2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior Review

Flooding the market lately are off-road focused dual-cab utes due to their all-round ability, versatility, availability, off-road capability and maturity. Because of that, Nissan has decided to get in on the action – with help from a local company to create an Australia-specific model. In comes the 2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior, so what’s it like? Worth comparing against the Ford Ranger Raptor? Let’s find out.

Dual cab utes are used for just about everything these days, from work horses to the school run, so for a ute to be successful in the market it needs to be comfortable as well as tough as it’ll be used for a variety of things. Rivalling the Navara Pro-4X Warrior are the Ford Ranger Raptor, Toyota HiLux Rugged X, Mazda BT-50 Thunder and the Isuzu D-Max X-Terrain.

Price & Equipment: 9/10

Most off-road focused dual-cab utes sit at the top of their respective ranges and the 2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior is no exception. Sitting above the regular Pro-4X Navara the Warrior comes in at $68,090 plus on road costs (around $78,000 drive away), which is $9,360 more than the regular Pro-4X.

It comes with a full size spare, a sports bar, roof rails, a tub liner, a tow bar, black and red accents to the bodykit, selectable driving modes, automatic LED headlights, LED front fog lights, LED tail lights, heated/auto-folding mirrors, rain-sensing wipers, keyless entry with push button start, leather upholstery with an electric driver’s seat, heated front seats, dual-zone climate control, cruise control, an 8.0-inch touchscreen with wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, digital radio, satellite navigation, a six-speaker sound system and a 7.0-inch digital driver’s display as standard.

The Pro-4X Warrior is modified by Australian company Premcar, which gives it the full off road treatment. Above the regular Pro-4X, the Warrior gains a 40mm lift kit with new dampers, off-road focused 32-inch Cooper Discoverer AT3 all-terrain tyres on 17-inch wheels, an underbody bash plate, a winch-compatible bull bar that also includes an integrated light bar, a tow bar that has been redesigned to allow for the ride height increase, side fender flares and some Warrior branding inside and out.

The premium for the Warrior over the regular Pro-4X is just shy of $10,000, but we think that represents good value for money as suspension kits alone – let alone all the other upgrades and quality – can be priced that high. That they’re fitted locally and have the full Nissan warranty is more cherry on the cake.

Safety is also very important for a ute and the 2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior comes with seven airbags, high and low speed autonomous emergency braking (AEB) with forward collision warning, trailer sway assist, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, auto high beam, driver fatigue detection, rear parking sensors, a 360-degree camera, tyre pressure monitoring and an alarm system.

Even though this is a top spec model, the Warrior does miss out on some equipment such as adaptive cruise control and a hard tonneau cover. The colours available on the Warrior are the standard ‘Black Star’ and optional for $650 ‘White Diamond’ and our test car’s ‘Stealth Grey’.

Rivals to the 2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior are the $70,750 Toyota HiLux Rugged X, the $79,320 Ford Ranger Raptor X, the $68,190 Mazda BT-50 Thunder and the $67,500 Isuzu D-Max X-Terrain. All of these cars bar the Isuzu are more expensive than the Nissan and though some of them do offer slightly more equipment, we think the Navara is excellent value when compared to its rivals.

Engine & Performance: 8/10

The sole engine available on the 2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior is the same 2.3-litre twin-turbocharged four-cylinder diesel engine used in the rest of the Navara range, which was initially developed by Renault for use in its commercial vans. It produces 140kW of power (at 3,750rpm) and 450Nm of torque (between 1,500 and 2,500rpm). The Pro-4X Warrior is only available as a 4×4 dual-cab ute as either a six-speed manual or our test car’s seven-speed torque converter automatic.

We quite like the engine in the Navara as it has a smooth and linear power delivery, and it’s generally more refined than other engines in this class. It can be a little vocal under hard acceleration but otherwise, it is a good unit. The only other thing we wish it had was more torque – its twin turbo set up makes for less lag, but we’d like slightly more oomph.

The automatic box is a very smooth and low stress unit. There is little lag when selecting gears and the motion of changing gears while on the move is done without any jolts or disruptions to the driving experience. One gripe we did have with it is that when you are going down slight inclines the transmission does seem to shift down a little too much, leaving the revs a little high.

Looking at competitors, the Toyota HiLux has a 2.8-litre turbo diesel that produces 150kW/500Nm (10kW and 50Nm more than the Navara) and the Mazda BT-50/Isuzu D-Max twins have a 3.0-litre turbo diesel that makes 140kW/450Nm, which is exactly the same as the Nissan.

The claimed average fuel consumption figure for the Navara Pro-4X Warrior with the automatic transmission is 8.1L/100km. Our week spent driving the Navara driving on a mixture of roads saw an average of 10.2L/100km, which is better than what we expected from a large ute. The Navara has an 80-litre fuel tank so expect to around 850km to a tank based on our consumption.

Ride & Handling: 9/10

Now this is where the 2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior thrives as it is by far the best-riding ute we have tested, which is due to it having a five-link independent rear suspension setup. Unlike most utes that use a coil spring set up, it is very comfortable and soaks bumps up. It is soft enough to not be phased by speed humps or driveways, but firm enough to not feel wallowy or loose.

Diesel dual-cab utes aren’t known for their handling ability due to their high centre of gravity and large size but the Navara may surprise you with how capable it can be. It’s obviously no sports car but it handles better than you might imagine. The steering is very easy to operate and unlike many other utes, which have heavy steering, the Navara’s is quite light and this helps maneuverability greatly.

The braked towing capacity of the 2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior automatic matches the best in class at 3,500kg. The maximum tow-ball download is 350kg. Nissan claims clearance of 220mm, an approach angle of 32 degrees, a break over angle of 22.9 degrees and 600mm of wading depth. It also has a low range transfer case, a locking rear differential and a wider track. The GVM for the Pro-4X Warrior has been increased by 100kg over the regular Pro-4X to 3,250kg with a welcome increase in payload to 952kg.

The active safety features in the Navara aren’t overly intrusive, but as we mentioned before, we would love to see the addition of radar cruise control, especially in this higher spec model but what it does have works well. The forward collision alert is the right amount of sensitive without being too trigger happy and the lane departure warning is great at keeping you in your lane – but there is no trace assistance.

Interior & Practicality: 8/10

The interior of the 2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior is much the same as the normal Navara range, but with some added flair. It is a very comfortable cabin that is designed to be ergonomic and durable. It may seem a little basic initially but looking further reveals some cool little features that make the Navara a little more special thank you may think.

The dash of the Navara has is mostly all hard plastic, but the door panels have portions of leather-like trim on them, as well as the centre console. The leather used on the seats is also of a nice quality and feel great to sit on. Everything is well screwed together well, but there could be more soft touch materials used to give a more premium feeling.

Centre of the Navara Warrior’s cabin is an 8.0-inch touchscreen that’s well featured with wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as satellite navigation and digital radio. The screen itself is good to use with nice resolution and colouring, especially with the smartphone mirroring connected. Almost uniquely in the segment is a 360-degree parking camera, though its resolution isn’t great.

Storage in the cabin of the Navara is decent. There is a spot in front of the gear selector to store a phone, two cup holders behind the shifter and a generous centre console, a nicely sized glove box, deep door pockets and map pockets behind the front seats. It is worth noting that other utes, such as the Isuzu D-Max and Mazda BT-50, have more storage options in their cabins.

Stepping up into the rear seats of the 2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior reveals more than enough room for two adults or three kids. There is plenty of knee and head room for taller passengers. Back seat amenities include a centre arm rest with two cup holders, a single USB-A charging port, air vents and map pockets on the rear of the front seats. If you need more storage, the rear seats can also fold to make more space. There is also an electric rear window controlled by the driver, which is the only ute in the segment to offer this.

The tray in the Navara Pro-4X Warrior has a tub liner and it also has a clever hook system called ‘Utili-Track’ to help tie items down. The hooks also slide and can be removed. The tray of the Navara measures 1,509mm long, 1,560mm wide (1,134mm between the arches) and 519mm tall.

Service & Warranty: 8/10

The 2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior comes with a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty, which is the same that is offered with the Ford Ranger, Mazda BT-50 and the Toyota HiLux – although it is worth noting Toyota offer a further two years of warranty on the engine. The Isuzu D-Max comes with a six-year/150,000km warranty. The Navara comes with five years of roadside assistance, as does the BT-50 and the D-Max has seven years – but Toyota does not offer any form of roadside assist.

The 2022 Nissan Navara requires being serviced every 12 months or 20,000km, which is best in class, and the cost of servicing the Navara over the span of five years/100,000km is $2,971 ($594 per service), which is a little steep when compared to the $2,330 (average service cost of $466) that the Ford Ranger Wildtrak will cost over five years/75,000km. The Navara’s longer intervals will help those driving long distances though.

2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior DiscoverAuto Rating: 8.4/10

We love a diesel dual-cab ute here at DiscoverAuto and have tested many in the past. Despite its age, we think the Nissan Navara is good buying. It is a comfortable daily driver that is good value for money, it has great off-road ability, it’s well featured and it can go anywhere. So what’s not to love? Well it is a little expensive to service, not the cheapest to buy and the interior could be a little more premium.

If we wanted an off-road focused 4×4 dual cab ute, would the 2022 Nissan Navara Pro-4X Warrior be at the top of our list? We love how versatile it is, it’s easy to drive and fully featured with safety kit so you can take the kids to school in it, but it also handles very well of road and is perfect for weekends away. There’s plenty of competition in the ute segment but there’s much worse buying than the Navara.