Picture: carcrazy.india/Instagram
The Patrol has almost a 70 year old heritage being a scion of power and capability, the latest Patrol comes with a luxurious cabin perfect for long trips and more than enough off-road capability.
Nissan is currently riding on the immense successful launch of its Magnite SUV, the small car along with the Kicks now forms the entirety of Nissans portfolio in India. This is surprising considering that the Japanese automaker is the 6th largest manufacturers of automobiles through the Nissan, Datsun and Infiniti brands in the world ahead of Honda and Renault. But alas the company had a bad run here, and even after it tried to introduce Datsun as a budget friendly brand, it didn’t work out so Nissan is now on a complete portfolio rebranding, hence the new launches but it is strange that they did not bring a lot of their global models to India, although Nissan’s flagship supercar the GT-R R35 is sold here (INR 2.4 Crores).
One of the cars we would love to see would be the Patrol, it is the flagship SUV offered by Nissan and is a very popular global product. You can even spot a black Patrol riding around the streets of New Delhi, that its owner got imported. The car is a full-size SUV, and has been in continuous production since 1951, the basic principle for the Patrol has not changed much a boxy design, now featuring LED Daytime running Lights, contoured muscular stance. The front features a large Nissan V-Grille flanked by C-shaped LEDs and a large bold front bumper. The rear is upright and raised, and has tail lamps which also function as sequential turn signals. The Patrol as its name suggests is also partly designed for Military use, and is in fact in service with several countries and the United Nations.
The interior is plush in leather and is extremely airy, and made up quite like a luxury vehicle while functionally having the capability to go anywhere. Leather wrapping, high quality plastic and black veneer are present all around the cabin making it quite a luxurious place to stay in, the Infotainment system is in two parts, one for entertainment and one for information one above the other, a 8 inch and another 7 inch unit which come with all smartphone connectivity options. The instrument cluster is also a 7 inch display, there’s also a chiller box for drinks, Bose active noise cancellation amongst other comforts.
There are multiple powertrain options available, a 4.0 litre V6 unit that makes 275 HP and is mated to a 7-speed automatic and 4WD, while the other is the 5.6 litre V8 that makes 400 HP and is mated to a 7-speed automatic same as the V6 and has 4WD. The V8 makes the Nissan the most powerful car amongst its competition, it also comes with locking rear differential and an intelligent off-road management system that tweaks the power immediately while transitioning to and fro different terrains.
Its most direct competitor is the Toyota Land Cruiser with both the vehicle going two-to-two in capability, while having identical price tags. The new Land Defender also matches up to it, but is focused more towards off-roading, BMW X7, Volvo XC90, Audi Q7 and Mercedes-Benz GLS are also in the same league as the Nissan. The Patrol is a perfect blend of power, capability and comfort and can be a clever choice for Nissan to compete against the other off-road focused SUVs in the country. It is expected to be priced upwards of INR 80 Lakhs for the V6 models.
Favourie Car: Nissan GT-R R35
Quote: What you do in life echoes in eternity- Russell Crowe, Maximus, Gladiator
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