First drive: Nissan X-Trail ePower
- Nissan X-Trail ePower
- Price range: $62,990 to $66,990
- Powertrain: ePower – three-cylinder 1.5-litre variable compression turbo engine, 1.8kWh battery and twin 157kW (combined)/300Nm front and 195Nm rear electric motors, AWD. 6.1 l/100 km and 143 g/km CO2.
- Body shape: SUV.
- On sale: beginning of 2023.
Nissan’s popular adventurer, the X-Trail, has been “electrified” with a unique ePower powertrain combined with the new “e-4orce” four-wheel drive system, which provides an “EV-like” driving experience without the need to plug in. .
Let me become an expert now: what do I need to know?
With more than 21,000 examples already gracing New Zealand’s roads, it’s fair to say that the previous three generations of the Nissan X-Trail have already made quite an impression here. While they can’t rest on their laurels, the new ‘fourth generation’ X-Trail is all-new from the ground up.
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* This is the new Nissan X-Trail SUV
It sits on the CMF-C platform that Nissan shares with Renault, and is shorter, wider and taller than the outgoing model. It has a more adventurous design, more in line with the second generation X-Trail, but with a much more modern bent.
At the front, there is an advanced “V-Motion” grille, new LED headlights and functional lower air vents. The new X-Trail features a ‘floating’ roofline with a full-size panoramic sunroof supported by large ‘B-pillars’, while space has been deliberately left behind the wheel arches to emphasize the SUV’s adventurous attitude. The doors open 85 degrees for easy loading of car seats and the like, and the rear boasts an automatic tailgate and boomerang lights.
The wider stance on the exterior makes for a more spacious cabin, and combined with the Nappa leather and high-quality fit and finish, it’s a really nice place to be. Technology has been greatly improved, with the flagship Ti-L featuring a 12.3-inch touchscreen with navigation, a 10.8-inch head-up display, wireless phone charging and wireless Apple CarPlay, and a 12.3-inch digital driver TFT screen .
Now about that powertrain. It’s easy to call the new X-Trail’s powertrain a hybrid, but it’s much smarter than that. Its three-cylinder 1.5-litre variable-compression turbo petrol engine acts as a generator to power an inverter which, along with brake regeneration, feeds a 1.8kWh battery that drives two electric motors. Thus, at no point does the gasoline engine drive the wheels. As complicated as it sounds, all you have to do as a driver is fill up the tank with fuel and drive it like an electric vehicle – and we did.
Where did you drive it?
To highlight the green features of the new X-Trail, we went to the ‘green heart of Europe’; Slovenia. Slovenia is an absolute gem of a country, with vast Alpine valleys surrounded by snow-capped mountains, all interspersed with centuries-old churches and ski-style houses – it’s dramatic and breathtaking at the same time. More importantly, the roads are a challenging mix of 130km/h freeways, interspersed with narrow, twisting ‘one-car’ lanes in small towns and alpine tarmac on bends.
Ljubljana Airport was our starting and finishing line, but our main base was Hotel Bohinj, an elegant Alpine-style hotel nestled by Lake Bohinj.
Push-button start is a silent experience familiar to those who have driven an EV, engage Drive with the e-shifter’s large shift knob and you’re home, it’s that simple.
A claimed seven-second 0-100km/h sprint gets the X-Trail up to speed quickly. It’s not performance EV-style acceleration, but it doesn’t feel lacking in any way. Such a small battery means the X-Trail can only cover a few kilometers in EV-only mode, which means the petrol engine seems to be running constantly, but don’t fear, NVH (noise vibration harshness) Nissan has done with this new SUV focused on the fact that you only really hear the engine if you want to, and in fact you forget about it very quickly, focusing on the driving experience itself, which is very good.
There are five drive modes (Eco, Normal, Sport, Snow and Off-Road), each changing characteristics of the X-Trail such as throttle response and braking, but I generally stuck with Sport and switched back to Normal. when driving on forest trails.
EV-only mode can be engaged by pressing a button on the center console, and there’s also an e-Pedal Step button that offers a one-pedal driving experience if you want, meaning you don’t need to use the footbrake much at all in many cases. – only for full stops.
Of particular note is Nissan’s new e-4orce all-wheel drive system; it’s super. The system has been designed to work exclusively with Nissan’s electrified powertrains, delivering physics-defying traction no matter what terrain you’re on. Behind the scenes, its rear torque works 10,000 times faster than a mechanical 4WD system and virtually eliminates lean and pitch – it’s an incredibly smooth ride.
To say goodbye to Slovenia and highlight the off-road capabilities of the new X-Trail, Nissan set up a ‘workshop’ track on which we performed sand slaloms, descents, drifting on the sand and ascents on the slope with the left side. wheels resting on wet wooden planks. Using ‘off-road’ mode, this new adventure SUV tackled these tasks with ease – it was very impressive indeed.
What is the choice?
Two trim levels of the Nissan X-Trail e-Power will be introduced to the New Zealand market, the richly equipped ST-L and the flagship Ti-L.
The X-Trail ST-L is equipped with the ProPilot system with lane keeping system, protective glass, fog lights, digital surround monitor, heated front seats, dual-zone climate control, sliding rear seats, front parking sensors, synthetic leather upholstery and 18 – inch alloy wheels. Meanwhile, the Ti-L gets all the extras like a panoramic sunroof, a 10-speaker Bose sound system, full Nappa leather seats and significant tech upgrades (12.3-inch touchscreen with navigation, 10.8-inch screen for head). Up Display, wireless phone charging and wireless Apple CarPlay and a 12.3-inch TFT digital driver display – to name a few).
We’ve only driven the Tekna+ (essentially the top-spec equivalent of the Ti-L – just with some extra Euro-specific apps), so I can’t compare. But for me, all these Ti-L upgrades are worth the premium price.
Why would you buy it?
The new X-Trail e-Power is the ideal ‘transitional’ vehicle, as easy to use as a fossil fuel car, while providing a great introduction to the feeling of driving an electric vehicle. It’s impressive both on and off the road and incredibly well equipped.
Why not buy it?
Emissions and fuel consumption figures are somewhat removed from the overall EV buying experience.