New Nissan NP300 Navara pick-up revealed

This is the new Nissan NP300 Navara pick-up, which promises improved comfort, practicality, tech and a more stylish design than its predecessor.

The front-end styling isn’t too radically different to the outgoing Nissan Navara, but there’s a fresh bumper design, new headlights featuring an LED design and plenty of chrome on the model in these pictures. With a lower roofline and a blacked-out B-pillar it’s also a slightly more athletic overall design.

Design isn’t everything for pick-up buyers, though, so Nissan has concentrated on making it as practical and durable as possible. It has a higher ground clearance, a larger load bay and is available in a range of different body types, with two or four-wheel drive.

The old Navara interior was in need of a bit of a refresh and Nissan says it has upped the quality with a ‘tactile steering wheel’ and an ‘aluminium-like’ finish on the centre console. A high-res colour display comes fitted in the instrument cluster as standard.

It’s still going to be a rugged workhorse, though, with a high-strength chassis and leaf springs fitted. It’s not the best set-up for on-road comfort or refinement but it does make the Navara incredibly durable. In a nod to city driving, Nissan is promising an improved turning circle.

Underneath the bonnet, the Navara is fitted with an improved version of the 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine found in the current version. It’s available with 187bhp – as it is now – or a new 161bhp variant which will replace the current entry-level 142bhp model. There’s a six-speed manual or a new seven-speed auto.

We haven’t yet got any official figures on improvements to fuel economy but Nissan is saying it could be as much as 11 per cent better. Bearing in mind the old car was capable of 33.6mpg, we’ll see more like 36mpg in the new model.

Nissan hasn’t yet confirmed whether the new car will make it to Europe but it’s only a matter of time. When it does arrive, expect it to cost from around £20,000.