Nissan Pathfinder 2013 News

New look, updated V6 petrol engine for Nissan’s seven-seater SUV stalwart.

None of us wants to crash our shiny new car but, if we do, we want to know we're safe. That's where the Australian New Car Assessment Program's standardised crash-testing analysis is invaluable, providing comparable ratings for vehicles of all types.The ANCAP site notes that a one-star car is twice as likely to kill you as a five-star model. Carsguide examines ANCAP's results to find the best of breed in each segment. It's worth noting the advanced software in some cars that readies the vehicle if a crash is imminent are disabled during the official tests. Cars are scored out of 37 points after the following tests.FRONTAL OFFSET TEST: The subject vehicle is accelerated to 64km/h and rammed into a deformable alloy barrier to simulate a head-on crash. To increase the severity and reproduce real-world conditions only 40 per cent of the car hits the wall - equating to a driver swerving to avoid an oncoming vehicle.SIDE IMPACT TEST: The T-bone hit rams a 950kg trolley into the side of the car at 50km/h. The sled has an alloy face to simulate the front of another vehicle, which deforms and absorbs some of the impact.PEDESTRIAN TEST: Simulates the results of hitting a pedestrian at 40km/h. The test assesses adult and child impacts, given their heads and limbs strike different areas of the car.POLE TEST: This is the most demanding test in the ANCAP repertoire. Trees and poles don't deform, so all the crash energy is transferred to the vehicle. The car is put on a sled and propelled towards a fixed steel pole at 29km/h.SAFEST SMALL CARSAUDI A3 36.41 See reviews of this carOfficially the best small car to occupy in an accident. Impressively, the windscreen pillar didn't move after a 64km/h hit with the concrete block.  HONDA INSIGHT 36.39 See reviews of this carIts score reflects a 3mm movement of the pillar in the frontal offset test and "slight risk" of serious leg injury for driver and passenger.   BMW 1 SERIES HATCH 36.33 See reviews of this carThere's a slight risk of serious chest injury for the driver in the frontal and side crash test and a slight risk of serious leg injury for the passenger in the frontal crash.   SAFEST MEDIUM CARSMERCEDES B-CLASS 36.78 See reviews of this carTops the charts with the highest score of any car in ANCAP database. Technically there's a 4mm movement of the front pillar and a slight risk of injury to the passenger leg closest the door.  BMW 3 SERIES 36.76 See reviews of this carBarely behind. It showed a 1mm movement of the pillar and there was a slight risk of serious injury to the driver's and passenger's legs.VOLVO V40 36.67 See reviews of this carThe only loss of points occurred during the frontal crash test, with a slight risk of serious injury to the front occupants' legs closest the door and the driver's chest.SAFEST LARGE CARSTOYOTA AURION 36.59 See reviews of this carFirst place in this class makes it the only locally built vehicle in any top-three line-up. There's a slight risk of lower leg injury for driver and passenger.   BMW 5 Series 36.53 See reviews of this carNot a bad place to be in the event of an accident either. It blitzed the side impact tests and only lost fractions of points in the head-on hit.    VOLVO S60 36.34 See reviews of this carSweden maintains its safety credentials. The passenger compartment stayed intact with only a 1mm movement of the front pillar.    SAFEST COMPACT SUVS SUBARU XV 35.53 See reviews of this carLike the slightly lower-riding Impreza, the XV scored highly in all crashes, with a slight risk of injury to the front occupants' chests and legs.    HOLDEN TRAX 35.18 See reviews of this carThe surprise packet. One of the smaller cars in the class has only a slight risk of serious leg injury for those in the front in a head-on crash.   Skoda Yeti 34.67 See reviews of this carDepite being one of the older examples in this segment, the Yeti still rates well for safety, with only a slight risk of serious leg injury for those in the front in a head-on crash.    SAFEST MEDIUM SUVSVOLVO XC60 36.53 See reviews of this carANCAP says the cabin 'held its shape extremely well" in the frontal test, with the pillar shifting just 3mm. There was a slight risk of serious chest and leg injuries to the driver.  FORD KUGA 36.33 See reviews of this carA solid second, posing a slight risk of serious chest injury for both front seat occupants. The front pillar moved 15mm.   HONDA CR-V 35.91 See reviews of this carPlaced well despite being penalised for the foot-operated park brake moving upwards and back. Structurally there was only a 2mm movement of the pillar.  SUBARU FORESTER 35.64 See reviews of this carTested this year, it scored highly in all crashes, with a slight risk of injury to the front occupants' chests and legs.   SUBARU OUTBACK 35.52 See reviews of this carFills the brand's quinella. Crashed in 2008 and at the time topped the charts as the safest vehicle ANCAP had tested. SAFEST LARGE SUVSMERCEDES-BENZ ML 36.34 See reviews of this car Luxury SUV has a slight risk of serious chest injury for driver and passenger in the head-on hit and a slight risk of serious leg injury for the passenger. The pillar moved 2mm. RANGE ROVER 36.19 See reviews of this carBig Brit has a slight risk of serious chest injury for the driver and the pillar shifted by 15mm.   NISSAN PATHFINDER 35.73 See reviews of this carSlight risk of serious leg injury for the driver. Unlike the other two, it applies to the upper leg as well as the expected lower-leg hits. Docked points for a marginal pedestrian impact result.

The hybrid SUV market is becoming a war ground as Nissan today announces a hybrid version of its forthcoming Pathfinder. The seven-seat wagon, based on the Murano and Maxima, comes up against the long-standing Lexus RX450h and near-future players including the Mitsubishi Outlander and Volvo XC60.Nissan's announcement coincides with the end of a diesel-engine option in the Pathfinder that, in its 2014 guise, also dispenses with a full-frame ladder frame and becomes a monocoque body. The hybrid, shown at the New York motor show earlier this year, has a supercharged 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine mated to a single electric motor. It uses a lithium-ion battery pack that is beneath the third-row seat and has a regenerative braking system.The motor is relatively low in power at just 15kW but is enough to boost overall power to 187kW/329Nm - close to the 195kW/336Nm of the 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine that becomes standard in the new Pathfinder. Nissan claims the hybrid is about 25 per cent more economical than the V6, indicating an average of about 8.5 litres/100km.In the US the Hybrid is available in front or all-wheel drive and uses a CVT transmission. Nissan Australia hasn't revealed if one or both drivetrains are coming here. Like the Patrol and X-Trail, the Pathfinder all-wheel drive version has selectable front-drive, automatic "on demand" AWD or 4WD lock.The Pathfinder Hybrid has the same cabin space and flexibility as the non-hybrid models. It also has Nissan's "EZ Flex" seats that has a sliding second row with 60/40 split and fold functions. The slide function can be accessed even if a baby seat is attached. The third row seat is a 50/50 split-fold design that reclines for passenger comfort - a feature Nissan claims is not available on other SUVs in its class. The second and third seat rows also fold flat for maximum cargo space.In the US, Nissan claims the hybrid will be tow 1600kg. The Pathfinder Hybrid is expected to be launched at $55,000-$60,000, a premium of about 10 per cent on the entry-level ST model. Nissan was chewing over a 3-litre V6 turbo-diesel - also used in the Infiniti range - to appease lovers of diesels, but it was an easier fit to pick up the US-specced hybrid model. However, that may not preclude the diesel engine from making an appearance as an option later in the year. 

Nissan's new Pathfinder will arrive here in October with $9000 slashed off the entry price to each spec level with new two-wheel drive versions. The seven-seat Pathfinder range will start with the two-wheel drive ST at $39,990 rather than the outgoing range's base price of $48,990 for the all-paw.Nissan says the Pathfinder -- built on the same platform as the coming Altima sedam -- will continue with three spec levels, each of which will be available with either 2WD or AWD. The base ST asks an extra $4300 for the $44,290 all-wheel drive version. The mid-spec ST-L is $50,290 in 2WD form or $4000 more at $54,290 for the all-paw -- a rise of $5400. The Ti flagship will set you back $60,790 for 2WD and $4100 more at $64,890 for the AWD, a drop of $1500 over the outgoing $66,390 Ti and $11,500 off the $76,390 Ti 550 that topped the range.Two-wheel drive SUVs are becoming increasingly popular for their economy benefits, and the Pathfinder has been strategically priced to launch into a field that includes the Ford Territory, cheaper Hyundai Santa Fe and Kia Sorento -- but also the more expensive, but popular, Mazda CX-9 and Toyota Kluger.As reported earlier this year, the diesel engines are gone from the launch range, with the new Pathfinder kicking off with only a 194kW/325Nm 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine matched to a CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission).However, also on the cards is a supercharged 2.5 litre four cylinder, paired with a single electric motor and lithium-ion battery system. The 15kW electric motor is small by hybrid standards but combines with the petrol engine to produce 187kW/329Nm. Nissan will reveal full specification details closer to the launch date.2013 Nissan Pathfinder pricesNissan Pathfinder ST 2WD  $39,990Nissan Pathfinder ST-L 2WD $50,290Nissan Pathfinder Ti 2WD $60,790Nissan Pathfinder ST 4WD $44,290Nissan Pathfinder ST-L 4WD  $54,290Nissan Pathfinder Ti 4WD $64,890

Now the seven-seat wagon that capably pounded the outback as easily as cruise the city is being replaced by a sponge-cake version based on the Murano SUV and Maxima sedan.Australia gets the fourth-generation Pathfinder late this year, more than 12 months after it went on sale in the US. The US gets only a 194kW 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine and though Nissan Australia spokesman Peter Fadeyev can't reveal our final engine choices, it's likely we'd follow suit with this sole offering. “The engine line-up, along with Australian prices and specifications, will be announced closer to the time of Pathfinder's local release,” he says.The problem may be the engine layout. The next Pathfinder is based on the Murano platform - also shared with the Maxima - which has a transverse-mounted engine, unlike the longitudal layout of the current model which also supports a turbo-diesel. No global Nissan market sells a transversely-mounted turbo-diesel engine in the Murano platform.However, Nissan associate company Renault uses the platform with a 180kW/450Nm 3-litre V6 turbo-diesel (or 2-litre four-cylinder oiler) in the Korean-built Latitude sedan. The upcoming Pathfinder will come only with a continuously-variable transmission (CVT) and will no longer have a low-range transfer case.Carsguide visited the Pathfinder on the Nissan stand at last week's Chicago motor show. It's longer, wider but considerably lower than the current model, while its 50mm wheelbase extension - now 2900mm - gives adult space in the third-row seat.More cabin room comes because the intrusive ladder-frame platform is gone. The signature “invisible” rear door handles of the current model have been replaced with the more conventional door handles while the grille styling moves away from the truck-like look and will become more passenger-car in appearance.The cabin is also more like a car, picking up Maxima-like controls while emphasising family-oriented storage spaces. The introduction of the soft-roader Pathfinder won't change the more workhorse ute version, the Navara, which will remain a diesel and retain the longitudal engine layout on a ladder-frame chassis.Nissan Australia's Fadeyev also says we won't get the bigger Titan ute - a 5.7m long dual-cab or extended-cab model using a 5.6-litre petrol V8 or Cummins diesel - and instead will remain with the smaller Navara.