Series 4 D40

Hi, Am looking for comment from those who know. I am looking at buying a new series 4 ST X diesel auto dual cab. Havent heard a bad word said about the series 3 - and they are still available. My question - is it worth the extra $8-9000 for the added features - more power, 'improved' auto, 17" wheels, different dash, dual climate air, and a few other 'improvements. I am looking for some honest feedback on this issue - not just Nissan salesman speal! This will be my combined work (tradie) and recreation vehicle - probably towing an off road van in a couple of years - so want to get it right! Thanks for your help.
Chris

17 inch wheels would be a negative for me, too bloody expensive for tyres!

The write up I saw said the power came on a lot earlier then the series 3 so that might be worth a test drive to find out. I do wish mine had climate control too, we have that in out Rav and it is great.

Are they a spanish or Thai built? That would also be an influence for me.

Welcome to the forum, Chris!

The auto is the right choice for towing, as the D40 has a nasty low-down lag that becomes a sudden onrush as the rpm climbs over 1800-2000 and the turbo kicks in. This has ruined clutches before and I don't imagine they've fixed that part yet.

The road diameter of the wheels is likely to be the same, 16" or 17" rims - the difference will be in the profile of the tyre. I was interested in getting the 17" rims like they had on the European models but now that I've taken mine off the tar a few times I'm rather happy with the 16".

The climate control would be a nice change, I'm actually surprised that they don't include that in every car these days since it's not hard to do - my 1977 Jaguar had it. Surely by now they could do that in any vehicle with doors.

More power - yes, they tweaked the diesel to get a few more Phar Laps out of it, but the one to really wait for if you want more power is the upcoming V6 diesel. Is the power of the 2009 STX enough? It is for us. We haul a 1.8T van and took it around the south-east quarter-ish of Australia at Christmas and it didn't blink. Struggled a bit to get into overdrive with the crappy fuel we'd picked up in Wilcannia but apart from that we had no trouble at all.

I think you'd probably be happy with either one, but the climate control would make me lean towards the newer model. The extra power would result in less fuel used so your economy in the long run will be a bit better too.

Good luck with your choice, whichever way it goes!

My X-Trail has 17" rims, bugger all choice for decent rubber so when Nissan came out with Series 2 of the T31 what did they do - put 18's on it stupid bastards

I bet you would be able to offload the 17's very easily though if you wanted or even swap em with someone who has the 16's.

I am not yet convinced we will actually see the v6 diesel but if we do that will be awesome. Won't be in the near future I don't think anyway.

I reckon the upgrade in trim specs is worth the extra dollars spent. The motor is from all reports more refined and interior noise levels better.

If I hadn't of spent all the money on my current (08) model I reckon I would have been tempted to trade up to the new one.

Don't sign anything till you can test drive a new one and make your own decision from there.

Matt76 said:

I do wish mine had climate control too, we have that in out Rav and it is great.

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Off Topic I know but lets face it the D40 is worth buying just on the grounds you can :aetsch: to those D22 guys.

Has anyone checked whether or not you can take out any part of the Pathy climate control system and add it to a Nav. I realise there would some differences but I was just thinking out aloud, maybe it's too much thinking given that in the real world it's not that hard to manually operate the a/c anyway.

How much extra are they charging for the series 4? 8 to 9 grand is a LOT of money...

For what it's worth, I went through my accessories list recently and added up what I had spent. Pretty much everything bought from ARB (except my hard lid). I have spent 10 and a half grand. This is what I have added to mine....ARB bullbar (deluxe), IPF lights, warn winch (9.5xp), ARB protection steps (not including rails), ARB rear bar, UHF radio, Safari snorkel, full set (front and rear) MSA canvas seat covers, Rhino track mount bars, Rhino alloy roof basket, EGR one piece hard tonneau, Old Man Emu suspension kit, Long Ranger long range fuel tank, all running on a set of Mickey Thompson 265/75R16 MTZ's (legal size in the ACT for this vehicle).

So basically, for a couple of grand more than a "series 4", I've got a pretty well kitted out touring vehicle...

Honestly, I have absolutely no complaints with my 2008 build series 3 ST-X. I'm fussy. VERY fussy. People have talked about clutch problems. If mine had needed a clutch, I would have replaced it. No questions asked. Likewise people talk about problems with torque down-low in the rev range. Can't say I've noticed a problem, and I am trying to get an awful lot of weight moving.

If it were me spending the money, I would drive a series 3 and 4. See which one you like the best. Things like climate control are nice touches, but personally I don't miss it in my Nav - I set a "temp" on my heater dial and pretty much leave it there. My other vehicle is Mercedes ML, so I'm no stranger to climte control... Similarly steering wheel stereo controls - how often do you fiddle with the stereo? Sure, they are nice "surprise and delight" features when comparing vehicles in the showroom, but do they make much difference in the real world? I would argue not, but then I don't touch the stereo much when driving - I pretty much leave it to do it's own thing. 17" wheels - not a fan. I like the tallest sidewalls I can get on my off-road vehicles (within reason of course), but that is a personal preference. There is no lack of 17" off-road style rubber available for vehicles like the Navara however - it's all about tyre carcass size and what the market requires. Think about vehicles which use tyres of similar size to Navara in 16 and 17" ranges....Pajero, Pathfinder, Prado, D3, D4...to name a few. There are PLENTY of 17" tyres around.

For a family vehicle, I think the dash presents in a nicer way than the series 3.

Bear in mind, what I have said is all based on the fact that I have a series 3. If I were shopping for a new vehicle perhaps my thoughts would go the other way. I'm never shy of spending a buck to get the right product, and if the series 4 was the right product, then that would get my money. Just that it seems like an awful lot more money to me....

The ST-X models in dual-cab configuration are ALL built in Spain. At this stage from all the information that is publicly available, there appear to be no immediate plans to bring the V6 diesel into Australia - Nissan simply seem to be making do with the upgraded 4 cylinder diesel. From what I can gather the V6 is a very expensive engine and would price the Navara too far above the competition to make it a viable option. Might be different when the VW arrives, but that is another story and purely hypothesis on my part.

KraftyPg said:

Off Topic I know but lets face it the D40 is worth buying just on the grounds you can :aetsch: to those D22 guys.

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and laugh at them as you drive past

Does that mean we can laugh at use off road when use are stuck with the very little ground clearence.

Dave.

You weren't driving past many of us here Matt! Ha ha, spose someone had to go first

Ouch....haha

Was flicking through a Overlander mag at the local newsagency, anyway they stated that the YD25DDTI CRD new 140Kw spec motor runs a new cylinder head.

Apparently along with the head the fuel injection system was upgraded.

Dave.

Yep and an electronic control turbo.

I am not going to put much faith in the hype until I drive one but I believe with the changes made there is plenty of potential for better response down low. Up top is no big deal as I reckon plenty of d40's now have more than 140kw at the motor.

Ants is right though and it is the exact reason I bought a Navara over a Hilux. At the price I got my nav at I could spend at least 8 grand on extras before I got near the original purchase price of the lux.

Thanks for all your comments on this - having never spent anywhere near $50,000 ( probably $60 with all the must have xtras!) on a vehicle before I want to make sure I get it right! Your input has been great. Thanks again - Chris

I would go the new model too.

The fuel economy is better. The auto box which as stated above is better for towing and with the new model has a tip-tronic style auto like the Pathfinder, also with the climate control you get the outside temp on the dash along with a onboard trip computer (ie how many km's left till empty and km/l).

Thanks

JPMC said:

I would go the new model too.

The fuel economy is better. The auto box which as stated above is better for towing and with the new model has a tip-tronic style auto like the Pathfinder, also with the climate control you get the outside temp on the dash along with a onboard trip computer (ie how many km's left till empty and km/l).

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Yes - I think that sums it up for me too. Am now sorting thru the choices - colour, canopy, bull bar, snorkel etc - cant wait!. Am finding this forum so helpful for my 'market research'. Thanks and Cheers (still going to be a sad day when I step out of my V8 Discovery for the last time - if it wasnt for the rego I would love to keep it for a beach basher!).

I don't like that trim, it would show up wear and tear to easily.

Stunub said:

I don't like that trim, it would show up wear and tear to easily.

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Took one for a drive yesterday - wasnt PD'ed but I thought drove fantastic! Plenty of power for me! Agree with your comment about the trim - I can see rapid wear happening on drivers door panel where I like to rest my elbow out the window. Other than that i couldnt fault it and will be ordering one next week all going well!

JPMC said:

I would go the new model too.

The fuel economy is better. The auto box which as stated above is better for towing and with the new model has a tip-tronic style auto like the Pathfinder, also with the climate control you get the outside temp on the dash along with a onboard trip computer (ie how many km's left till empty and km/l).

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Easy to get the OAT and km/l etc without spending and extra $8-9K....fit the OAT sensor from the Pathy ($120) and a Scangauge II ($230)

series 4 d40

Took delivery of our new series 4 turbo d D40 yesterday... Much impressed!!
No big dead lag spot off the line for a start.. The interier refinement is sweet. Though I think where you put your right elbow when driving would easily wear through ( but super comfy ) Just replace it later with something more sturdy.. Did 500k in it straight up.. Beautiful.. Overtaking a breeze..
They do not have a winch bullbar yet for these.. The current model DOES NOT FIT.. Have ta wait a month or 2 for arb and tjm to release the ones they are working on.. Nissan dont even have a bar yet.. The lift kit i ordered was delivered wrong so i have to go back to have it fitted ( might just wait and have the lift winch bar hid's and winch fitted all at the same time..