The Nissan X-Trail Story: A Half-hearted Attempt?

A comeback which didn’t really feel like a comeback! Such has been the story of the new Nissan X-Trail, which was launched in 2024, around 10 years after the older-generation model was discontinued in 2014. Introduced in our market at almost Rs 50 lakh (ex-showroom), the X-Trail in its fourth-generation avatar has been on sale in global markets since 2020.

While the X-Trail comes with the ‘assumption’ of Japanese reliability and trust and does the basics right, it fails to bring an X-factor or give its rivals a run for their money. So what exactly went wrong with the SUV? What could have made things better? Why is it so difficult to recommend the X-Trail? And is Nissan taking things too lightly in India? Read on as we answer these questions and more! 

A Result Of Poor Strategy 

Nissan currently offers the Magnite subcompact SUV in India, and the X-Trail is the only other offering by the Japanese carmaker. With Magnite not being able to keep up with its rivals in terms of sales, we were expecting Nissan to offer something more compelling and promising. However, what Nissan decided to do instead was offer something that was already on sale in the global markets for around four years. While something like an X-Trail is welcome, trying to sell a product that feels slightly outdated and lacks some of the features and stronger engine options that are being offered abroad is surely not something that can be accepted. 

It is not the 90s or 2000s anymore, and Indian buyers are more aware of the market nowadays. So, to really catch the attention of the market, carmakers do really need to get the best versions of their cars if they are planning to capture a segment. 

The Recipe To Failure? 

In India, you need these few essentials right in order to succeed. We love features in our cars, and especially if someone is spending their hard-earned money (around Rs 50 lakh), they would expect the car to be loaded to the brim with premium features. However, that was not the case here. The X-Trail, which is globally well-equipped, misses out on many premium features which most of its rivals are offering. 

In the generation of large laptop-sized screens and Rs 10 lakh cars getting 10-inch touchscreens, Nissan offered the smaller 8-inch infotainment system with the X-Trail. The same unit is also offered with the smaller Magnite, where it looks acceptable, but in the X-Trail? No! 

Not just this, but it even misses out on amenities like powered front seats, seat ventilation, and a powered tailgate. Even the music system is not branded and only gets 6 speakers. At this price point, it feels criminal to miss out on such features that are being offered on cars that cost 1/3rd of the X-Trail’s price. Moreover, it even misses out leatherette seats and gets fabric ones instead. 

As mentioned above as well, the global-spec version gets more features in the higher-spec variants and the one that has been introduced in India is the entry-level variant in most markets. Nissan could have potentially introduced some higher-spec variants as well which comes with additional features such as a larger 12.3-inch infotainment system, three zones of climate control, a 10-speaker Bose sound system, and powered tailgate. 

Only If It Was More Affordable…

If your car is not the best or even at par with its rivals in terms of equipment, the focus should then surely be on pricing it far more aggressively. The X-Trail is a completely imported model, which is one of the key reasons for the hefty Rs 49.92 lakh (ex-showroom) price tag. Granted, our import taxes are brutal but they are brand agnostic in their application. If the X-Trail had been priced correctly, chances are that it might have witnessed significantly better numbers. 

It should have ideally been priced around the Rs 30 lakh mark, where SUVs like the Tata Safari and Mahindra XUV700 are the key players. This price range would have given buyers a Japanese alternative in a segment that is dominated by Indian SUVs. In fact, even if it was priced above the abovementioned cars but lower than SUVs like the VW Tiguan or Hyundai Tucson, it still would have managed to be in a better situation than the one it is currently in. 

All said and done, the X-Trail does have redeeming values like its road presence, spacious and premium cabin, along with its comfortable ride. At the Rs 50 lakh range though, this alone isn’t enough. Rivals offer plenty more than the X-Trail, making it look like Nissan has brought a small knife to a sword fight. 

Talking About Fights…

There is nothing really to fight with in a very fierce segment, which at the time of the X-Trail’s launch was already packed with top-notch SUVs like the Toyota Fortuner, Jeep Meridian, MG Gloster, and the Skoda Kodiaq. All its rivals offered more power and torque than the X-Trail and larger engines as well. The X-Trail gets a sole 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbo-petrol engine which makes 163 PS and 300 Nm. While the engine is smooth and offers enough power, the competition offers much more. 

In terms of equipment, all the rivals mentioned above, save for the Fortuner, pack more equipment than the X-Trail. Some of the features that the rivals offer include larger touchscreens, more zones of climate control, powered front seats with ventilation, a powered tailgate, and a suite of ADAS equipment.

Marketing Matters 

In the modern era, the right marketing and brand perception play a key role in determining the success of a product. We have seen popular carmakers like Hyundai, Mahindra, Tata and Maruti Suzuki come up with plenty of strategies to keep their cars relevant and reach out to a larger audience. Nissan seems to have forgotten the X-Trail very soon after its launch as no steps were taken to push the SUV in the market. This is reflected in its sales numbers - where Nissan has sold an average of around 4 X-Trails a month since its launch. 

A Forgotten Comeback…

We do understand the intent behind Nissan bringing in the X-Trail via the CBU route, and it is important to establish the global portfolio in India, however, the first step which was the most important one could have been much better than a half-hearted attempt. Nissan X-Trail’s failure in India is a result of multiple factors. The lack of localisation, poor marketing, fierce competition and customers wanting more were some of the key reasons. The key takeaway from the X-Trail’s case study would be that automakers in India can’t continue to sell outdated versions of cars, and that too in their lower-spec iterations. The consumers in India demand the best of products and should not be let down by anything that isn’t competitive.

In the global scenario, Nissan's situation is, let’s say, “complicated”, to put it lightly.. India currently is not a significant market and the automaker’s focus is to first strengthen itself in the foreign markets. So we expect Nissan to eventually start making more sincere efforts on our shores once they have sorted out some of the other issues. We genuinely want a brand like Nissan to launch exciting cars in India as we have seen other Japanese car brands like Honda and Toyota do in the past.

What do you think about the X-Trail in India? Let us know in the comments.