Few models in the history of the 4×4 have as strong an identity as the Nissan Patrol. Since its debut in 1951, it has evolved into a segment where robustness, reliability and true off-road capabilities are not optional: they are at the heart of the … product.
Its global presence is extensive – Middle East, Africa, Australia, CIS countries – and in the United States, it adopts the name Nissan Armada, a variant adapted to North American standards.
But as he explains Antonio López, global head of development of this type of vehiclethis duality does not hide the technical hierarchy: “The Patrol has a more reinforced chassis; remains the benchmark for extreme durability. The Armada retains its DNA, but the Patrol is the foundation designed to withstand the harsh conditions of the desert, mountains and extreme climates.
After 18 years outside the Japanese market, the model will return – officially announced in September – with a clear approach: return to the icon where it was born.
The 2027 Patrol incorporates the signature architecture of Nissan’s full-size SUVs: body on frame. This is the classic formula and the only viable one for a vehicle that must withstand torque, dynamic loads and severe conditions.
At the Tokyo Motor Show, Antonio López presented the new version of the Nissan Patrol, which will arrive in 2027 and will also mean the return to the Japanese market after 18 years
López sums it up this way: “As long as there are markets where the vehicle has to cross dunes at 50ºC, tow several tons or face potholed roads, you need a strong chassis and welds prepared for extreme fatigue. This is the very essence of the Patrol.
3.5 V6 biturbo engine
power unit which determines the current range – and which will remain evolved for the Japanese launch – is a 3.5 biturbo V6, designed to offer high torque at low revs and thermal stability in severe conditions.
But this engine is precisely why Europe is excluded for the moment: “The 3.5 V6 biturbo does not comply with current European emissions regulations. “Today we cannot sell the Patrol there in its current configuration,” explains López.
This This does not mean closing the door permanently.: “Electrification and hybridization are progressing. If global regulatory evolution continues and there is a proposal combining extreme capacity with drastic emissions reductions, Europe could be a future possibility.
The return of the Patrol to Japan was not born only from a market analysis – which exists – but from an internal concept promoted by López: rebuilding pride in the brand inside and outside the company. “I wanted our factory workers’ children to be able to point out a patrol and say, ‘Dad made that car.’ “It creates connection, identity and belonging.”
The first time Antonio López saw a Patrol was in 1989. “It was covered in sand, with Paris-Dakar stickers. It was seeing him and thinking, “My dad has the most exciting job in the world.”
The idea was presented directly to Iván Espinosa, then Chief Product Officer and now CEO of Nissan. “I told him the story of the first time I saw a patrol at the Cuatro Vientos technical center. It was 1989. It was covered in Sahara sand, with Paris-Dakar stickers. He was gaining on diesel. For me, it was seeing him and thinking: My dad has the most exciting job in the world.
This childhood memory ended up becoming a product strategy for Japan: uuse patrol (and also the reborn Nissan Elgrand) as iconic models to revitalize Nissan’s identity in its own country.
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