Nissan’s new compact diesel SUV – the X-Trail – launched late last year is the first time Nissan has provided diesel economy in a 4WD of this size.
 
Its fuel efficiency over the petrol engined model is immediately obvious.
With its six speed automatic, the two litre turbocharged diesel X-Trail sipped just 6.43 litres of fuel per 100 kilometres around the Automobile Association’s (AA) standard Coromandel Peninsula test route.
Under standard ADR (Australian Design Rules) testing the X –Trail diesel is rated at 8.1 litres/100 kilometres.

On the independently tested AA drive around the now familiar Coromandel Peninsula loop last year – a 417 kms return trip from Manukau – the X-Trail 2.5 litre petrol model with CVT transmission returned 8.51 litres per 100 kilometres or 33.18 miles per gallon. Under standard ADR testing the X –Trail petrol is rated at 9.3 litres/100 kilometres.

On the winding, twisty and hilly roads of the Coromandel Peninsula, where it is almost impossible to drive economically the X-Trail diesel never showed worse than 6.8 lit/100 kms on the instrument panel fuel consumption read out.

For much of the drive, the rev counter needle hovered around 2000 rpm as the auto used the highest and most economical sixth gear for the open road driving conditions. But up those Coromandel hills it changed back to third and fourth gear to cope with the inclines and tight bends, hardly ideal economical driving conditions.

The trip south from Manukau, along SH2 through Maramarua and across the Hauraki Plains to Paeroa always produces good fuel economy cruising around the legal speed limit. The X-Trail’s economy averaged 6.0 litres/ 100 kilometres in this early easy going. But the on-board computer showed that when it got into the hills heading north from Waihi to Whangamata, Tairua and Whitianga the fuel consumption did not drop rapidly.

The X-Trail cruised up the hills easily and only drank a little more fuel with its CPU (central processor unit) matching the best gear to the engine revs for the severity of the climb and the most economical driving, rather than “hunting” up and down the gearbox like many automatics are inclined to do, with consequent higher fuel consumption.

The AA observed economy testing over this route has been carried out for four years now in a variety of Nissans. The X-Trail took it all in its stride, maintaining its frugal use of the diesel, only consuming 26.8 litres over the 417 kms journey. And the driver, passenger and 20 kgs of luggage did it in comfort with the air conditioning in constant use, replicating real world driving conditions. And the tyres were run at standard pressures, rather than being pumped up to un-comfortably hard pressure for less rolling resistance and better economy.