In the US, Nissan’s truck lineup consists of the Frontier, Titan, and Titan XD. However, in much of the rest of the world, the Nissan Navara is the mid-sized truck that’s out there doing the hard yards. It’s been a particularly popular model in Australia, and now the Aussies have given it their own spin. Meet the Nissan Navara PRO-4X Warrior.
The idea behind the Warrior was simple. Nissan Australia handed its mid-sized pickup over to the gang at Premcar for further customization. The result was a beefier, taller, Navara that was better prepared for tackling the rough stuff off-road—with meaner looks to match.
I recently got behind the wheel, which involved climbing up and into the now-taller four-wheel-drive machine. I whipped it around for a week and learned all about this beast, what it can do, and the one thing it could really use. Read on and I’ll tell you all about it!
[A quick note on terminology for the Australians in the audience: I use the American parlance throughout this article, so the Navara is a “pickup truck.” It’s not a ute because it’s not based on a unibody car. Utes are dead. We all have to acknowledge that and stop using the term to refer to Hiluxes and Rangers and Tritons. I’m sorry. I know it’s tough—but it’s over, and we lost. Moving on.]
Looks That Say ‘GRR!’
The first thing you notice about the Nissan Navara PRO-4X Warrior is its commanding presence. It’s got an aggressive aesthetic courtesy of all the off-road gear that makes up the Warrior package. The vehicle is fitted with a steel front bull bar and a bright red underbody bash plate that is emblazoned with the “NAVARA” name.
The rugged look is further complemented by the big plastic wheel flares and the chunky Cooper Discoverer all-terrain tires mounted on 17-inch alloy wheels. You also get roof racks, the “sports bar” on the tray, and a smattering of “WARRIOR” and “TWIN TURBO” decals on the body. Ultimately, it’s been given a bit of the brodozer treatment, but you’re getting all this straight from the factory.
Much like the Patrol Warrior, though, it’s not just about looks. It’s had real work done to improve its performance off-road, too. The raised suspension is one of the most noticeable modifications. The PRO-4X Warrior sits 40mm higher (1.6 inches) than the standard Navara PRO-4X, giving it a total ground clearance of 260 mm (10.2 inches). This extra height obviously improves the truck’s capabilities, making it more suitable for tackling rutted tracks and deep water crossings. Couple that with the 30 mm wider track (1.2 inches), and it’s a big part of why it has such an imposing look on the roads. Further supporting its credentials are the uprated springs and dampers that help keep it controlled on the rough stuff.
The smaller details contribute, too, like the angular LED headlights and daytime running lights, which look suitably mean and futuristic. There’s also the LED lightbar and fog lights integrated into the bull bar to help complete the look. After all, lots of lighting is a key part of the badass off-roader design language.
It appears that the brief was to take the Navara PRO-4X, and make it bulkier, meaner, and more capable. To that end, it looks like Premcar did the job nicely. Nissan must be proud.
Inside, It’s All Business
Inside the cabin, the PRO-4X Warrior is less astounding. It’s not bad, per se, it just hasn’t had the same attention that was lavished on the exterior. Perhaps projecting an image of toughness is more important here than serving the driver. Still, the Warrior acquits itself ably, if not exceptionally.
The cabin is largely the same as the Navara PRO-4X, though you get “WARRIOR” logos embroidered on the headrests. The eight-way power seats were also heated on my example, something that was surprisingly lacking on the Patrol Warrior.
You get an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system, and it does have Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. What was missing, however, was wireless connectivity—you’ll need to plug your phone in to use those features. Otherwise, you can settle for just playing your tunes and answering calls over Bluetooth. The system was overall acceptable, though the press car lacked in-built navigation. One suspects Nissan has accepted that most drivers would rather rely on their smartphones instead.
The cabin is roomy enough, with great sight lines and legroom for the driver and front passenger. It’s a bit tighter for those in the back, but that’s pretty typical of pickups in the mid-size crew cab segment. There’s nothing stopping you throwing a few adult passengers in the back, they just probably don’t want to go on a four-hour roadtrip, is all.
Fundamentally, it’s a practical interior for a practical truck. It’s by no means trying to ape the luxury touches that have become so popular in the American market. Instead, it’s well-equipped, without putting a bunch of fancy frills on what is ultimately a vehicle for work.
Just One Thing…
Remember I said the Warrior was missing just one thing? It comes down to the powertrain.
Under the hood, it’s got the same 2.3-liter, twin-turbocharged four-cylinder diesel engine that’s seen in the rest of the Navara range. It puts out the same 187 horsepower and 331 pound-feet of torque as it does in the lower models. It’s an able engine, and it’ll get you around 29 mpg combined according to Premcar’s figures. You can have it with a seven-speed automatic, or a six-speed manual if you’re feeling old-school.
The manual is a nice touch, but here’s the thing. If you’re accustomed to the US market, you’re used to seeing these badass off-road models from the Big Three automakers. You’ve got the Ford F-150 Raptor, you’ve got the Ram TRX, and Chevy has been fumbling around with trucks that aren’t quite as hardcore. At least in Ford and Ram’s case, what makes these models special isn’t just the suspension lift and the big tires. It’s the power.
This is precisely what the Navara is missing. The Patrol Warrior got by without a power boost because it was already rocking a 400-horsepower V8. All it needed was a throaty exhaust to feel like a true backroads brawler. As for the Navara PRO-4X Warrior, it looks the part, but it doesn’t drive like it.
I’m not saying the engine is bad by any means. It’s a perfectly competent drivetrain for a vehicle in this class. It’s just that, when the Navara looks like that, you kind of want it to drive like that. You want to put your foot down and get a little bit scared that you’re going to catch serious air over the next speed bump. You want it to bark and growl like the Warrior that it is. But it doesn’t!
In reality, the Warrior doesn’t quite measure up to the baddest trucks out there. No surprise given its zero-to-60 mph time is somewhere around 10 seconds. Most notably, the current Ford Ranger Raptor is packing a mighty 391 horsepower and 437 pound-feet of torque from a 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged V6. It’s even got an anti-lag system! Sure, most Australians won’t actually find themselves in a cross-country desert race to Uluru or Lake Eyre. But if you did, you’d find the Raptor would leave the Warrior in the dust. Where Nissan might have the edge is in fuel economy. Take fuel stops into account, and perhaps it would get there first?
For slower-paced off-road adventures, though, the Warrior is well-equipped. It’s got four-wheel-drive with low-range gearing, and a locking rear diff is a nice inclusion, too. Combined with the ample diesel torque and the jacked-up suspension, it should get you along the average trail quite nicely.
It is worth noting that the Warrior’s off-road enhancements come at an understandable cost. It rides a bit rougher than the basic Navara, and you’ll have to tip in a bit more steering effort, too. Parking can be a bear as well in the inner city, given the sheer size of this thing compared to the average Australian car, and you’ll want to watch the roof clearance, too. Overall, though, these are acceptable trade-offs for the chunky tires and the appreciable lift. It still rides perfectly well out on the highway, and the ground clearance actually makes the average potholed suburban carpark much easier to navigate.
Other Notes
The Navara is moderately well-equipped, if not exceptionally so. You get a rearview camera and parking sensors, which are a great aid in slotting this thing into the average Australian parking space. Meanwhile, for towing duty, the Warrior is able enough. It’ll pull braked trailers up to 3,500 kg (7,716 pounds), which is lineball with most of its competitors in the mid-sized segment.
It also has the usual complement of driver-assistance systems. You get forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warnings, and rear cross-traffic alerts. The latter is particularly useful when blindly pulling out of a parking spot. However, one surprise omission was radar adaptive cruise control, with only basic cruise control available on the Navara range. You also get a few off-road goodies. There’s hill descent control as well as hill start assist, which can be of great aid when you’re tackling a difficult trail.
As for storage, the cargo bed is approximately 58 inches long by 59 inches wide. That’s the sacrifice you make for going with a dual cab—this isn’t the perfect hauler for sheets of timber or drywall, but it’s still useful. It’s got some great tie downs, which I used to recover a free table from the side of the road. I loved it. You can also get an electric retractable tonneau cover as an option, which is pretty neat. Like the Cybertruck!
In Conclusion
The Warrior is an interesting beast. On the one hand, it’s way cooler than the basic Nissan Navara. It’s taller, wider, chunkier, and it’s got a black badge with red inlay that just looks the business. All this is good.
At the same time, however, it’s by no means the baddest truck on the block. The Ford Ranger Raptor has it tapped on grunt by far, and even the Toyota Hilux GR Sport has a touch more power on tap. The Warrior does look a lot cooler than the latter, but Ford might have it licked in that regard as well.
Where the Warrior can compete very well is on price. Driveaway prices start at $67,990 AUD (~$45,500 USD), which is much lower than comparable models from the competition. You can’t even look at a GR Sport Hilux for less than $79,555 AUD ($53,200 USD), and the bonkers Ranger Raptor starts at a lofty $96,965 AUD ($64,900 USD). It might seem unfair to compare these vehicles across such a broad spectrum, but they each fulfill a similar role. Each sits at the top of their respective lineup, and each is a specialized off-road vehicle offering higher performance than the norm. It just so happens that Ford took that a lot farther than Nissan and Toyota, particularly in the engine department.
Ultimately, the Navara PRO-4X Warrior does have a great role to play. If you want a solid crew-cab truck that can properly rock it with the rough-and-tumble off-road, it’ll do that. If you want a solid diesel engine that won’t scare pedestrians with its bark, it’s got that, too. It might not boost to the moon, and it might not win any desert drag races, but in all other respects, the Warrior is a capable, mean-looking machine that will get you where you’re going—on tarmac, on dirt, or other. If that’s what you’re looking for, you’re probably going to enjoy it.
Image credits: Lewin Day, Nissan, Premcar
Agree to disagree. I’ve got essentially the American version of this truck, Colorado ZR2 diesel. Even costs the same, at least when it was new 2 years ago.
Will it win any races? Nope, but that’s not the point. This truck shines out in the backwoods of minimum maintenance forest roads and two track.
I’ll just say bakkie like the South Africans do to cause more confusion. 🙂
Hm. Nissan doesn’t know that if they offered a truck with ‘Warrior’ all over it in the US, they’d sell millions to all the MAGA protein-powder swilling steakheads. ‘Warrior’ has become analagous to ‘Patriot’, the inference of military glory, whether real or imagined, and the display of ‘Don’t Tread’ flags and/or “Punisher’ skulls and/or ‘Blue Line’ flags. No matter how contradictory all of that, especially all at once, seems to be.
Does ‘Warrior’ have a more positive meaning in Australia?
As a rural living Australian, you city folk are fucking nuts. Why not buy a car that suits where and how you drive? This and its brethren sure doesn’t suit where we drive!
What’s that long thing sticking out of the center console? I’ve never seen that in a pickup lol
Wish we could get the VQ38DD in the Nav, don’t know why we can’t get some more petrol options.
Missing One Important Thing
Huh, I was sure “a usable bed” was the answer. That seems more important for a pickup truck than wireless phone connectivity.
That’s just dual cabs for ya!
I always wonder why Nissan spends the R&D money on two different midsize trucks like they can afford it, anyone know the answer?
One reason is the archaic U.S. Chicken Tax which has been disrupting the light truck and van market since 1964. Since this type of vehicle can’t be distributed globally, cutting off the U.S. market from the rest of the world, they might as well design to the market. The U.S. trucks are a little bigger than their international counterparts. But it means we never get any small trucks here. And when they try (Ford Transit Connect), they get slapped down by the government.
Before the D23 Nav though we used to get the D40 which is the same as the US Frontier. It only diverged for the current generation.
That is also why Chevrolet has the S10 Colorado in other markets that competes with the Hilux even when the regular Colorado can easily do so as well…
Ford did the same! US Ranger’s a bit different.
I thought it might be missing frame welds. According to another article on a different site nissan might be having a real problem with that on the pickups here lately. Also, the inside looks very similar to the 2008 lancer I owned 15 years ago.
“We all have to acknowledge that and stop using the term to refer to Hiluxes and Rangers and Tritons.”
Nah, sorry Lewin, I’ll have to agree to disagree. We were referring to Hiluxes and Rangers and Tritons “utes” long before the death of the car-based Ute. If it has a tray, and tradies (not contractors) buy them, it classifies as a Ute! We’re as likely to start using the term “pickup truck” as we are “hood” and “trunk”.
We’ll keep calling em utes, if only because Ute has fewer syllables than pickup truck!
Fair enough mate. Easier if you’re not living with one foot in America, haha. I’m always switching terms.
Writing for a mostly American audience would be tricky. You do it well!
Agreed, and as someone who lived in the US for 9 years, I would appreciate it if we continued maintaining a difference in culture and terminology rather than just blurring it all into whatever the Americans use.
Seriously. Don’t look at us in terms of taste.
That interior is dated, to put it gently. It looks like it hasn’t changed since 2015.
Well thats because it hasn’t
I want to be able to buy this here I do not care if it doesn’t have 500 hp.
The old export-market Ranger Raptor had a slow diesel like this, interesting to see Ford change but not Nissan
To paraphrase Judge Smails, You put that steering wheel back where it belongs!
Utes are not dead, they just get made in Mexico and sold to americans now as Ford Mavericks. Even Hyundai has a UTE still. though I am not sure if that one is perhaps available to aussies or not?
I would ALMOST call the Maverick a ute, good point
Why would a maverick not fit the classical definition?