Malaysia is one of a handful of countries that still offers the third-generation Nissan X-Trail (T32) while other markets offer its successor, the fourth-generation T33. Though the T33 made its debut in North America in 2020 as the Nissan Rogue, global sales began a year later.
Nissan Indonesia still lists the T32 X-Trail on its website
Besides Malaysia, the two biggest automotive markets in Southeast Asia have also yet to see the all-new X-Trail officially entering their markets. Following the closure of Nissan’s Indonesia plant in 2020, the outgoing T32 was imported from Japan while it was completely discontinued in Thailand in the same year.
Singapore-spec X-Trail shown
News of the T33’s arrival in the Kingdom has been quiet that is until recently when a car transporter loaded with a few units was spotted by a user on social media. Posted in the Nissan KICKS e-POWER Club (Thailand) Facebook group, the comments were filled with speculation on the re-emergence of the much-delayed all-new X-Trail in Thailand.
Peep the e-Power badge on the tailgate (Credit: Rattapong Charat)
Some speculated these units were brought from Japan while others suggested that these units could be for export only. The latter is very unlikely as the T33 X-Trail is never assembled locally (CKD) in the Kingdom following the discontinuation of the T32.
Upon a closer look, there seems to be an e-Power badge on the tailgate which could mean that at least only the hybrid powertrain could be offered for the Thai-spec X-Trail.
Singapore-spec X-Trail shown, note the badges on the tailgate
Regionally, the T33 X-Trail is available in Singapore where it is only offered with one powertrain, the 1.5-litre e-Power series hybrid. The turbocharged 1.5-litre 3-pot (144 PS/250 Nm) acts as a generator to recharge the 1.8 kWh battery that sends power to both the front (204 PS/330 Nm) and rear (136 PS/195 Nm) electric motors via the e-4ORCE all-wheel drive (AWD) system.
Meanwhile, Indo tax offices previously hinted at the X-Trail e-Power’s arrival in the archipelago in both FWD and 4WD versions. Since then, there has been nothing official on the T33’s Indonesian launch.
If the Thai launch is imminent, could we see it make its way to Malaysia too and is it going to be a few years too late? The outgoing T32 X-Trail is still on sale here where it is locally assembled (CKD) in Segambut. These are the prices (OTR without insurance, Peninsular Malaysia) and variants:
Traded advertising for a career that fits his passion for cars. Enjoys spotting cars during his free time and has a soft spot for Japanese Kei cars but drives a thirsty manual sedan.
