Nissan has confirmed that the facelifted version of the current Navara pickup will not be coming to the UK and Europe. The updated Nissan Navara was revealed for other markets in 2020, with many therefore expecting to see it here in 2021. But that is not to be, and the decision to cancel sales of the facelift has led to rumours and reports that the model may be discontinued entirely in 2022.
We’ve spoken to Nissan, and frankly, that situation is still unclear. But it is absolutely correct that we won’t be getting the Narava facelift.
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What’s the big deal about the Navara facelift?
It’s previously been quite common for the UK and Europe to get updates to the Navara much later than in other parts of the world. This time around, though, they won’t be happening at all.
This seems a bit of a shame, since as you can see, the revised version – which Nissan UK refers to as the Navara MC (Minor Change) – is a fine-looking truck. Check out the funky four-part LED headlights, for instance, as well as the aggressive grille and bumper.
What is the future of the Navara in the UK?
Instead of the facelift, UK buyers will continue to be offered the current Navara (pictured below), which is built in a factory in Spain. This is only set to remain in production until the end of 2021, however, leading to the suggestion – that some reports claim to have confirmed with Nissan insiders – the Navara will be axed from the UK and Europe altogether at this point.
All Nissan will officially say on the subject is this: ‘Navara is an important product and the Navara currently sold in Europe meets the needs of our consumers. Future product plans will be announced in due course.’
There are a number of possible interpretations of this. There could be an all-new model on the way, Navara might be replaced by something else, or it may indeed be going altogether.
We hope it’s not the latter, as the amount of choice available to UK pickup buyers is starting to look a little limited.
Why would Nissan cancel the Navara?
The pickup market, seen as such a growth area for so long, has been experiencing slightly more of a Covid-19 slowdown than the rest of the vans sector, and Nissan has certainly been affected by this.
And if we tell you that the UK accounts for around 40% of all Navara sales in Europe you can probably imagine things haven’t been looking massively rosy for this truck over the last couple years.
It might just be that the Navara is no longer a financial goer for this region of the world. Previous versions have also experienced widely reported chassis-snapping issues and the current model’s rear coil-spring suspension has often been criticised for struggling with really heavy-duty work with high payloads and towing.
How many pickups are left on sale in the UK now?
The UK pickup market has certainly suffered some serious loses recently. The Mercedes X-Class lasted only two years before it was cancelled in 2019, Volkswagen canned the Amarok at almost exactly the same time, and Fiat quietly stopped bringing the Fullback to the UK in 2019 as well.
With Mitsubishi due to withdraw from Europe altogether at the end of 2021, we’re about to say goodbye to the L200 as well.
On top of that, SsangYong has been experiencing financial difficulties at home in South Korea, and while the UK importer is keeping a stiff upper lip about the whole thing, we could well be about to lose the Musso as well.
If the Navara doesn’t return, that would leave just the Ford Ranger, the Isuzu D-Max – just launched as a new model – and the Toyota Hilux for UK pickup buyers to pick from.
Although, it is worth noting that the Amarok is set to return as an all-new model in 2022, based on the same platform as the next-generation Ford Ranger.
Also read:
>> Our full Nissan Navara review
>> Our full Ford Ranger review
>> New Isuzu D-Max for 2021 – full details
>> The Parkers pickup group test
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