I drove Nissan X-Trail Tekna… a better family SUV than its award-winning sibling

BROTHERS are naturally competitive.

Which can often be a good thing — just look at the Brownlee brothers.

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They spurred each other on, learned from each other, and dominated triathlon for years.

But it’s an inevitable fact of life that one’s always got the edge on the other.

Sorry, Jonny.

It’s a similar story at Nissan.

When we think of Nissan SUVs, we think of Qashqai.

Not X-Trail.

Qashqai was Britain’s top-seller in 2022. We crowned it The Sun Car Of The Year in 2021. It has always been the benchmark for mid-size SUVs.

But here’s the thing.

In many ways I reckon this new X-Trail is actually the better choice for big families like mine.

It’s loaded with all the good stuff from Qashqai but has the addition of 4WD and seven seats.

Because let’s face it, the minute you farm more than three sprogs, the Qashqai starts getting a bit tight.

Right, let’s start with the bits you can’t see.

Like Qashqai, X-Trail makes use of Nissan’s clever “e-POWER” hybrid system. It’s NOT a regular hybrid.

Here, the 1.5-litre petrol engine charges a battery pack to provide power to an electric motor, which drives the wheels.

The result being, all the pleasure of driving an EV — quiet, smooth and responsive — minus the pain. No recharging. No range anxiety.

Qashqai is single-motor front-wheel drive only.

But with X-Trail you can spec a rear electric motor for grippier four-wheel drive. Nissan call it “e-4ORCE”.

The rear torque response is 10,000 times faster than a mechanical 4WD system — enhancing traction and speed, obviously, but also ride and handling.

Definitely worth the extra £2k over the standard X-Trail e-POWER with 2WD.

Just as impressive is the economy. We averaged 44mpg on mixed town and motorway driving, beating the official 42mpg.

 That’s more than 550 miles to a tank, you won’t get that in a Disco.

Now for the bits you can see.

Tough on the outside, soft and gooey inside. A bit like a Cadbury’s Creme Egg.

Everything you see and touch is nicely padded.

And this posh Tekna trim adds head-up display, heated everything (front and rear seats, steering wheel, windscreen) and a huge opening glass roof.

You also get USB-C ports galore, cup holders galore, rear side window blinds — and a lovely feeling of space.

The rear doors open 85 degrees, another example of the good stuff from Qashqai. The middle-row seats slide forwards and backwards.

Let’s be kind and say the third row is a bit squished, strictly for ankle-biters only. Best folded flat if you don’t need them all the time. But they’re there when you do.

So that’s the X-Trail.

An XL-sized Qashqai for families who live in the sticks or have outgrown a regular Qashqai.

The X-Trail petrol is yours from £33k. X-Trail e-POWER from £36k.

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