Nissan Navara 2019 News

At a point not too long ago, the reigning champions of the Australian automotive industry were the Holden Commodore and Ford Falcon - both large sedans with V8 engine options that could seat the whole family and cruise in comfort.Somewhere along the line

Nissan Motor Company is set to trim at least 10 per cent of its global model line-up by March 31, 2022, in a bid to streamline production and boost profitability amidst dwindling sales.

Nissan in Australia is "keeping the pressure" on the brand's global engineering team to produce a Nismo-badged Navara that can take the fight to cars like the Ford Ranger Raptor. That's the word from Nissan's Australian boss, Stephen Lester, who told

The next-generation Mitsubishi Triton may still be years away, but there are already details leaking out about what to expect.It has been confirmed by the Japanese company’s chief operating officer, Trevor Mann, that the next-generation Triton ute will also form the basis for the next Nissan Navara and Renault Alaskan.Mr Mann told industry journal Automotive News that the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance has made the decision that Mitsubishi offers the best depth of knowledge and hardware for the next-gen versions of each of the brand’s pick-up trucks to be based on."Shortly after the Alliance, we did a detailed technical study between , and we found that Mitsubishi had many advantages over the Nissan platform," Mr Mann is quoted as saying. The announcement flies in the face of public statements made to the contrary by Nissan execs a few months ago, when it was suggested Mitsubishi had jumped the gun by asserting it would take the lead on development of the next-generation utes.The current-generation Triton architecture underpins that particular pick-up model, as well as the Pajero Sport off-road SUV. By contrast, Nissan’s current-generation Navara’s underpinnings are spread quite a bit further, being found beneath the Terra SUV from the same brand, plus the Renault Alaskan pick-up and the Mercedes-Benz X-Class ute. It’s too early to say what that could mean for the development of a second-generation version of the Mercedes-Benz X-Class - whether the brand will continue to form part of a commercial vehicle alliance with is unclear.  The next-generation version of the Triton is likely more than four years away.Existing alliance products produced for Renault-Nissan-Mercedes have fallen by the wayside - the Infiniti Q30/Mercedes A-Class mingling only lasted one life cycle, while the Renault Twingo/Smart alliance - the latter brand may be culled entirely within weeks.That said, commercial vehicle alliances are stronger in general - Renault-Mercedes has an existing agreement on small vans, producing the Kangoo/Citan as a result. That hasn’t been replicated in larger vans, though - Mercedes went on its own for the Vito and Sprinter. 

Nissan has made no secret of just how hard it is pushing for a NISMO-badged Navara, with the company's Australian managing director saying he is "pleading" with his global counterparts for a genuine Ranger Raptor rival.

The Nissan Navara 2019 range has seen the addition of two new value-focused variants in the form of the highly accessorised ST Black Edition and the budget-friendly SL Silverline model.Unlike some rival brands that are focusing on the top end of their respective ranges, the two new limited edition dual cab four-wheel drive Navara models are based on more affordable variants in the range.The SL Silverline builds on the SL grade, while the ST Black Edition is based on the ST. And in both cases, the added-value versions don’t attract any additional cost - but each is limited to just 900 units.The SL Silverline model is priced at the same point as the SL, with the six-speed manual version coming in at $43,990 and the seven-speed auto at $46,490. The SL model is usually offered in work-friendly trim, with a vinyl floor, fabric seats, a plastic steering wheel and a 5.0-inch media screen without sat nav but with Bluetooth and USB connectivity.Over the SL, the SL Silverline gains 16-inch alloy wheels (instead of steel wheels), a polished alloy sports bar, Silverline tailgate badge, and the interior sees the addition of a mobile phone holder. Other standard gear shared with the regular SL includes an auto-dimming rear-view mirror, electronic rear differential lock, privacy glass, LED headlights and daytime running lights and cruise control.The ST Black Edition is priced identically to the two versions of the ST already sold: the manual, at $47,190, and the auto, at $49,690. It builds on the stuff already offered in the ST, which includes a 7.0-inch media screen with sat nav (plus Bluetooth and USB), cloth trim, vinyl flooring and a leather-trimmed steering wheel. As you may have deduced from the model name, the ST Black Edition gets a lot of black additions, including: black 18-inch alloy wheels with all-terrain tyres, a black grille, black sports bar, wheelarch flares, black nudge bar, LED light bar, soft tonneau cover, a tubliner for the tray, black mirror caps, black fog light surrounds and a smoked bonnet protector.Of course there are also some decals (it wouldn’t be a special edition ute without stickers), and there is also a mobile phone holder in the cabin. Both models are powered by Nissan’s 2.3-litre four-cylinder twin-turbo diesel engine, which produces 140kW of power and 450Nm of torque. The company claims towing capability of 750kg for an unbraked trailer and 3500kg braked towing capacity. Fuel consumption for the Navara SL Silver and ST Black Edition is identical to the non special-edition versions, at 6.5 litres per 100km for the manual versions, while automatic models claim 7.0L/100km.