Nissan X-Trail test drive since 2007 SUV

Change of style

We were asked not to change anything, - honestly admits Chris Lee, the general manager of the Nissan Europe planning department. According to the results of the owners of the X-Trail of the previous generation, it turned out that the car of customers was completely satisfied and nothing needs to be updated. A very flattering characteristic of the car, and confirmed financially: X-Trail sold twice as much as it was planned when starting this model six years ago. However, the main competitors have recently been one models, moreover, new compact SUVs have been entering the European market. And Nissan decided to make a horse move: he changed not only the car, but also the concept of his style.
If they asked me, I would know that you should change in the X-Trail. At least - a mirror control panel. Because this is the first problem that we once encountered on the test. It was necessary to leave with a rather close parking, and even at night. Not too long research showed that the remote control was hidden on the left under the instrument panel. But for this I had to stop and turn on the light in the cabin. Where the mirror remote control is located in the new X-Trail, I do not remember. I remember that I just regulated the mirrors - and that’s it. So, these occasionally necessary buttons are now standing where they should. And the devices of the X -Trail are in a very familiar place - right in front of the driver. It’s not to say that the former central location delivered some serious problems, but the introduction of a more traditional approach helped the creators of the new X-Trail to achieve what they did not talk about reporters. Well, they mentioned slightly about the fact that now the SUV is unmistakably guessed in the outlines of the X-Trail body.
Brotherly love. In fact, now he is not guessing: X-Trail now really looks like an SUV. Despite the relative youth of the concept of vehicle transport, in fact it is a very conservative category of cars. Well, imagine what a modern zippo lighter might look like. Black chrome or there is a fashionable logo - this happens, but the shape and design must remain unchanged. Because this is not some object of self-expression there, but a thing of everyday use for harsh male everyday life in the taiga, desert and other conditions that are familiar to real macho conditions. You were not on the toros? It is no secret that most owners of the present or not very SUV almost once a year overcomes obstacles cooler than the border at the lawn. So the Nissan X-Trail on average moves off-road for no more than 30 percent of the time. And in general, in the new generation it was possible to preserve a somewhat extravagant design of the former model - even risking that the buyer would not guess what is new here. However, the former X-Trail worked for Nissan for two: it seems to be a roomy car and an SUV in one person.
 
Now the situation has changed. Nissan has Qashqai, and it is this model that occupies a niche of an urban SUV. That is, it is now so beautiful, moderately compact and still with all -wheel drive (although not in all modifications). And if you want to sell a new X-Trail in such conditions, you have no other way out of how to lead him from competition with a fellow aside precisely Toros and Pampas. There, where no these fashionable things are rolled up. The SUV is the heir to those very Willis, one of the main advantages of which was maintainability in the nearest funnel. This is when instead of a cardan you can stick the trunk over that birch, but the car will go anyway. No, in fact, of course, no birches and even shafts can no longer replace anything in X-Trail. But the situation obliges. Since they undertook to hint at the kinship with a machete, a hammer and swamp boots, we would have to bring the style as close as possible to the harsh simplicity, say, Patrol Gr. Of course, you can’t do without experiments with the design, but they should look like we, gritting our teeth, are trying to pull on a strong, classic, simple and practical silhouette of a couple of fashionable clothes. Which in the end turned out.
Although the new X-Trail is made on the same platform as Qashqai, it is not so easy to guess about it. Powerful rear racks here are not only a tribute to the new style and passion for buyers for privacy. Apparently, they make a serious contribution to the rigidity of the body torsion. The test drive program included a specially equipped mini-polygon so that journalists could personally verify the off-road characteristics of the machine. And in addition to the usual sites with slopes of different directions and irregularities for the X-Trail, they prepared a new exercise for diagonal twisting. It was necessary to drive along a ditch with a V-shaped profile. Moreover, with a zigzag - so that the car periodically almost laid to one side, then it was hung on two wheels. In this case, the body experiences loads precisely for twisting. Of course, this and all the other carefully prepared tests X-Trail passed with honor. The overcome angle of the side slope of 49 degrees is impressive. It looks scary outside, and even from the car - almost catastrophically. Nevertheless, X-Trail is quite confident even in this position. For what, apparently, it is worth saying thanks to the more urban Qashqai and therefore a low location of the center of gravity. Of course, you can’t call a 200 mm road clearance record - rather, it is close to the lower permissible limit for SUVs.
Traditional values. Cracability is determined not only by geometric parameters. We love to conquer wildlife and overcome obstacles, but this does not prevent us from combining this pioneer passion with love for ourselves and the desire to minimize costs. And, like most manufacturers of SUVs, Nissan is coming towards this understandable feeling. That is, the control process is increasingly automated. This time, improvements touched on the all -wheel drive transmission All Mode 4x4, the updated version of which received the prefix I. Or, if you want, intelligent definition. The rationality lies in the fact that the All Mode 4x4-I now still reads information from the ESP sensors and thus receives information about the longitudinal and transverse acceleration, the screening of the car and the rotation speed of each wheel, as well as the rotation angle and speed of rotation of the steering wheel. That is, she knows more about the car than the average driver can feel. As a result, electronics can even predict the beginning of slipping, not to mention the skidding. So you don’t even have to choose a movement mode: that we drove into loose snow or sand, the car will guess by itself. They still left something to the driver. The transmission has an Auto mode, in which the distribution of the moment along the axes automatically changes from 100% to the front axis to 50 to 50, and Lock, in which both axes account for 50% of the moment of blocking the center differential. You can also force the front -wheel drive forcibly - this is apparently for economical Europeans. But even in choosing a mode, the driver’s life is easy and relaxed: from an off -road Lock, the system automatically switches to AUTO when 40 km/h reaches. Also, the ALL Mode now includes a help system when starting at the rise and on the descent. The first is triggered automatically, the second must be turned on with a button, and it works only in Lock mode.
 
The transmission set includes as many as three options: a six -speed mechanics, an ordinary hydromechanical automatic machine and variator. If you are a fan of active driving, then the advice is useless: you will choose the mechanics. And you will do the right thing: with all my love and faith in the bright future of the variators, the setting up of this endless transmission on the X-Trail disappointed me. He is extremely humane in relation to the engine and the environment and the driver obeys only when he considers it necessary. That is, an attempt to brake the engine leads to a quick but smooth change in revolutions, but the speed practically does not change. As usual: electronics is sure that she knows better. Most likely, the way it is. But here a feeling of self -realization, overcoming, implementation is lost - for which we climb on a thorough, in pampas and other places that are not suitable for living. However, in the habitat natural for such machines - and this is still a city - charms of automation are much more important than hypothetical opportunities to prove itself.
Abstracts after
1 Nissan X-Trail-SUV with diesel and automatic. For Europe, this is still a rarity.
2 ESP is necessary for the operation of the All Mode 4x4-I system, so the dynamic stabilization system will be on all versions in standard configuration
3 The variator ensures fuel even compared to a mechanical gearbox: 0.2 l/100 km with a two-liter engine and 0.3 with a 2.5-liter.
4 In AUTO mode, the distribution of the moment may vary from a pure front -wheel drive up to 50x50. In Lock mode, the equal distribution of traction along the axes is rigidly fixed.
Nissan X-Trail
 
The engine is gasoline
Working volume (cubic cub) 1997 2488
Power (L.S. at
rpm) 141 at 6000 169 at 6000
Moment (Nm at rpm) 196 at 4800 233 at 4400
Automatically connected drive, full
The gearbox is mechanical, 6-speed automatic, variator
Length/width/height (mm) 4630/1785/1685
Equipped mass (kg) 1563 1623
Maximum speed
(km/h) 184 185
Acceleration to 100 km/h (c) 11.1 10.3
Fuel consumption, average
(l/100 km) 8.7 9.3
Price in Moscow
(SE) RUR 872 984 RUR 988 264
Text Valery Chusov
Photo by Nissan Motors
 

Source: "Autopilot"