Nissan X-Trail - Review | Heading for the hills is X-Tra fun
If you use Microsoft Word, have you ever clicked the font tab on your computer and wondered how many fonts are available? Okay, you probably only ever use either of the two most popular ones, Ariel or Calibri, but to save you from the bother of counting them, the answer is around the 700 mark. The exact figure varies according to which version of Word you’re using and whether you’ve gone for the full download.
The reason I mention this is because I was in the pub the other day talking to a guy who continually comes out with some seriously odd questions. He’s the same fella who once informed me that he’d just bought a new handle for his shovel. Riveting conversation.
Anyway, he said, “I wonder what sort of accent those fonts would have.”
To be honest, I hadn’t given it a thought, but it’s an interesting point.
He also asked another question.
“I’ve got four kids and we like to go out and about at weekends. I fancy changing my car. Got any suggestions?”
The next day, I popped round to his house with this…the latest Nissan X-Trail.
The key points for him were that you can opt for an additional row of seats providing the potential to carry 7 people and you can have an all-wheel drive version which’ll be perfect for driving on some rough stuff. Or snow. Or sand. That’s his boxes duly ticked anyway.
The X-Trail is one of the bigger SUVs around. Yes, you can get 7 people in it, although the 3rd row is a bit on the tight side, smaller children will be fine. However, if my own experience is anything to go by, they like being back there. If you don’t need the extra carrying capacity, stick with the 5-seater and you’ll have a really decent-sized boot area. It’s cheaper too.
Let’s have a quick look at the oily stuff.
You can choose between what’s badged as the VC-Turbo which gives you a 3-cylinder, 1.5 litre turbocharged 161bhp petrol engine which is helped by a small, battery-driven electric motor. All the power goes to the front wheels.
And then there’s the one you see here, called the e-POWER. Unlike its stablemate, this one uses the same 1.5-litre engine but it doesn’t power the wheels, it acts as a generator to charge a battery which delivers 201bhp to an electric motor on the front axle. You can also get a 4-wheel drive version called e-4ORCE which adds a second motor to the rear axle. Your power climbs slightly to 210bhp to give you a 7-second 0-60mph time and the top speed is 111mph.
Unless you need those additional seats, I’d save £2200 and stick with the 2WD model which starts in Acenta Premium trim at £36,980. Acceleration only rises to 8 seconds and the top speed is enough at 105mph. Economy is 48.7mpg which, bearing in mind the size of this car, is thoroughly decent.
Needless to say, because the front wheels are driven by an electric motor, this e-POWER version of the Nissan X-Trail drives in much the same way as an electric car. In other words, it’s smooth to drive and quiet, and it both feels and sounds very refined. The only time when the going gets a bit unrefined is when you floor the accelerator to quickly build speed, like on a motorway slip road. However, once you settle into the cruise, serenity returns and the petrol engine returns to a glorified tick-over.
At town speeds, you either trundle along on battery power alone or with the petrol engine quietly humming along in the background to keep the battery topped up. All in all, it’s a really slick system and gives you decent performance, decent economy and a thoroughly polished riding and driving experience.
If you like a bit of comfort you will love the X-Trail. It’s quite softly sprung, but the dampers do a good job of controlling any body roll. You can tighten things slightly by switching to Sport mode, but the effect is negligible. Add in the fairly high ride height and you end up with a car that will easily absorb lumps and bumps but also cope with rutted tracks.
The interior is roomy. The rear bench seat can move back and forth giving you the option of extra legroom or more boot space. There’s no transmission tunnel so the floor is flat which is handy if you’re the passenger in the middle seat.
The Acenta Premium trim gives you everything you need. LED lights back and front, rearview camera, front and rear parking sensors, type A and C USB sockets, front and rear parking sensors, DAB radio, smartphone mirroring, and a 7-inch infotainment screen. Temperature controls are knobs and buttons which are simple to operate.
If you want additional goodies, head for the N-Connecta, Tekna and Tekna+ trims. One reason why I’d think about moving up to N-Connecta is that you get a 12.3-inch screen. It uses a different system from the 7-inch screen and both looks good and works well.
The Nissan X-Trail e-POWER is at its best when you are cruising along on something like a family outing. Treat this car as a long-legged family cruiser rather than a point-to-point sprinter, and you’ll love it. There’s a good turn of speed when you need it and the economy is decent. Add to that that it’s well-equipped, comfy and smart and you’re on to a winner.
Thinking back to the fonts, I’ve just spotted that there’s a font called Gill Sans. I think I went to school with her...
words: Graham Courtney
pictures: Nissan
