2022 Nissan Navara ST-X 4×4 Dual Cab Review

The ute segment is fierce in Australia. Regularly topping the sales charts, utes have long been on fire locally. Why is that? Versatility. They’re now quiet and comfortable enough to become family transport – but crucially, they offer enough practicality to be used for work or off-road for weekends away. The HiLux and Ranger have long been the poster children for the ute segment, but what about a sales chart also ran competitor? Enter the 2022 Nissan Navara ST-X 4×4. 

Like the HiLux and Ranger, the Nissan Navara has been around for decades. This current ‘D23’ generation, was released in 2014 and Nissan has struggled with Navara sales, which have barely touched the segment leaders. This year, the Navara 4×4’s almost 12,000 sales so far this year pale into insignificance against the Ranger 4×4’s 42,200 units and the HiLux’s 37,000 units. With that sales information in mind, why do most ute buyers choose a Ranger or HiLux over a Navara? Let’s find out.

Price & Equipment: 9/10

Standard equipment on the mid-spec 2022 Nissan Navara ST-X (it’s priced at $58,270 plus on-road costs for the 4×4 automatic but currently priced at $56,990 drive away for ABN holders) includes 18-inch alloy wheels, automatic LED lighting, auto wipers, dual-zone climate control with rear air vents, a rear centre arm rest, a leather steering wheel, gearknob and handbrake, keyless entry and start, heated and auto-folding mirrors, drive mode selection, an 8.0-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, satellite navigation, digital radio, multiple USB ports, cruise control, rear privacy glass, a powered rear window, a sports bar and a tow bar (the ball, chain and D Shackle remain accessories).

Safety kit has been given a big upgrade with the facelift and now includes seven airbags, auto emergency braking (AEB) with forward collision warning, driver attention monitoring, lane departure warning, blind-spot monitoring with braking, rear cross-traffic alert, a 360-degree parking camera with object movement detection, front and rear parking sensors, auto high beam and tyre pressure monitoring. 

Available colours for the 2022 Nissan Navara ST-X include our test car’s ‘Forged Copper’, ‘White Pearl’, ‘Burning Red’, ‘Brilliant Silver’ and ‘Twilight Grey’ for an extra $650. No cost colour options are ‘Black Star’ and ‘Solid White’. The standard interior trim is black cloth, while $1,500 extra gets you the leather seat pack, which adds leather upholstery, heated front seats and a 10-way electrically adjustable driver’s seat (it was fitted to our test car). $1,000 more gets you the leather and sunroof pack, which adds a sunroof as well. 

Competing against the 2022 Nissan Navara ST-X are other upper-middle variants in ute ranges, including the $66,167 drive away Toyota HiLux SR5, $65,842 drive away Ford Ranger XLT, $64,448 drive away Isuzu D-Max LS-U and $61,586 drive away Mazda BT-50 XTR (all 4×4, dual cab and with automatic transmissions). 

Features offered on some rivals but not the Navara include adaptive cruise control, extra airbags, pedestrian, cyclist and intersection assist for the auto braking system and lane trace assist. But are those features worth up to $10,000 more? We don’t think so and the Navara ST-X offers a pretty impressive standard equipment list given that its pricing rivals the very basic HiLux SR, which doesn’t even feature alloy wheels. 

Performance & Economy: 8/10

Under the bonnet of the 2022 Nissan Navara ST-X is a twin-turbocharged 2.3-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel engine that makes 140kW of power (at 3,750rpm) and 450Nm of torque (between 1,500 and 2,500rpm). It’s available in most Navara models and in both two- or four-wheel drive, and with either a six-speed manual or a seven-speed automatic transmission – our test car was a 4×4 automatic, which is expected to take the lion’s share of the updated Navara sales. 

Like pretty much every other diesel engine on the ute market, the Navara’s 2.3-litre donk is not the quietest engine on the market. But thanks to its largely unique twin-turbo set up, it offers reasonable punch. Its outputs are similar to the D-Max and BT-50 – which feature one less turbo but 700cc more capacity – but the HiLux produces 10kW/50Nm more from a single turbo and 500cc more.

The Navara’s seven-speed automatic transmission offers one more ratio than competitors – aside from the optional 2.0-litre bi-turbo engine with a 10-speed auto in the Ranger – and it feels more drivable thanks to the shorter ratio spread. The transmission is also generally quite intuitive as well.

Nissan claims that the 2022 Nissan Navara ST-X 4×4 auto will use 7.9L/100km on a combined cycle, and we achieved 9.2L/100km more skewed towards urban driving. The Navara features an 80-litre tank, and owners should see a minimum of around 800km to a tank based on our consumption. 

Ride & Handling: 8/10

Here’s the Navara’s point of difference: while many other utes use ancient leaf springs for their rear suspension set ups, all but the SL 4×4 version of the Navara dual-cab use a five-link independent rear suspension system, which makes it more comfortable than rivals. Even unloaded, the Navara’s rear end makes it more adept at copping even bigger bumps and filtering them out. 

The Navara’s steering is pleasingly light, though not alarmingly light like the BT-50 and D-Max – it’s light enough for off-road use, but has proper heft to it for highway use. The Navara’s road noise levels are also pleasingly low despite the off-road tyres. Visibility is just like other utes, though the Navara thankfully has a 360-degree parking camera, which is extremely helpful (and still somehow a class-exclusive feature). 

The braked towing capacity of the 2022 Nissan Navara ST-X 4×4 automatic matches the best in class at 3,500kg. The maximum towball download is 350kg. For 4×4 models, Nissan claims clearance of between 213mm and 224mm, approach angles between 31 and 32 degrees, break over angles of between 22 and 23 degrees and 600mm of wading depth (without a snorkel).

Further helping off-road ability are features such as hill descent control, an off-road monitor and a lockable rear diff.

Interior & Practicality: 7/10

First designed for its original 2014 debut, the cabin of the 2022 Nissan Navara ST-X is certainly not the most modern or high quality in the segment – the continually updated Ranger feels plusher, for example, while the D-Max and BT-50 twins feature a more modern layout. But the most recent update to the Navara gifted it a new 8.0-inch centre screen from the latest Nissan products, as well as a new 7.0-inch screen in front of the driver and both make the Navara’s cabin feel more modern and high tech than before.

Centre of the Navara’s cabin is an 8.0-inch touchscreen with wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, satellite navigation and digital radio. Taken from the current Qashqai, it’s a big improvement on the previous system – largely because it finally has smartphone integration but also because the layout and responsiveness is far superior. The unbranded six-speaker sound system is surprisingly punchy, as well. 

The quality inside the Navara is not great, though. Everything is well screwed together and feels built to last, but the materials are hard and scratchy aside from the faux leather door inserts as part of the leather seat pack on our test car. Even some simple faux leather trimmings on the centre console for leg resting (as in rivals) would make for a better cabin feel. But the new steering wheel is a big improvement on the last model’s – nice to hold and much more stylish, though still without telescopic adjustment. 

As with other utes, the Navara’s cabin is reasonably practical with big cupholders and door pockets, a decent tray ahead of the gearbox and a smaller centre console with USB A and USB C charging ports. Both the D-Max and HiLux’s cabin has extra storage, though – a dual-level glovebox, for example. They also have cupholders underneath the side air vents, which Nissan oddly removed for the facelifted model. 

The Navara’s rear cabin is reasonably roomy with more than enough headroom and legroom for six-footers. It features a map pocket, a centre arm rest with cup holders, air vents and a single USB A charging port, while the seats also split fold to help practicality. Let’s also not forget that it’s the only ute to offer a rear sliding window. 

The tray of the Navara measures 1,509mm long, 1,560mm wide (1,134mm between the arches) and 519mm tall. There are a few features in the tray such as a bed liner, ‘Utili-Track’ sliders with moveable tie-downs and a redesigned tailgate with counterbalance for a more refined tailgate motion.

Service & Warranty: 8/10

Like other Nissan products, the 2022 Nissan Navara ST-X comes with a five-year/unlimited km warranty with five years of roadside assistance and it needs to be serviced once yearly or every 20,000km. Over five years/100,000km, the Navara costs $2,847 to service ($570 per service), which is not cheap but it does feature longer service intervals than rivals. Ford, Mazda and Toyota also cover their utes with five years and unlimited km of warranty (and up to five years of roadside assistance for the Ford and Mazda and none for Toyota) – Isuzu has them all covered with a six-year/150,000km warranty and seven years of roadside assistance.

Servicing the Ranger over five years/75,000km costs $1,581 ($316 per service), the HiLux costs $1,906 ($381 per service), the D-Max costs $2,315 ($463 per service) and the BT-50 costs $2,356 over five years/75,000km making the Navara somewhat expensive to service, but its longer service intervals make it better value for those doing more distance.

The DiscoverAuto 2021 Nissan Navara ST-X 4×4 Dual Cab DiscoverAuto Rating: 8.0/10

The series five update to the 2022 Nissan Navara ST-X has been a very worthwhile improvement. While not a generational change, there have been a number of meaningful changes to boost the Navara’s chances in the hotly contested ute segment, including a massive influx of active safety equipment, new technology such as the new centre screen with (finally!) Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring and subtle changes under the body to make the Navara more comfortable and refined than ever before.

Of course, it’s not perfect – its age does show through in some areas such as the dated cabin materials, the 2.3L twin-turbo diesel engine could use more performance and it could be quieter as well. But Nissan has pushed a very worthy update through the Navara that has made it much more compelling than before, and certainly more competitive than ever. We’re not sure why Navara sales trail the Ranger and HiLux so much, but with this update, we’re certain that if you’re after a new ute, the Navara should be on your test drive list.