A chorus of top Nissan executives in the U.S. has been singing a common tune lately: a desire to reincarnate the quirky Xterra ute.
“If I could bring a car tomorrow, that would be Xterra,” Nissan Americas Chairperson Christian Meunier told Automotive News. “We’re working on it. We’ll find a way.”
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Meunier and his top lieutenants have suggested that the pickup-based SUV would appeal to adventure types seeking affordable wheels to sling off-pavement.
“We are missing it, seeing what’s going on in the market and the sense of freedom people aspire to,” said Meunier, who was CEO of the Jeep brand before returning to Nissan Motor Co. this year.
Meunier said a modern Xterra would retain the nameplate’s functional DNA.
“I can overland in the desert for the weekend, or have a long trip,” he said. “It will be something cool [and] cost-competitive.”
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Nissan Americas product planning chief Ponz Pandikuthira said the new Xterra would grow to fit in the midsize segment, similar to the Nissan Pathfinder crossover and Frontier pickup. The original, built from 1999 to 2015, was a compact.
“We think it does a lot for the brand,” Pandikuthira said, adding that the leadership team is “trying to figure out a way to authentically bring that nameplate back into the lineup.”
The bottleneck is not ambition, but resources.
Meunier said the Japanese automaker has a ”big" capital expenditures budget and a robust pipeline of U.S. market-tuned products, including an electrified Frontier. It’s already been planning to infuse some of the Xterra’s iconic design elements into an EV launching in 2028: a brawny crossover with squarish rear styling and a boxy headlight design.
“It’s about prioritization,” Meunier said. “Is there any room to compromise on one project — eliminate one — and do what we think is more of a white space?”
‘The car that saved Nissan’
The U.S.-created Xterra, referred to within the company as “the car that saved Nissan,” debuted at the turn of the millennium as a low-cost project to help lift the brand out of a sales funk after its near bankruptcy..
With its unusual theater-style raised rear seating, the Xterra smashed Nissan’s initial sales projections, peaking at 88,578 in 2000.
“We developed the Xterra on a shoestring budget — about $40 million — because we anticipated we’d sell about 40,000 units," Larry Dominique, who was a leader of the Xterra’s development while working in Nissan’s U.S. product planning office, told Automotive News in 2021.
But the SUV disappeared after only two generations over 15 years. Production ended in 2015, a casualty of new safety regulations and consumers’ shift to lighter unibody crossovers.
A decade later, Nissan, now facing another existential crisis, is betting that the Xterra will deliver for it a second time.
The revived SUV aims to fill a unique role as a comfortable, functional, affordable rock crawler.
“There’s a return to authenticity and simplicity, not having all the gizmos and gadgets,” Meunier said.
Retro off-roaders such as the Ford Bronco and Land Rover Defender have helped fuel sales of SUVs in recent years.
Industry analyst Sam Fiorani said rugged vehicles are having their moment in the sun.
“With special off-road trims across a variety of crossovers and trucks along with dedicated SUVs like the Bronco and [Jeep] Wrangler grabbing a larger share of buyers’ wallets, selling the wilderness is popular among automakers,” said Fiorani, vice president at AutoForecast Solutions. “Nissan’s own Rock Creek and PRO-4X trims demonstrate this.”
Nissan retailer Tyler Slade said an updated Xterra could achieve 70,000 to 80,000 annual sales based on the nameplate’s brand power and demand for outdoorsy body-on-frame SUVs such as the new Toyota Land Cruiser.
“The segment is on fire, and we’re missing out on key business,” said Slade, operating partner at Tim Dahle Nissan Southtowne in suburban Salt Lake City. “These lifestyle vehicles create brand excitement and dealer engagement.”
Electrified future
Nissan executives are tight-lipped about the timing of an Xterra reincarnation and how it might be powered. But it undoubtedly will have a lighter environmental footprint.
“To introduce an Xterra with a purely internal combustion [engine] in that segment doesn’t make sense from an emissions compliance standpoint,” Pandikuthira said.
At the same time, an all-electric powertrain is unlikely because it would need beefy batteries that add weight and compromise range and payload, especially when towing.
Meunier suggested that series hybrid technology with a range-extending generator “is the future” for larger SUVs.
“It gives you the opportunity to have the electric [driving] experience for 70 to 100 miles and a 600-mile drive range combined,” Meunier said. “Maybe an Xterra should be like that.”
