It's easy to think the car makes the driver. But, for the first time, I experienced the reverse with the Nissan X-Trail Ti.

It's the driver that made this car.

It's as if this Nissan (like others within the range) reflects the driver personality behind the wheel and makes no attempt to impose its personality on the driver.

That's a great trick of modern car design. It's tough to pull off, but Nissan got it right with a ride that is capable of being almost anything the driver wants it to be: swift, and nimble; yes, sedate and easy to drive; yes, able to handle off-road terrain; yes; easy around town; yes.

The X-Trail is an automotive chameleon that reflects the colours and driving personality of whoever is behind the wheel. It means for the crossover market the X-Trail can be many different things to different drivers.

And that explains (in part) why it is so popular.

Popular SUV drive

Given that the Nissan X-Trail is the biggest selling SUV on the world market, there has to be something that sets it apart from the rest.

The numbers are unequivocal, with JATO Dynamics doing the sales number-crunching and revealing 766,729 people took ownership of a new X-Trail last year. The X-Trail is particularly popular in Europe, China, Australasia and the USA (know there as the Nissan Rogue).

We were about to find out why. Two drivers took turns at the wheel and both revealed different things about the way the X-Trail responds to different driver demands; one driver more dynamic and urgent, the other more constrained and careful.

Nissan makes a strong case for the X-Trail on the New Zealand website:

'Nissan pioneered the crossover segment, and the X-Trail is our flagship vehicle in this increasingly popular and competitive part of the market. The X-Trail stands out from the crowd thanks to its unmatched combination of striking crossover styling, practicality, engaging driving dynamics and its wealth of technological and premium features,”

There is little to quibble about here. The X-Trail is a dynamic ride (if that is what the driver wants) but it is also a feature-laden ride that makes life easier.

One particular feature caught both drivers' attention: the camera angle from above the X-Trail that gives drivers help in tight spaces that any ride without it will now seem overly cumbersome and difficult to negotiate.

The automatic switching on of the camera (both rear and ‘God's Eye' view) really does make life easier behind the wheel when in tight spaces. It is replayed in split-screen fashion on the centre-mounted LCD display, giving the driver all the information needed to avoid cars, kids, cats or debris from nearby collision.

The two-view camera, one from the back and one from ‘God's Eye' view, makes it so easy to park that it is one of the best driver features one could ask for in a big SUV.

Engines and enjoyment

Driving on the smooth asphalt on the new highway out to Papamoa was so smooth, so beautifully free of excessive road noise or engine/transmission quibble that it is easy to just enjoy the comforts of the ride.

The engine in the top spec X-Trail Ti is a 2.5 litre, 4-cylinder engine that provides both fuel economy and sharp acceleration and power to the floor when needed. Passing was easy and transmission shifting near invisible as power came on tap. It was motoring Nissan bliss again with this big SUV responding immediately, in SUV sports-car fashion, to the need for passing speed.

The 2wd/4wd ride choice is selectable with a rotary dial on the centre console and I decided to leave it on 2wd for most of the ride around Mount Maunganui and Tauranga streets, resulting in a snappy and impressive around-town ride that felt more ‘car-like' than SUV.

The tiptronic gear shift was also a delight to use. A hard right hand pull to the transmission handle on the centre console feels naturally more engaging than the nifty shift of paddles up-front near the steering wheel. This tiptronic felt more like a driver's ride rather than playing with computer game controllers under the steering wheel.

The big dials display which gears the transmission is in and it makes the tiptronic a nifty driver trick to use when needed – its response is immediate and tactile.

Ti's greatest hits and tricks

It is worth remembering that today's rides are equipped with benefits that make for a list of wishful tricks. It's not just about the power, suspension type, transmission or seat configuration. It is about the whole ride and that means enjoying some driver benefits.

Here is a greatest hits of some of Nissan's features on the X-Trail Ti.

Heated door mirrors, 19-inch alloy wheels, auto dim rear view mirror, LED headlamps, auto levelling headlights, rain-sensing wipers, heated steering wheel, foot-operated power tail gate, heated rear seats, elevated rear ‘cinema seats' (providing better eye to road views for rear passengers), Bose eight-speaker sound system, power tilt and slide roof, lane departure warning and prevention, intelligent cruise control and blind spot warning.

The fit and finish of Nissan cars and SUVs has always been a highlight of their rides.

The interior has feint throwback to the swoop-around seating and dash of the Nissan Fairlady 300ZX, one of the best interiors ever built. And the same attention to detail leaves a feeling of a well-crafted ride wrapped inside a face-lifted exterior.
That's a list of hits any SUV model would be proud to call their own!

The driver makes the ride

For the two drivers at the wheel this day, they discovered an SUV that is like driver ‘silly-putty', it's capable of being formed into any shape the driver needs.

It can be quick; it can be rock solid on the highway; it can be the sporty driver's ride or merely a way of transporting the kids across town to Saturday soccer.

A great vehicle will show the driver what their personality is like behind the wheel and for that reason the X-Trail stands out.

The Nissan X-Trail is a revealing ride, a driver's chameleon – so which colour are you?

SPECS

Nissan X-Trail Ti

Engine: 2.5L petrol 4wd
Power 2.5L 126w/226Nm
Transmission: CVT
Seats: 5-seat
Price: $53,490