When will we see the new Nissan X-Trail (aka Nissan Rouge) on our Malaysian shores?

It’s been a couple of years since the Nissan X-Trail, known as the Nissan Rouge, was first unveiled in the USA. Last April, the all-new fourth generation Nissan X-Trail was made available in China, but it still has not been launched in any right-hand drive markets despite rumours that it will finally arrive in Japan in December.

So what about fans of the car in Malaysia? Will we see it in Malaysia soon? Here’s what we know so far.

No news on the Japan launch of the all-new Nissan X-Trail

So North America already has the Nissan Rouge, or Nissan X-Trail, since mid-2020, and China saw it last year. As for Malaysia, we had the facelifted, third generation Nissan X-Trail in March 2019, and what’s more, Japan ALSO hasn’t seen the new SUV. It’s unlikely we’ll see it before Japan does, so for anyone keen on the Nissan X-Trail, keep an eye out for Japan’s launch of the car.

The all-new Nissan X-Trail is much bolder

Bold is a word that really suits the exterior design of the fourth generation Nissan X-Trail. The Chinese-specced model is very similar to the Nissan Rouge, so the design will not change much when we see it on our shores. The face of the SUV is unashamedly loud, with a two-tiered headlight design and an angular V-motion front grille.

At the rear is the word ‘X-Trail’ across the tailgate, which is very much in-line with today’s design style, and the rump is also bolder unlike the previous one which is rounder and softer.

Inside is an updated interior that resembles one of the best interiors from Japan right now – the Mazda CX-5. The ambience inside is classy and expensive, with a big update in the infotainment department.

The Nissan Rouge gets a large floating 9.0-inch LCD infotainment screen that is compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Aside from that, the instrument cluster for the driver is a 12.3-inch full digital screen accompanied by a 10.8-inch heads-up display, while lower variants will get a 7.0-inch instrument cluster.

New powertrains for the all-new Nissan X-Trail

The North American Nissan Rouge is powered by a 2.5-litre direct-injection engine that is good for 183 PS and 245 Nm at launch, but the 2022 model year update has received a 1.5-litre turbo with 204 PS and 305 Nm. As for the Chinese Nissan X-Trail, under its hood is a greener 1.5-litre turbocharged powerplant that makes 204 PS and 300 Nm.

It is highly likely that the smaller forced-induction plant is the one that will make it so our shores.

The super safe all-new Nissan X-Trail

In NA, the Nissan Rouge is fitted with Nissan Safety Shield 3.0, which is Nissan’s ADAS suite that includes Automatic Emergency Braking with Pedestrian Detection, Blind Spot Warning, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Lane Departure Warning, High Beam Assist, and Rear Automatic Braking, with options for Blind Spot Intervention, Traffic Sign Recognition, and Intelligent Cruise Control.

Let’s conclude here

Nissan’s all-new fourth generation X-Trail will eventually make it to Malaysia, and it’s highly likely going to be sooner rather than later. If you’re looking for an SUV that offers great value for money, perhaps you can look at these for under RM80k.