New Nissan X-Trail: the inside story
We get full details on the new UK-spec Nissan X-Trail, which arrives later this year with seven seats and a £25k pricetag
With the Qashqai+2 no longer available in the Nissan line-up, the pressure is on the company’s new seven-seat X-Trail. Auto Express met up with Nissan product manager Marios Alexandrou, who talked us around the first UK-spec car.
While official pricing for the new Nissan X-Trail won’t be announced until May, the starting point is likely to be just under £25,000, rising to around £30,000.
Alexandrou told us: “Our main competitors will be the Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4 [both only available with five seats]. The X-Trail will draw in a lot of different customers – people upgrading from family saloons and downsizing from larger SUVs.”
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In 2013, Nissan only sold 2,000 X-Trails compared to 10,000 previous-generation Qashqai+2s. “People bought the Qashqai+2 due to the increased space it offered,” said Alexandrou. “Now the X-Trail is even bigger and has two extra seats, which are more practical.”
The success of the Qashqai has clearly influenced the design and development of the X-Trail. It rides on the same CMF platform as its smaller crossover cousin, and measures in at 260mm longer, while also being 100mm longer than the previous +2.
The third row of seats will be optional – and cost around £1,200 – with almost 40 per cent of customers likely to choose them.
From launch, only a 128bhp 1.6-litre dCi diesel engine, in either 2WD or 4WD form, will be offered in the new X-Trail. Economy figures are claimed to be 57mpg and 53mpg for the two versions respectively. A 160bhp 1.6-litre DIG-T petrol engine will follow next year.
The SUV market looks set to hot-up still further when the new X-Trail arrives. To find out about the top models, check out our run down of the best SUVs and 4x4s to buy now.
