LOCAL KNOWLEDGE
TAKE ONE NISSAN NAVARA AND ADD SOME SAVVY LOCAL ENGINEERING, AND YOU END UP THE N-TREK WARRIOR.
NO DOUBT inspired by the likes of the Ford Raptor and the HSV Sportscat, Nissan Australia decided that to get more cut-through with its not particularly well-loved and somewhat controversial Navara, a ‘halo’ or ‘hero’ model was in order. To this end Nissan Australia turned to Premcar, the current embodiment of Prodrive, Tickford and Ford Performance Vehicles. Premcar’s work brings specially tuned springs and dampers and a bigger wheel/ tyre package, essentially to improve off-road performance. To complete the package and to make the Warrior ready to roll from showroom to the bush, Premcar added a bespoke steel bullbar, underbody protection and siderails, as well an LED light bar, a redesigned towbar and various styling enhancements.
As a fully certified second-stage manufacturer, Premcar will build the Warrior in its Melbourne factory while
Nissan will sell it with full factory backing and warranty via its dealer network.
The Warrior comes with standard Navara powertrain, which means it’s offered with a six-speed manual as well as a seven-speed automatic, an option the Raptor doesn’t bring to the table.
POWERTRAIN AND PERFORMANCE
THE familiar Renault-sourced 2.3-litre bi-turbo four-cylinder diesel in the Warrior has a bit more work to do than it does in a standard Navara. First up there’s the Warrior’s extra hardware that adds some 200kg, while the taller tyres raise the overall gearing a little over seven per cent.
Still, this is a keen engine, as it is in a standard Navara, and while it’s a little muted in the Warrior it still continues to offer decent performance.
In standard trim the Navara’s overall gearing is relatively short, so the taller tyres don’t really hurt as much as they would on something that’s already tallgeared. That’s why Ford lowered the Raptor’s final drive from that of a stock Ranger.
In typical bi-turbo style the Warrior combines good off-idle response with its maximum torque (450Nm), on tap at just 1500rpm, with a keenness to rev as the peak power (140kw) doesn’t arrive until 3750rpm. Asked to give its all it’s still not as strong as the Raptor, but it isn’t really disgraced – driven in isolation it never really feels wanting. Compared to the Raptor, the more noticeable difference is that the Warrior is relatively noisy and harsh, especially under load.
Our road-test Warrior came with the seven-speed automatic, which shifts smoothly enough but can be reluctant to back-shift under load, preferring to
generally hang on to a taller gear rather than reach for a shorter gear. It’s not as slick-shifting as the 10-speed in the Raptor, but it isn’t as indecisive as the Raptor’s ’box, just a bit on the lazy side.
ON-ROAD RIDE AND HANDLING
PREMCAR’S main aim with the Warrior was to improve the stock Navara’s offroad performance, but the retuned suspension works wonders on-road despite the theoretical negative of the more off-road-orientated wheel and tyre package.
The Navara is unusual among the popular utes in as much as it has coil springs rather than leaf springs at the rear. With the Warrior, dual-rate coil springs continue to be employed, but the Warrior’s (Monroe brand) springs are softer in the initial spring (34N/mm vs 37N/mm) but firmer in the second spring (85N/mm vs 77N/mm) than standard. Up front, lighter 74N/mm springs replace the stock 79N/mm springs, but there’s an extra-long progressive bump stop which firms up the spring rate towards full compression. Quality Tenneco dampers expertly tuned by Premcar’s engineers replace the stock dampers, while the standard swaybars are retained.
The Warrior’s ride feels firm at lower speeds, most likely due to stronger compression damping and despite the lighter initial springs, but the whole package comes together very nicely at speed and feels settled and reassuring even on bumpy, poor quality rural roads. This is a ‘Navara D23’ like you have never felt before. The fact that Warrior feels better on the road despite the extra ride height and light-truck allterrain tyres is proof of the quality of Premcar’s work. Nissan has tried to get the standard Navara’s suspension right, not once, not twice, but three times, and the Warrior is still far better.
OFF-ROAD
PREMCAR’S chassis changes have brought 40mm more lift, 25mm of that via the taller 275/70R17 wheel and tyre package, both of which transform the Warrior’s off-road performance from the rather modest level achieved by the standard Navara.
The Warrior has the same rotary-dialoperated part-time 4x4 system of the
standard Navara, which offers deep low-range reduction. The gearbox isn’t entirely happy in low range as it can be reluctant to downshift on descent, even when used in the ‘manual’ tip-shift mode.
Like the Raptor, the Warrior has a driver-switched rear locker, which when engaged keeps the electronic traction control active on the front axle. This is handy as you need the Warrior’s locker more often than the Raptor, as it gets by on suspension travel alone. With its shorter travel suspension, the Warrior also lacks the Raptor’s off-road comfort.
The Warrior also has a shallower fording depth, despite the engine-air intake via the inner guard, but does come with a bespoke bumper bar which brings some off-road toughness that the Raptor doesn’t enjoy. However, there’s only one front recovery hook and none at the rear.
CABIN, ACCOMMODATION AND SAFETY
THE Warrior’s cabin isn’t as spacious up front or in the rear seat as the Raptor, and the front seats aren’t as comfortable as the excellent Raptor seats.
The Warrior is based on the top-spec Navara ST-X, which means a generous equipment list. Plus it gets its own themed interior with bespoke partleather seat trim and carpets.
The Warrior hasn’t been ANCAP tested as such, but a standard Navara achieved a five-star rating when last tested; although, it doesn’t have any high-end safety features such as the automatic emergency braking of the Ranger Raptor.
PRACTICALITIES
THE Warrior retains the Navara’s 3500kg towing capacity and feels like it may do a better job, chassis-wise, than a standard Navara at towing that amount; although, something around 3000kg is probably more around the mark. Still, that’s better than the Raptor’s 2500kg limit. Truth be told, if you’re after a heavy-duty tow tug then it’s best to bypass both of these utes. Like the Raptor, the Warrior also has a modest payload rating, and while it’s good that the tie-downs in the tub are adjustable, they need to be located much lower.