Nissan’s redesigned 2017Armada can seat up to 8
Nissan has rolled out the second generation of its Armada full-size sport utility vehicle for 2017, making it bigger, pricier and much better than before.
Armada continues to be offered in the same three trim levels as last year’s models: SV, SL and Platinum, and all three versions are offered with rear- or four-wheel drive.
Prices for the all-new Armada begin at $44,900 (plus $995 freight) for the base SV two-wheel-drive model and range as high as $60,490 for the top-of-the-line Platinum all-wheel-drive version, the automaker announced.
In between are the SV four-wheel drive ($47,800); SL two-wheel drive ($49,650); SL four-wheel drive ($52,550); and Platinum two-wheel drive ($57,590).
Now on sale at Nissan dealerships nationwide, the 2017 Armada is based on the architecture of the Infiniti QX80 (formerly QX56), which itself comes from the Nissan Patrol, a vehicle that is popular in much of the rest of the world, but has never been sold in the United States.
Until now, the Armada — which was introduced in 2004 as the Pathfinder Armada — had been on the same chassis as the Nissan Titan pickup, and both have been assembled at the Nissan plant in Canton, Miss.
But with the 2017 restyling, the Armada moves to the QX80 platform, and production has been shifted to the same plant in Kyushu, Japan, that has been making the QX80 since its redesign for model year 2011.
With the shift of the Pathfinder to a car-based crossover format three years ago, the Armada was the only three-row, truck-based SUV left in the Nissan lineup, and with this update, it remains a conventional SUV rather than becoming a crossover.
The new model is 1.2 inches longer overall, but has a 2.1-inch shorter wheelbase. It’s also 0.6-inch wider and 2.2-inches lower than the model it replaced.
Depending on the interior configuration, the Armada seats seven or eight, with eight being the standard capacity.
That includes a standard second-row bench seat that holds three people; for $450 extra, that seat can be replaced by two captain’s chairs. That lowers the capacity to seven, with two in front, two in the middle and three in the rearmost seat.
Our test vehicle, the Armada Platinum four-wheel drive, had the bench seat in the middle. During parts of our trip, we had passengers in the middle row, but did not use the third-row seat. It’s roomy enough for big kids and even average-size adults, though, as the interior of this vehicle is cavernous.
But climbing up into the cabin from outside can be a chore for those not in the best physical shape, though. But at least there are steel side step rails with rubber pads on each side to help in the stepping up into the Armada.
The 2017 Armada is powered by a 5.6-liter Endurance V-8 engine nearly identical to the one in the QX80. In the Armada, it’s rated at 390 horsepower and 394 footpounds of torque. It’s also connected to a seven-speed automatic transmission like that in the Infiniti.
This is a beast of an engine that moves the heavy vehicle along quite easily, and offers plenty of quick passing power with a firm push on the accelerator. We had no trouble climbing some fairly steep mountain grades through the Smokies on the North Carolina-Tennessee border in our Armada Platinum, during a long Thanksgiving road trip.
The Armada got a completely new exterior, and a sideby-side comparison with the QX80 shows just how similar they are. The corners and edges are more rounded than those of the previous Armada, and as we drove our test vehicle through traffic on our trip, we marveled at how it towered over most of the other vehicles.
Other high-end features on our vehicle included Nissan Navigation with NavTraffic and NavWeather and an 8-inch color display; heated and cooled front seats; and a 13-speaker Bose audio system. We also had a rear entertainment system that included 9-inch monitors in the backs of the two front seats, along with wireless headphones and remote control.
The Armada’s truck-style frame has enough strength to tow trailers weighing up to 8,500 pounds, a welcome feature to most Texas buyers. Nissan says there was an increase of 20 percent in body stiffness, helping enhance handling and ride comfort.
There is 16.5 cubic feet of cargo space with the thirdrow seat in place, and 49.9 cubic feet with the third-row seatbacks folded down (they are split 60-40, with powerfolding).
At the rear, a power tailgate with an auto-closure feature is standard on SL and Platinum models, and optional on the SV.