Next Nissan X-TRAIL previewed by patents

Two design patent pictures of the all-new, fourth-generation Nissan X-TRAIL have been leaked online after the Japanese car-maker filed them in Brazil.

The computer renders submitted to the Brazilian patent office reveal that the next X-TRAIL, due for launch in either late 2021 or 2022, will borrow much of its brash styling from the upcoming second-generation  JUKE.

Featuring slimline daytime running LEDs and a pair of separate headlights, the next X-TRAIL will sport sharper, more striking styling, with a larger and more dominant grille up front.

Towards the rear of the car, the drawings suggest that more minimal, simpler surfacing will be employed, but the protective plastic wheel-arch, extended sill and rear bashplate indicate added toughness from Nissan's new mid-size SUV.

Other design details, include a rear spoiler and a 'double-bubble' roof, indicate the next X-TRAIL will be more visually interesting.

Beneath the skin, the X-TRAIL is being developed side-by-side with the next QASHQAI, and the bigger SUV will share its Nissan CMF platform.

It's also set to offer hybrid power, and the safe money is Nissan will upscale its ePower hybrid powertrain, in which a small petrol engine acts as a generator for a battery pack that feeds power to at least one electric motor.

Another hybrid powertrain option for the fourth-gen X-TRAIL could be to lift the plug-in hybrid system from the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, as part of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance.

If so, expect the X-TRAIL to have a pure-electric range of between 50-100km, depending on battery size.

Nissan execs, however, have reportedly distanced themselves from plug-in hybrids, suggesting they prefer to jump straight to full pure-electric power.