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Thursday / 6 February 2025
HomeNewsTougher Nissan Navara for South Africa – Dates and details

Tougher Nissan Navara for South Africa – Dates and details

The Nissan Navara family is set to welcome the brawny new Warrior model in March.

The Warrior will be an all-new nameplate for the domestic market, but it is, in fact, not a new variant at all.

Australian firm Premcar has been converting the Navara to Warrior spec on behalf of Nissan for quite a few years exclusively for customers in the Land Down Under.

It’s been rumoured that the bakkie is coming to South Africa for about as long as it has been in existence, though mechanical differences between the Australian and South African models complicated its local rollout.

It seems these issues have now been resolved.

Head of communications for Nissan Africa, Ramy Mohareb, confirmed to TopAuto that the Navara Warrior is on its way to South Africa, and should make landfall within the next few months if everything goes to plan.

“While we can’t provide detailed answers to your questions at this stage, we are excited to confirm that the Warrior is indeed making its way to South Africa, sometime around March this year,” said Mohareb.

“We’re still finalizing internal discussions regarding the launch timeline and other details.”

Mohareb unfortunately could not provide information surrounding where the bakkie will be converted to Warrior specification nor what the market-specific upgrades will entail.

Like in Australia, it’s possible that the local arm of Premcar, a subsidiary of the AIH Group, will be doing the work on Navaras built at the automaker’s Rosslyn, Gauteng plant.

“This marks an exciting chapter for us as we proudly continue to produce the Nissan Navara at our Rosslyn plant,” said Mohareb.

“The Navara has earned a special place in the hearts of South Africans, and introducing new variants and special versions to our market reinforces our commitment to this country and its people. It also underlines our dedication to offering world-class, locally produced vehicles tailored for adventure and capability.”

What to expect

The Navara Warrior in Australia boasts several functional and stylistic enhancements over the standard Pro-4X.

It benefits from a Warrior decal pack, Safari-style bulbar, an integrated light bar, wider fender flares, a Nissan Genuine winch, a Warrior-specific towbar, a Navara-branded red bash plate, and a 3mm steel underbody protection plate.

In addition, the 4×4 is equipped with rugged 17-inch alloy rims shod with Cooper Discoverer All Terrain AT3 tyres.

This is on top of a revised suspension system with new spring rates for more front-end support and less body roll. The front and rear damping rates have also been tuned to provide better compliance, improved isolation from impacts, and reduced float when towing or carrying a load.

A larger, taller jounce bumper is also installed, ensuring better control of wheel movement at maximum suspension travel, and reduced transmission of large impacts into the cabin.

The upgrades resulted in the following improvements to the Navara:

  • Wider track, from 1,570mm to 1,600mm
  • Increased ground clearance, from 220m to 260mm
  • Improved approach angle, from 32 degrees to 36 degrees

Interior touch-ups are minimal, only including Warrior headrest embroidery on the seats.

The South African specifications of the Navara Warrior will likely be detailed once it arrives in our market.

All in on Navara

Following the discontinuation of the NP200 in early 2024, Nissan has been on a drive to diversify its existing line-up to secure the market share its popular compact bakkie built up over its 16-year shelf life.

The Navara has been instrumental in this strategy.

In South Africa, the manufacturer recently added two new double-cab models at a more attainable price point than what was previously available to make the bakkie more attractive to a larger crowd.

Furthermore, the local subsidiary has added countries such as Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Sudan, and Tunisia to its export portfolio, significantly boosting the number of Navaras shipped from Rosslyn to the world on a monthly basis.

Now with a healthy selection of 17 Navara specifications – with another on the way – and over 45 export markets, Nissan will ramp up production at its domestic factory with the intention of reaching the maximum output of 50,000 units per annum once again.

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