Valued for its blend of style and practicality, the Nissan X-Trail has long since held the distinction as the Japanese carmaker’s strong contender in the affordable compact crossover SUV segment. But when words of an upcoming facelifted X-Trail under the brand’s NISMO line sprang out earlier this year, enthusiasts began wondering how far Nissan would push the X-Trail into the sporty territory.
After months of waiting, it appears that Nissan has released surprising details about the supposed X-Trail NISMO, according to Japanese media outlet Creative Trend. The report headlined that Nissan may have “leaked” the official price and details of the X-Trail NISMO, internally called the T33, though there’s still no official release date yet for the upcoming model.
Creative Trend shared that Nissan has priced the X-Trail NISMO at ¥5,416,400 or around P2.1-million in today’s exchange rate. Moreover, Nissan says that this number could increase to ¥5.8-million to ¥6.0-million (around P2.2-million to P2.3-million) if it gets optioned with upgrades.
In essence, this pricing strategy could place the X-Trail NISMO up in the premium category, a tough challenge for those wanting to experience the crossover or update their diaries of X-Trail memories from its previous generations.
There are many factors for the increase, but a key factor could be that it’s under Nissan’s e-POWER line, meaning that the new X-Trail NISMO is a performance hybrid with an engine that acts as a generator to power an electric motor.
Another reason is the number of upgrades available for the NISMO version. These include the NISMO-exclusive touches such as aerodynamic bumpers, NISMO-branded alloy wheels, and NISMO interior trimming, among others. And there’s also an option to fit in a special NISMO seat by Recaro, a German car seat specialist.
Apart from these, Nissan didn’t mention anything further. In the Philippines, Nissan has paused the distribution of the X-Trail. It wouldn’t be surprising if it would price the X-Trail NISMO a little higher up the ladder, should it ever decide to bring it in. But do take note that the EVIDA Law’s clause of imposing a 50% tax incentive on hybrid vehicles could even out the odds for its price, somehow.
