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The Nissan Navara is the nameplate used for Nissan pickup trucks with D21, D22, D40 and D23 model codes. These were first produced in 1989, with them arriving in the UK ten years later in 1999. Since then, there have been three generations and a number of facelifts across the model.
As of June 2022, the latest facelift model is not being offered in Europe with the previous version being available until stocks run out as production ceased at the end of 2021 when the Barcelona factory was closed.
Nissan have not confirmed that the Navara is completely gone from the UK and European markets, saying ‘Navara is an important product and the Navara currently sold in Europe meets the needs of our consumers. Future product plans will be announced in due course.’
Whilst this is quite unclear, the good news is that there are still plenty of used Navara options available in the market so you've got plenty to choose from. Our Nissan Navara review will discuss the latest model that was available in the UK and discuss the features across the range.
The Nissan Navara is available as two different models: king cab and double cab. King cab models are pickups with two smaller seats behind the front seats whilst double cab models have a full second row of seats with their own doors for accessing them.
The Navara was also released as a king cab chassis and a double cab chassis in the Visia trim level only, meaning you could purchase either without the pre fabricated flatbed which was suitable for specialist conversions.
As expected, you have a much higher driving position in the Navara's cabin than in an SUV or other car type which brings you an excellent view of the road and surroundings. You are required to climb up and into the cabin so the side steps that are available on some of the higher spec models make this much easier.
The Nissan Navara cabin is incredibly spacious so there's plenty of room for four passengers to fit in either model, although the double cab will have more space for rear seat accommodation.
The dashboard layout is really simple which makes it easy to use, regardless of which trim level you choose. There's also a 5 inch high definition and full colour combimeter for the driver which is a nice touch and works really well with the infotainment system available from the N-Connecta trim onwards.
Whilst the materials used in the lower trim levels aren't all that plush, they make up for it in durability as the Nissan feels built to last and incredibly sturdy. There's also smart design choices in the cabin like the front arm rest doubling up as the top of the central console storage space.
As expected with any vehicle, if you spend more money on a higher trim level you do find that there are improvements to the materials used, such as full leather upholstery or accent coloured stitching
The length of the rear bed is 1800mm for the king cab and 1585mm for the double cab models. For comparison, the Ford Ranger is 1847mm in length for their super cab model and 1549 for their double cab. They do also offer a single cab model which has a rear bed length of 2317mm, which the Nissan Navara doesn't have a direct comparative to.
The towing capacity of the Nissan Navara is 3500kg which is equal to the Ranger and 300kg more than the Volkswagen Amarok. The Navara sits amongst the highest towing capacities for pickups available in the UK and is a great option if you regularly tow large vehicles.
The seats in the Nissan Navara are designed to give passengers better spinal support by wrapping around them more than other seat types. Your body has more contact with the seat and in the higher trim levels, like the Tekna models, you can adjust your settings with the electric adjustments and compliment it with heating your seats.
All models have isofix fittings for child seats too, meaning that you're not restricted with who can travel with you in the Nissan Navara.
Every Nissan Navara is powered by a 2.3 litre diesel engine with either a six speed manual gearbox or seven speed automatic gearbox and two different amounts of power. As diesel engines neither are particularly good for the environment but they do use a selective catalytic reduction system which uses Adblue to reduce NOx emissions.
The dCi163 is only available with a six speed manual gearbox in the Visia and Acenta trim levels and as the name suggests it provides 163PS. It's got a 0-60mph time of 12.5 seconds and a combined mpg of 31.8.
Alternatively there's the dCi190 which is available as a six speed manual or seven speed automatic gearbox from the N-Connecta trim onwards. This is a faster engine thanks to 190PS and has a 0-60mph time of 11.2 seconds. Looking at fuel economy, the dCi190 has a combined mpg of 31.7 in the manual gearbox or 29.6 for the automatic.
There's also multi link rear suspension as a standard which means that the Nissan Navara is an incredibly comfortable pickup to drive. The suspension takes away the bumpy ride that some trucks have, especially if they're fitted with more traditional rear leaf spring suspension.
There are five trim levels available across the Nissan Navara range: the Visia, Acenta, N-Connecta, Tekna, and N-Guard. All have various levels of equipment and technology.
There are some standard features that you will get regardless of which trim level you choose. These include front and rear mudguards, 4 way manually adjustable passenger seat, electrically adjustable door mirrors, daytime running lights, a high mounted LED centre brake light, steering wheel audio controls, and a 5 inch high definition and full colour combimeter. If you opt for one of the king cab models you'll also have folding rear seats.
Choosing the entry level Visia models will add a black tube rear bumper, black front grille and door handles, 6 way manually adjustable driver seat, and black door mirrors. The king cab models will have a black front bumper and 2 speakers inside the cab whilst the double cab has a body coloured front bumper and 4 speakers inside.
The Acenta trim adds a chrome surround on the daytime running lights, a body coloured front bumper, chrome front grille, rear electric windows, 4 speakers, forward emergency braking, 17 inch alloy wheels, and c-channel movable tie down points.
The N-Connecta is the mid trim level for the Nissan Navara and brings much more equipment to it. You will have 18 inch alloy wheels, a chrome rear step bumper with under bumper rail, chrome handles, rear privacy glass, a leather steering wheel, automatic dimming rear-view mirror, automatic dual zone air conditioning with pollen filter, start push button, chrome mirrors, electric folding mirrors with indicator, heated door mirrors, fog lights, and a rear view camera.
It's also the N-Connecta that adds the 8 inch NissanConnect infotainment with sat nav, Apple Carplay & Android Auto, and side steps to make it easier to climb into the cabin. At N-Connecta level these are black grained side steps.
The Tekna upgrades these to silver sides steps and adds even more equipment. This includes silver roof rails, heated seats, 8 way electrical adjustment for the driver's seat, leather upholstery, leather gear lever and handbrake, LED headlights, LED daytime running lights, automatic headlight levelling, and Nissan's intelligent around view monitor.
The top of the range N-Guard swaps many of the chrome details to black such as the front grille, rear bumper step with under bumper rail, side steps, roof rails, door handles, fog light surrounds, and door mirrors. There's also 18 inch black alloy wheels, black and yellow N-Guard side decals, leather and cloth seats with yellow stitching, a sunroof, and rear parking sensors.
The Nissan Navara has a 4 star Euro NCAP rating which places it on par with others in the pick up market such as the Mitsubishi L200 and the Volkswagen Amarok. The Ford Ranger outperforms it with a 5 star rating but the Toyota Hilux is below it with a 3 star rating.
This rating has expired, which just means that the Navara is due to be retested as the testing conditions and requirements may have changed since it was first ranked in 2015.
The Nissan Navara has a range of standard kit that supports it's rating such as hill descent control, hill start assist, trailer sway assist, vehicle dynamic control, electronic limited-slip differential with cut off, front and rear disc brakes, ABS with EBD and brake assist, idle stop start for manual models, five link rear suspension with dual stage coil springs, and load restraint hooks.
There are also optional upgrades which assist with the drive of the car, such as including a rear diff-lock which keeps the engine's drive spread across the rear wheels evenly to make sure that you have the right power in difficult situations. If you can find a Nissan Navara with this it's a really useful feature.
The service interval on the Nissan Navara is 12,500 miles or every 24 months whilst its manufacturing warranty is 5 years or 100,000 miles (whichever comes first). If you're under 100,000 miles you can extend it every year until the car is 10 years old or finally reaches 100,000 miles.
Many pick ups struggle to find the balance between it's requirement to be rugged but also to be polished enough to drive as you would your normal car. Thankfully the Nissan Navara has a comfortable ride, lots of passenger space, a decent amount of equipment, and great handling which makes it easy to use whether you're off road or dropping the kids off at school.
Our knowledgeable team at the John Clark Nissan site in Aberdeen are always on hand to help you with any further questions that you have about light commercial vehicles and will happily guide you around the used stock that we have available.
