While some enthusiast ute buyers might disagree, Nissan Australia's local boss reckons most buyers have 'no idea' about the platform-sharing relationship between Navara and Triton.
The boss of Nissan Australia says the close relationship between the Nissan Navara and the Mitsubishi is not a challenge for most ute buyers, and believes many customers would have "no idea" which came first when parked side-by-side.
The new-generation ‘D27’ Navara – which is currently being launched in Australia – is based heavily upon the current Mitsubishi Triton, sharing its metal panels, interior layout, underpinnings, and powertrain.
It is a departure from the previous-generation ‘D23’ Navara, which was developed in-house on its own platform with rear coil springs and a 2.3-litre single- or twin-turbocharged diesel engine running through a seven-speed automatic transmission.
The only visual differences between the new Navara and Triton come from the front-end design and grille, headlights, tail-light signatures, wheel designs and badging.
While the powertrain is shared, Nissan has made investments in tuning the suspension for the Navara via the brains behind the Warrior edition, local firm Premcar, which has created tunes within the line-up: the SL/ST, ST-X and Pro-4X.
Nissan Australia boss Andrew Humberstone – who is set to move to an overseas position at Nissan at the end of this month – said the relationship between the vehicles is common in the ute market.
"I’ve worked with a number of OEMs, I’ve been with Nissan for nearly seven years now. Nearly every manufacturer I have worked with has had a cross-branded product," he told Drive.
The Volkswagen Amarok is based on the Ford Ranger, and the Mazda BT-50 platform-shares with the Isuzu D-Max, but both of these utes have differences in their exterior designs, with the Amarok getting a redesigned interior.
When asked what sets the Navara apart from the platform-sharing Triton, Humberstone said: "I think the heritage of Navara is quite strong.
"I think the brand differentiation on the exterior is very obvious. I think the suspension changes we’ve done are very obvious. And I think the interior, when you look at the Pro-4X, it’s actually quite different."
But Humberstone doesn’t see the close relationship between the two utes for most buyers as being a problem.
"As car people, we know. But I think most customers have no idea," the executive said.
"Put those cars (the Triton and the Navara) together, they have no idea. Put it next to a Ford, next to a Toyota, would they know which is the donor car? I’m not so sure.
"When I talk to customers, it’s not what we talk about. It’s what we as an industry talk about. But I think we have done enough with that car to differentiate it. And I think the brand is strong."
Humberstone conceded that some enthusiast buyers, especially those who are keen proponents of the previous-generation Navara with coil-spring rear suspension, might be turned off.
But the executive said his focus and priority is on the broader ute segment rather than the enthusiast niche, as the embattled brand looks to build a path and strategy for the next 20 years.
"I think more of that segment is looking towards hybrid options than they are coil suspension," Humberstone told Drive.
"And I think once they test the suspension, when they drive it and feel [it], they will be won over."
Sam Purcell has been writing about cars, four-wheel driving and camping since 2013, and obsessed with anything that goes brum-brum longer than he can remember. Sam joined the team at CarAdvice/Drive as the off-road Editor in 2018, after cutting his teeth at Unsealed 4X4 and Pat Callinan’s 4X4 Adventures. Off-road writer of the Year, Winner - Sam Purcell
