New Navara

Hi Beverley

I was fortunate enough to test the new Ford Ranger for a few weeks (same mechanicals as the new BT50) and was really impressed. Great engine and auto gearbox though some reports of the manual being a bit tricky to get used to. Towed really well also. It might be hard to get one though due to high demand and the flooding issues in Thailand. I'm still waiting for mine.

I can't comment on the Navara as I have only ever been a passenger and never owned one. A few mates have though and report plenty of issues with clutches. I guess an auto might fix that?

Terry

A couple of my friends have the new Navara and have had a host of issues.

G'day
I have owned a Navara STX 550 since April I bought it to pull a 5th wheeler around Australia for a few years (been going since 14th October) loaded the 5th wheeler is just under 3,500kg and this ute pulls it better than I thought it would and have been averaging 18 Lt per 100km.
Being an auto with 7 gears there's always the right gear for the right mountain though I find it is better to use the manual shift rather than relying on the auto to select the right one on steep hills.
Freeways 100-110kph is easy and precise.

Met with my first unsigned low bridge (2.4mt my 5th wheeler is 3.6mt D'oh!) today, and had to reverse for about 400 metres up a grass embankment and over small ditches and wildly undulating landscape, needed to use low range 4wd too! took about 1hr to get it turned around and back on the road. On-lookers could not believe the Navara managed the job without the assistance of another 4wd to help pull it through the ditches.

When buying I didn't consider the BT50 would do the job as it was just so underpowered compared to the Navara, & I'm pretty confident I would still be stuck at the low bridge had I had anything apart from the Navara STX 550, a Yank tank or a tow truck!.

10,000km on the clock and no issues worth complaining about - wonder how that will be in another 60,000km after all it is just another car/ute and you can always just buy another one if it gives up.

I guess it comes down to what you need it for and how many $'s you have to throw around. The best just does not come cheap! But if you're not pulling something like I am I don't think you need this model as the 450nm model will do the job just fine and save $20K Just get the auto if you're towing big things as it makes life a lot easier!

Cheers Nigel

hopefully the build quality is better then the previous d40. We run 140 vehicles and the six d40s(previous model now I know) we brought where some of the biggest lemons we have ever had. And no one wants them 2nd hand either it appears, where as people wait for us to off load luxes.
Cheers pete

Hi Beverly, I recently did a trip with a mate in a d40 navara with 20,000k's 1 year old through the gibb river road and down to Coober Pedy. First he did a uni joint, then an abs sensor played up and brakes kept locking up, then on a water crossing the transfer filled up with water due to dodgy seal, then a computer malfunction made it stick in 4wd low range and and there was a host of other issues. We had it in at Nissan in Broome, Darwin, and Alice and became a bit of a joke where we would just book it in ahead of time wherever we were going. They didn't cover a lot under warranty either because said it was abuse to be driving a 4wd on dirt roads apparently. The chassis also flexed so much when 4wding that his ute conopy would bend forward (a full 6 inches) and dented the back of the cab. He now has it up for sale. A also took a trip down the beach with another friend in his Navara ute and the whole aircon compressor snapped off the front of the motor (broke the casing) and got tangled in the belts. Big mess. This is just my experience but I have seen and heard plenty more stories like it. Last year I bought a magazine that had a big ute comparo for "ute of the year" and the Navara was the only ute disqualified because it didn't complete the testing. The sump cracked and dumped out all the oil. I personally would look at a BT50 or DMAX.

thanks Luke,Yes there is a new Navara STX550,I wouldn't be planning any very hard 4x4 work but still your experiences don't sound good for the product,Bev