Nissan Navara axed in Europe, but Australia committed to its Toyota HiLux, Ford Ranger and Mitsubishi Triton rival

Nissan will discontinue its Navara ute next year in Europe with the shuttering of its production facility in Barcelona, Spain, however, Australia will continue to offer its second best-selling model for the foreseeable future.

Nissan Australia sources its one-tonne ute from Thailand, which “has a long-term commitment to produce the new Navara for many markets including Australia and Thailand – along with other Nissan products for both domestic and export markets,” said a spokesperson.

“Navara is an incredibly important model for Nissan in Australia and we are committed to its ongoing success for our customers and dealers.”

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As such, the Thailand facility is unaffected by the closure in Barcelona closure.

Of note, the Mercedes-Benz X-Class and Renault Alaskan, which both used Nissan Navara underpinnings, were also produced in Spain, and the earlier announcement of the discontinuation of both has likely played a part in shuttering the plant.

Speaking to Automotive News, a Nissan Europe spokesperson said: “Production of the current-generation Nissan Navara for European markets will end when our Barcelona plant closes in December 2021, and sales will end in the course of 2022.

“This reflect the declining pickup segment in Europe and the switch many consumers are taking from pickups to our range of modern and more efficient vans,” they said.

Nissan Australia meanwhile, has bigger plans for its Navara ute, with a planned Warrior flagship expected to break cover soon.

Like the old Warrior, Nissan will team with local engineering firm Premcar to build the off-road special, designed to take down the likes of the Ford Ranger Raptor and Toyota HiLux Rugged X.

Expect to see the Warrior version adopt lifted suspension, all-terrain tyres, increased underbody protection and more unique visual touches, if the preceding Navara N-Trek Warrior is anything to go by.

Engine-wise, the new Warrior should also retain the same 140kW/450Nm 2.3-litre twin-turbo-diesel powertrain found in most variants of the current Navara, which was refreshed with a new look in March.

The Navara is currently the second-best performing model for Nissan Australia, notching 5437 new registrations in the first five months of 2021.

Only the X-Trail (7733 year-to-date sales) outperforms the Navara in Nissan’s stable, while the Qashqai (4008 sales), Patrol (1305 sales) and Juke (1068) round out the top five.