The front bumper now looks more rounded, while the rear, on the contrary, has become noticeably more angular. Some badge appeared on the SUV's doors, and the headlights, it seems, are now xenon. The radiator grille seems more massive. Overall, both cars have become like plumper hamsters.
In addition to point changes in appearance, Nissan seriously worked on the interior, reflecting the external plumpness with a rich inner world — and that's without quotes. Materials, wherever possible, were replaced with more expensive and pleasant to the touch, for top trims they added a glowing instrument panel, and the options list included a new audio-navigation system with DVD and a 40-gigabyte hard drive. Real professionals took on the quality sound — the Bose company. Experts from Massachusetts turned the Pathfinder and even the Navara with its tiny cab into music salons with pleasant sound.
A small plate on the Pathfinder's door informs that under the hood now stands a new diesel "six." We have already talked about this engine with the index V9X — it was created for Infiniti. The most interesting features are the 65-degree cylinder bank angle and the use of special high-strength cast iron with oriented carbon, which is lighter and stronger than ordinary malleable cast iron. The engine, surprisingly, turned out to be very quiet and elastic. It works in tandem with another new product — a seven-speed automatic transmission. On the move, the 3-liter Navara with an "automatic" can give a head start to some passenger cars — it pulls excellently. With a manual gearbox it would be worse — such a fast diesel does not like to rev from zero.
After the pickup, I moved to the Pathfinder with a boosted 2.5-liter "four," familiar from the 2005 model, and a manual. I stalled only once...
I quickly got used to the diesel/manual combination. The "old man" boosted to 190 horsepower is just excellent! And the six-speed transmission suits it. Up to fifth gear the ratios are short, but shifting is easy — the mechanism is precise. Sixth is very long, overdrive, on the highway you can keep average fuel consumption around 7 liters per hundred. With this engine and this gearbox, it is very pleasant to drive off-road as well. The three-liter, of course, is more torquey, but the "automatic" slightly smooths out the sensations. With the 2.5-liter diesel and manual transmission, the car drives better over rough terrain.
Prices for the restyled Navara and Pathfinder start from 1,279,450 and 1,439,500 rubles, respectively. At the time of writing, prices for the 3.0-liter versions had not yet been published, but my wallet suggests that these extra half a liter will stick in the throat.
