Next Navara to spawn SUV wagon

Nissan is poised to re-enter the off-road SUV market with a wagon version of the 2015 Navara to fill the hole left by the Pathfinder.

Likely to be built at the company’s new Thai plant that will also manufacture the fourth-generation one-tonne pick-up, the 4WD wagon will utilise a body-on-frame construction to give it maximum toughness and off-road capability.

The all-new fourth-generation Navara is set to be unveiled in the next few weeks.

Though no arrival date has yet been flagged for the 4x4 SUV version, it will compete against the Toyota Prado, Holden Colorado and upcoming Ford Everest now that the latest Pathfinder has become a family-focussed crossover with monocoque construction.

The Pathfinder was previously based on the Navara from 1986 to 2004.

Speaking to the Australian media at the New York International Auto Show this week, Nissan Motor Company executive vice-president Andy Palmer hinted at the likelihood of an expanded Navara range.

“It would be logical, wouldn’t it?” Palmer said.

“I think undoubtedly something like a one-tonne pick-up starts with its ability to work.

“I came from the light commercial business (and) pick-ups define their genesis at the work sites. You build on top of that in terms of the more luxury segments, then go back to that basis of good durability, good quality and good reliability.”