Nissan Patrol 2019 review: Ti-L

The three-hour road trip to our destination included motorway and regional back roads towing a 350kg cage trailer containing our bikes and boards.

With the third row folded forward, the Patrol can swallow a generous 1490 litres of luggage. And that came in handy as we filled every last inch of it with bags and food supplies for the week. Even with the third row upright there’s 550 litres of space in the boot.

With the third row folded forward, the Patrol can swallow 1490 litres of luggage.

There’s a decent payload capacity of 734kg, with an additional 3500kg of tow capacity (750kg unbraked) making the Patrol an incredibly useful holiday hauling companion. Storage is plentiful throughout the cabin, too, with the chilled console bin aft of the gearshift proving a family favourite and keeping the assorted BBQ meat cold for the duration of the trip.

The chilled console bin is a family favourite.

The two kids in the second row were in their element with acres of space to relax in. Other features include air vents along the roof covering all three seating rows and two rear USB points which they used to charge their devices. The third-row seats were used on short hops around our holiday destination, with easy access in and out. One useful feature noticeably absent, though, was Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.  

Under the enormous bonnet there’s a 5.6-litre V8 making 298kW and 560Nm, and feels ready-made for family trips. Matched with a seven-speed automatic transmission with ‘Adaptive Shift Control’, gear changes were silky smooth, especially the responsive downshifts when overtaking. The way the power was delivered, in such an effortless and relaxed manner, was wonderfully addictive.

Cruising the open road in this car was an immensely satisfying experience with 350kg of trailer weight barely noticeable. I ended up looking for any excuse to plonk myself behind the wheel over the course of our stay.

The Patrol has a 3500kg of tow capacity (750kg unbraked).

As yet, the Patrol has not been awarded an ANCAP rating but does come with a solid list of safety kit including, Brake Assist, and Cross-Traffic Recognition, Blind Spot Warning, Blind Spot Intervention, Distance Control Assist, Forward Collision Warning and Intelligent Cruise Control, but misses out on AEB. 

There’s driver and front passenger head and side airbags, as well as side curtain airbags covering all three rows. For parents with young children, there are two ISOFIX child restraint anchor points and top tethers included in the outer second-row seat positions, with a further tether hook in the third row.

Over the course of the five days we covered around 500km of holiday driving, most of which with the 350kg trailer in tow. After which the trip computer displayed a fuel consumption reading of 14.7 litres/100km - on par with Nissan’s claim of 14.4 litres/100km (combined).

Not a bad result considering the extra weight. What's more, the hefty 140-litre tank that drinks 95RON unleaded should help give your credit card loyalty points a boost, too....