Nissan x trail yes or no ???

[Lab trainer]

Hi what is the general feeling about these trucks? For general go out in the fields with the dogs and be able to get out and to take off road whilst picking up throughout the season? I was thinking of sticking a decent set of off road tyres on it as it would be a 2nd motor so only for the above reasons ?? I’d appreciate your thoughts from anyone who knows about or has one for these reasons. Cheers

 

[Howzat]

Had a new one in 2006 very good for all you require, not sure about the latest models, I now have a 2014 RAV AWD a much better car altogether

 

[SimpleSimon]

Which generation are you looking at?

I had one, the 2007-2014 model on a 57 plate. Lovely car to drive on the road, and with decent AT tyres on would handle wet fields and tracks well. Braked limited slip diff system worked well to prevent a single wheel from spinning freely. Also a nice "auto" mode on the 4wd system rather than manually engaging/disengaging on mixed surfaces. Nice big boot, practical shape. Mine had well over 150k miles when I got rid of it.

 

[ion]

Got rid of a 2012 top of the range last Autumn with over 350k km on the clock. Did about 50k km p.a. from 2014 onwards. Unfortunately a lot of parts had reached end of life. Wiper motor, clutch and flywheel replaced at 250k and flywheel and wiper motor were going again. Rear drive shaft and universal joint needed replacing. Parts - dealer or spurious were slow to arrive. Was a bugger on wheel bearings and discs.
That said very roomy inside for 3 spaniels ,1 lab and 2 deerhounds at times or a tray full of deer. You can get a large cage in the boot. On good tyres and diff lock it sailed through mud, and it was easy on tyres if the tracking was properly set up and maintained. Its an odd driving position , there's a substantial blind spot in front of the bonnet when you're driving off road.
Two friends drove 06 models until recently - much better torque for towing
I replaced it with a 2017 model two wheel drive with no extras .Its not a patch on the old car, except for the long boot when back seats are folded down.
Despite my comments at the start it was a great car, I just mistimed its end of life. I'm in a high mileage job retiring this June and I thought it would see me out.

 

[Lab trainer]

Yeh sounds ok for who need I’d be at looking at the older model you speak about around a 08 maybe 10 but no newer and put some A/T tyres on it .

 

[otbed]

I've got a 14 plate (but the 07 -13 'boxy' one, not the curvy hairdresser special from 14 on) and it's an excellent piece of kit. It's my shooting car and it's off road performance is really very good for a non-hardcore off roader. I've got Geolanders on it and it's been up very steep rocky Highland access tracks, waded a (worryingly) deep river, and crossed boggy ground without a hitch and all on one trip! The only vehicle that got bogged and stuck in the soft bog was the one following me - an L200!!
I replaced my old beloved Vitara with it and I think it's a decent buy for sensible and reasonable off-road use. The 07 - 13 has a bigger, longer boot than the pre-07 model and without any seat folding will take a 1m square fallow tray plus kit and I'm confident that a red will go in too without any seat folding. Mines the 171bhp 2ltr diesel and returns around 41+ mpg on a run, and it's comfortable and relaxing to drive long distances. Useful under boot storage compartments too. Fold the seats and it's pretty cavernous.
Re off road I think the designers did put some thought into it. It's got 2WD, selectable electronic auto 4WD as SimpleSimon says (ie it uses 2WD but drives all wheels if it detects slip) and 4WD Diff Lock - all these selected by a simple rotary switch. Hill descent is fitted on mine and works. The first three gears are slightly low as well which helps off road (but bear in mind when you floor it to rapidly pass a tractor and hit the rev limit!!). It's got decent enough ground clearance as well and decent enough departure angles front and rear but watch your tow socket!
All in all it's a good all rounder if you don't want a bloated Chelsea Tractor or a 'truck'.

 

[Lab trainer]

Thanks for the information

 

[Lab trainer]

I've got a 14 plate (but the 07 -13 'boxy' one, not the curvy hairdresser special from 14 on) and it's an excellent piece of kit. It's my shooting car and it's off road performance is really very good for a non-hardcore off roader. I've got Geolanders on it and it's been up very steep rocky Highland access tracks, waded a (worryingly) deep river, and crossed boggy ground without a hitch and all on one trip! The only vehicle that got bogged and stuck in the soft bog was the one following me - an L200!!
I replaced my old beloved Vitara with it and I think it's a decent buy for sensible and reasonable off-road use. The 07 - 13 has a bigger, longer boot than the pre-07 model and without any seat folding will take a 1m square fallow tray plus kit and I'm confident that a red will go in too without any seat folding. Mines the 171bhp 2ltr diesel and returns around 41+ mpg on a run, and it's comfortable and relaxing to drive long distances. Useful under boot storage compartments too. Fold the seats and it's pretty cavernous.
Re off road I think the designers did put some thought into it. It's got 2WD, selectable electronic auto 4WD as SimpleSimon says (ie it uses 2WD but drives all wheels if it detects slip) and 4WD Diff Lock - all these selected by a simple rotary switch. Hill descent is fitted on mine and works. The first three gears are slightly low as well which helps off road (but bear in mind when you floor it to rapidly pass a tractor and hit the rev limit!!). It's got decent enough ground clearance as well and decent enough departure angles front and rear but watch your tow socket!
All in all it's a good all rounder if you don't want a bloated Chelsea Tractor or a 'truck'.

Can ya get a decent lifting kit for them to put the a bit higher??

 

[SimpleSimon]

Can ya get a decent lifting kit for them to put the a bit higher??

I looked briefly at a lift kit when I had mine, "Pedders" I think, but I decided it was expensive and I didn't want to upset the on-road capabilities too much so I never bothered.

 

[Lab trainer]

Ok thanks makes sense . Cheers

 

[scotch_egg]

I had an 04 xtrail. It was so good on road I didn’t bother with running two vehicle as a recreational stalker.

However the xc90 I now run runs rings over it.

 

[caorach]

I had one of the older shape ones, maybe 2007ish, had it for 7 years and loved it. I now have an L200 and still consider the X-Trail to be a much better general stalking/fishing/shooting/everyday vehicle. If they hadn't stopped making them I'd of had another one. The only slight problem can be AT tyres to fit the wheel sizes so it is worth checking what wheel size is on anything you look to buy, there is a much wider range of AT tyres available today than there was 15 years ago so I don't imagine you will have any big problems but it was a pain back then. According to the official manufacturers figures there is only 5mm between the X-Trail and the L200 in terms of road clearance and I seem to recall that it is actually in favour of the X-Trail, either way it isn't a deal breaker.

There is a big flat boot with a floor much lower than the L200 so it was great for loading and carrying deer and with the back seats folded it is huge back there, you could easily sleep back there. Also there are two drawers that go below the flat load bed and they are a fantastic idea, not all of them have the actual drawers but I'm sure you could pick them up from a scrap yard if necessary. I'll post a photo below if I can.

The Australians do lots of serious off roading in their X-Trails and have lots of mods for them if you are interested.

Mine probably did 70k+ miles and the only thing I replaced was a relay but, like any car, a 15 year old one is going to have some problems as stuff does wear out so I guess you need to keep that in mind. I looked at the newer shape ones and they really didn't do what I needed.

 

[Lab trainer]

That sounds great just what I’m looking for it seems they changed the model in 07 ? And put the speedometer behind the wheel and from then the general feeling is that to be a better model ? but one last question . what is the best model to go for I like the sound of the 2.0ltr from 07 onwards but is that the 150 or the 172 BHP and I want the full bells and whistles, leather/ heated seats / cruise control Ect so all opinions we’ll be helpful. Thanks

 

[Lab trainer]

Sorry also does the road tax rise much in different models/ BHP . Cheers

 

[caorach]

That sounds great just what I’m looking for it seems they changed the model in 07 ? And put the speedometer behind the wheel and from then the general feeling is that to be a better model ? but one last question . what is the best model to go for I like the sound of the 2.0ltr from 07 onwards but is that the 150 or the 172 BHP and I want the full bells and whistles, leather/ heated seats / cruise control Ect so all opinions we’ll be helpful. Thanks

I think there were only really two basic trim levels, mine is the more basic of the two and doesn't have leather (I don't like it) but apart from that it pretty much had everything that I needed. The problem with the higher trim level (I think it basically adds leather and satnav) is that it has bigger rims and certainly 15 years ago there were no AT tyres to fit them so they were a huge disadvantage if you wanted to use it for fishing/stalking. I think the higher trim model was called the Tenka, or something like that.

Mine was the 172 BHP one, with the speedo behind the wheel, and performance was acceptable considering what it is designed for. I think that "newer" model had quite a few of the "bells and whistles" over the one with the speedo in the middle but I know a chap who still runs one of the "speedo in the middle" ones and loves it.