain airbags for beforehand and rear occupants, and a centre airbag betwixt the beforehand seats to forestall occupants’ heads clashing successful terrible side-impact crashes.

Advanced information exertion connected connection includes lane-keep assist, lane-centring assist, adaptive cruise control, guardant collision warning, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, operator drowsiness detection, postulation motion recognition, tyre unit monitoring, beforehand and rear parking sensors, a 360-degree camera, and doorway exit warning.

Further, the forward-facing autonomous exigency braking (AEB) strategy offers pedestrian and cyclist detection, and tin brake if the car turns crossed the way of an oncoming conveyance successful an intersection. There’s besides low-speed rear AEB; a handy safety diagnostic erstwhile reversing retired of parking spaces oregon driveways erstwhile determination are pedestrians oregon kids nearby.

During our clip with the car, determination were nary mendacious positives from the exigency braking tech (activating erstwhile there’s nary entity to hit), and lane-keep assistance relation was not overzealous, as it tin beryllium connected immoderate cars that person not been calibrated correctly.

While the exigency systems did not chopped successful unnecessarily – oregon use steering oregon braking connected the determination – beeps and chimes were predominant occurrences, adjacent detecting passing cars successful different lanes portion waiting to crook close into a broadside street.

The radar cruise power and lane-centring systems harvester to signifier what Nissan presumption its ‘ProPilot’ semi-autonomous system.

It mostly works well, maintaining the spread to the car successful beforehand and steering wrong its lane – but the adaptive cruise power felt hesitant, and could beryllium revised to respond faster to cars up accelerating away, portion the lane-centring strategy tin drift retired of the lane connected tighter bends oregon erstwhile lane markings are faded oregon non-existent, causing the lane-keep assistance to chopped successful and close the car’s ain mistake.

The Nissan X-Trail is covered by a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, with servicing required each 12 months oregon 10,000km – shorter intervals than astir rivals, which telephone for attraction each 12 months oregon 15,000km.

The X-Trail is besides 1 of the astir costly models successful the mid-size SUV class for regular attraction priced astatine $2332 for 5 years/50,000km – oregon astir $465 per twelvemonth implicit the people of the warranty.

That is much costly than cardinal competitors implicit the aforesaid period, including the Toyota RAV4 ($1300), Honda CR-V ($995), Hyundai Tucson 2.0-litre petrol ($1595), Mazda CX-5 G25 petrol ($2073), and the Nissan’s Mitsubishi Outlander sibling ($1595).

However, it’s line-ball with a Kia Sportage 2.0-litre ($2395) and Subaru Forester (about $2400), and cheaper than a Volkswagen Tiguan 110TSI without a pre-paid work program ($3323 without, but $1400 with). 

A twelvemonth of broad security sum costs astir $1172 (from 1 starring insurer) based connected a comparative punctuation for a 35-year-old antheral operator surviving successful Chatswood, NSW. Insurance estimates whitethorn alteration based connected your location, driving history, and idiosyncratic circumstances.

Nissan claims front-wheel-drive, petrol X-Trails volition devour 9.9 litres per 100km of substance successful the city, oregon 6.1L/100km connected the highway, for a combined ratio assertion of 7.4L/100km.

Over 560km – consisting chiefly of inner-city and suburban driving, but with immoderate freeway usage successful the premix – the travel machine settled connected 9.5L/100km. 

If you seldom task beyond the metropolis limits, expect that substance system fig to tick person to 10.5 oregon 11L/100km, portion buyers who predominant motorways tin expect person to 7.5 oregon 8.0L/100km. That is akin to different mid-size SUVs with non-turbo petrol engines.

However, if substance system is simply a precocious priority, a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid volition easy instrumentality substance system of astir 6L/100km, portion a diesel Hyundai Tucson oregon Kia Sportage’s travel machine volition amusement 6L/100km successful perfect conditions.

If substance depletion is simply a priority, but you’re acceptable connected a caller Nissan X-Trail, see the e-Power hybrid version. As our investigating successful caller years has shown crossed aggregate brands, not each hybrids are created adjacent and we'll screen the e-Power's efficency successful upcoming reviews. 

There is 1 different footnote. For now, the e-Power hybrid strategy is lone disposable connected the flagship, better-equipped Ti and Ti-L models – and they are $10,000 to $15,000 much than this ST-L (at $54,190 to $57,190 positive on-road costs). For comparison, each Toyota RAV4 exemplary people is disposable with hybrid powerfulness for a $2500 premium implicit their equivalent petrol variants. 

Most models successful the caller Nissan X-Trail scope are powered by a 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with outputs of 135kW and 244Nm – 9kW/19Nm much than the 2.4-litre motor successful the aged model.

All models nonstop powerfulness done a continuously adaptable automatic transmission (CVT). This five-seat ST-L exemplary is front-wheel drive, though all-wheel thrust is disposable for $3100 extra, successful conjunction with a 3rd enactment of seats (for a full of seven).

The engine’s outputs whitethorn look humble successful a conveyance this size, and for a astir 1.6-tonne mass, but the caller 2.5-litre motor provides capable powerfulness for freeway merging and hills.

We recovered throttle effect from remainder to beryllium unpredictable astatine archetypal – sometimes jerky and over-eager, but different times connected the sluggish broadside – but we got utilized to it and recovered the Standard thrust mode delivered the astir pleasant experience.

The X-Trail feels quicker disconnected the people than its duplicate nether the skin, the Mitsubishi Outlander, which shares the 2.5-litre motor but is astir 100kg heavier.

Not that these household SUVs are show cars, we nevertheless ran immoderate numbers to spot however they comparison against their contemporaries.

We recorded a 0–100km/h acceleration clip of 8.4 seconds successful this X-Trail ST-L front-wheel-drive trial car – somewhat quicker than astir petrol-powered mid-size SUV rivals and a interaction slower than a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid we tested recently.

Under dense acceleration, the continuously adaptable automatic transmission (CVT) tin induce immoderate groaning from the motor arsenic the revs climb, but wide it is 1 of the amended CVTs we person tested.

It shuffles done its 8 simulated cogwheel ratios smoothly and responds rapidly to a abrupt request for acceleration from the operator – mimicking a bully content of a accepted automatic transmission. There are paddle shifters down the steering instrumentality for drivers who privation much power implicit the transmission.

Around town, the X-Trail delivers a brushed and compliant thrust implicit velocity bumps and imperfections successful the road. Although occasionally the thrust tin person a steadfast edge, peculiarly compared to the Toyota Corolla Cross tiny SUV we drove soon earlier this Nissan, which felt soft.

The trade-off for the hint of firmness implicit immoderate metropolis bumps is bully assemblage power connected an undulating state road, with a sure-footed, tied-down consciousness that inspires confidence.

The X-Trail was much enjoyable to thrust than we anticipated connected a winding agelong of road, with assemblage rotation kept nether control, and well-judged steering that is airy successful the metropolis but besides responsive astatine higher speeds, helping you consciousness amended connected to the road.

Other positives: upwind sound and tyre roar are reasonably good suppressed, the motor is mostly quiescent astatine cruising speeds, and the beforehand seats are comfy connected agelong drives.

However, we weren’t arsenic impressed with the X-Trail’s tyre grip and braking show arsenic its acceleration and handling.

Braking show was not arsenic respectable arsenic the acceleration time, stopping from 100km/h successful 40 metres successful our testing. That is borderline mean for a household car – peculiarly 1 connected middle-of-the-road comfortableness tyres, not low-resistance eco rubber designed solely to maximise substance economy.

It took immoderate clip to set to the consciousness of the brake pedal, which was not arsenic linear arsenic we’d similar and needed to beryllium pushed further towards the level than is perfect earlier immoderate important braking unit was applied – adjacent successful the regular commute.

The show of the Bridgestone Alenza Sport A/S (235/60 R18) tyres was acceptable successful the dry.

However, successful the rainfall – oregon connected a damp roadworthy – tyre grip is beneath mean (even fixed the conditions), and it doesn’t instrumentality overmuch throttle to get the beforehand wheels spinning, whether accelerating into a spread successful postulation oregon gathering velocity up a hill.

On 1 occasion, we experienced immoderate unnerving behaviour from the traction-control strategy connected a damp road, which activated successful the mediate of a country and caused the car to buck. We were incapable to replicate this, truthful it whitethorn beryllium a one-off incidental circumstantial to a peculiar acceptable of conditions.

The caller Nissan X-Trail has been good worthy the nine-year wait. The interior is spacious and plush, portion the compartment and information exertion are yet up to date. It is good equipped for the money, and it is comfy implicit bumps.

There remains country for betterment – it costs much to work than astir rivals, the servicing intervals don’t favour long-distance drivers, and its braking show and wet-weather grip aren’t arsenic bully arsenic we would person liked.

The caller motor is creaseless and potent capable for the benignant and size of car, and what it’s expected to do. Its system is just for a petrol mid-size SUV, but a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid uses fractional arsenic overmuch substance if that's your priority.

Overall, the caller Nissan X-Trail is simply a beardown proposition successful the mid-size SUV class. 

Alex Misoyannis has been penning astir cars since 2017, erstwhile helium started his ain website, Redline. He contributed for Drive successful 2018, earlier joining CarAdvice successful 2019, becoming a regular contributing writer wrong the quality squad successful 2020. Cars person played a cardinal relation passim Alex’s life, from flicking done car magazines astatine a young age, to increasing up astir show vehicles successful a car-loving family.

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