NISSAN 370Z GETS A FRESH LOOK

The Nissan 370Z has been given a styling refresh for the 2018 season. Smoke is the name of the game on this old-style sportscar that refuses to die. And nor should it die, it’s extremely affordable and gives plenty of driving pleasure. Smoked front and rear lights, a smoked finish on exterior door handles and new design of 19-inch alloy wheels. This is set off by an excellent new shade of red, with the richer Cherry Red replacing the superseded Bordeaux. Other colours are on the palette, check with your… Read more

NISSAN X-TRAIL 2007 – 2016

2010 Nissan X-Trail

Now in its 18th year, with total Australian sales approaching 200,000, the Nissan X-Trail continues to be an important vehicle for the Japanese giant. Indeed at this time Nissan Australia is only selling SUVs, not passenger cars. We will review models from the second generation, launched in November 2007 onwards. These were larger than the initial X-Trails and can carry four adult in comfort, three juniors plus mum and dad with ease. Seven seats, offered from the third generation in 2014, are pretty cramped in the back and really only… Read more

2017 NISSAN 370Z NISMO REVIEW

Nissan’s 370Z sportscar is getting on in years but still looks the part and is bargain priced. Indeed it recommended retail price has been coming down to compensate for the years going up. For a little over $50,000 on the road it gives you a blast into the past that’s most enjoyable. Now another, pretty special version of the 370Z is on sale, one from the Nissan Motorsports and tuning division Nismo. The 370Z Nismo features added power, sports suspension, wider tyres, bigger brakes, a hot body kit and a… Read more

STUTTERING START TO UPGRADED NISSAN SUV

In one way or another, the Nissan Qashqai has been involved in ringing more changes than a crew of cathedral campanologists. Since its launch in 2007 the small sports utility vehicle has gone through a name change and a raft of iterations. It landed in Australia a year later under the name of Dualis as an all-wheel drive, added a seven-seat variant in 2010 and two years later had become this country’s most popular small SUV. The second generation Dualis reverted to the Qashqai moniker in 2014, at the same… Read more

NISSAN STILL A BIG MANUFACTURER IN AUSTRALIA

Nissan started assembling cars in Sydney over 50 years ago, in 1966. Then began full-line local production in 1972, eventually not only making Nissans here, but also Holdens for a while (some Astras were based on Nissan Pulsars). Though Nissan pulled out of full-scale manufacturing here in 1992, it continues to make car components to this day, and plans to do so well into the next decade. The Nissan Casting Plant (NCAP) in Clayton, Victoria employs 192 skilled workers, runs three shifts a day, seven days a week making approximately… Read more

2018 NISSAN X-TRAIL REVIEW

Nissan has given its midsize X-Trail SUV a solid makeover in appearance both inside and out, as well as a major performance boost, added technology and improved overall refinement. The Nissan X-Trail is offered with five or seven-seat versions, though the seven-seater is only available if you chose the 2WD model with the 2.5-litre petrol engine. Our test Nissan for the past week was a five-seat diesel X-Trail Ti. STYLING Three new paint colours: Marine Blue, Copper Blaze and Ruby Red lift it away from the various shades of silver… Read more

NISSAN ADDS UPMARKET X-TRAIL TO RANGE

The Nissan X-Trail range has been expanded to include the topline TL model with a 2.0-litre turbo-diesel engine. This four-cylinder engine produces up to130 kW of power with maximum torque of 380 Nm at a relatively high 2000 rpm. There should be good torque below the peak figure, something we will comment on when we can get ourselves behind the wheel of one. The powerplant is also offered in the entry X-Trail TS. It drives to all four wheels through a CVT automatic transmission. Nissan Australia managing director Stephen Lester,… Read more

NISSAN PATROL UPGRADED FOR 2018

Nissan Patrol has a new look and a variety of enhancements to make it even more attractive to large 4WD / SUV buyers. The Patrol’s front has a new grille with horizontal metallic bars, and revised foglamp housings. A new design of 18-inch alloy wheels is aimed at giving it a more premium look. Inside, the Patrol range gets an updated infotainment system with a multi-touch panel that’s now more intuitive. There are now two USB charging points at the rear of the centre console. The range-topping Patrol Ti-L has… Read more

2017 NISSAN PATHFINDER TI REVIEW

Of late, the Nissan Pathfinder has proved something of an enigma for the Japanese manufacturer. This model, released here in 2014, has not found as much favour amongst families as they expected, so a little bit of jouging was needed to pique the interest. Nissan has tweaked the ride and design, adjusted a few of the functions and made it even quieter than before. We took the range-topping Ti home with us for the week. STYLING This Pathfinder now sports Nissan’s V Motion grille and new headlights and a few… Read more

2018 NISSAN NAVARA ST REVIEW

Two years into its lifecycle, the Nissan Navara has found itself on the right end of a few twerks and tweaks. It is unusual, yes, but also gives a strong indication of how important this ute is to the motoring giant. Complaints of ride quality have followed the 2016 model and Nissan has worked hard to revise the suspension, made changes to the front and rear shock absorbers and stiffened the rebound dampers. Nissan has also taken this opportunity to add a further variant to the range, the SL, a… Read more