Nissan Patrol ST-S 2004 review

The revamp of the venerable wagon sees a bigger, bolder grille and squared-off, add-on flares over the front and rear guards. The bonnet is new and the rear bumper's been revised.

And there are new 17-inch alloy wheels for seven-seat Patrols.

The rear barn doors are still split vertically into a one-third, two-thirds arrangement.

Explore the 2004 Nissan Patrol range

• Nissan Patrol ST-S 2004 review
• Nissan Patrol 2004 review
• Nissan Patrol Ti 2004 review

This Patrol is now a little larger at 5050mm long, 1940mm wide and 1855mm high.

Inside there's a new dashboard, revised trim and reworked seats. Rear seat passengers in some versions score a flip-down table fitted to the rear of the front seats.

There is a five-speed automatic option for the 4.8-litre petrol engine and a host of safety, comfort and convenience extras as the models move upmarket.

Yet while Nissan reckon every body panel apart from the roof is new on the seven-seaters, this is still one big and tough-styled machine.

That shows around the town. Backing and filling around the suburban carpark needs some care. Jostling for lane space down Ipswich Rd needs some patience.

There remain three engine choices – the six-cylinder 4.2-litre turbo diesel and 4.8-litre petrol, which remain as before, plus a reworked four-cylinder, 3-litre diesel.

And while this revised 3-litre, turbocharged diesel is a sweet powerplant down the highway and through the scrub it does take some understanding.

Minor changes to the injection pump, injector nozzles and exhaust system sees this motor score an extra 2kW. Peak torque of 354Nm still arrives at 2000rpm but is better spread between 1500 and 2500rpm.

It still requires a little patience around town when moving 2420kg off the mark.

The new instrument panel and dashboard is good, a bold look with a little less truckers' approach. But it looks like those cup holders in the centre console were designed for those thinner Japanese cans of drink. There is no room for a stubby of ginger beer. Or a can of coke!

The ST-S is a new variant for the line-up, sitting at third in the range between the ST and the ST-L versions.

It arrives with power windows, driver and passenger airbag, CD player, Alcantara seat trim, ABS braking plus the seat back table.

Satellite navigation and a rear facing camera is available as an option on the ST-S.

For all the changes, the Nissan Patrol is still a big and capable wagon in the rough.

Heading up the highway, there is a bit of patter and chatter from the front wheels back through the steering wheel and the Patrol likes to understeer wide if allowed. The front end can be a bit of a wrestle when pushing on over broken bitumen and through the hills.

The ride comfort is fine up front, back seat passengers often feel that rear beam axle tramping over the lumps.

The Patrol retains all the gear and the platform that makes this a very capable machine in the rough.

When the creek starts rising and the paddocks turn to slush, there is confidence and comfort in the wagon's part-time four-wheel drive system (high four-wheel drive can be grabbed on the move), big and strong chassis plus 210mm of ground clearance.

Perhaps the Patrol is not always as elegant as others when clambering through the tough stuff but it is always capable and feels bulletproof. Nissan have long held a decent reputation for strong axles and drivetrains.

Yet the world is turning.

In the US, Nissan's efforts are concentrated on the larger Armada wagon and the smaller Pathfinder.

With next year's Pathfinder offering seven seats and more cabin space than today's Pathfinder, plus promises of all-new levels of on-road refinement, the Patrol may be left out in the cold without a total remake.

And machines such as next year's Land Rover Discovery will showcase new levels of both on-road comfort and off-road ability, with seven seats, in this class.

The Patrol's strengths remain in the strength and durability stakes, especially in the real rough patches and over long, hard distances. It is starting to miss out in the on-road area – despite the cosmetics worked on this 2005 Patrol – yet with the 3-litre diesel turbo engine it remains a value package.