Nissan Patrol Warrior 2023 Review

The 2023 Nissan Patrol Warrior by Premcar – to give it its official title – is priced at $101,160 plus on-road costs. That makes it the most expensive model in the Y62 Patrol line-up, ahead of the $97,600 Ti-L and the $84,900 Ti on which it is based.

Mind you, the Warrior’s price is still well below the $113,900 price tag with which the Ti-L was launched at in 2012 and it’s about $40,000 cheaper than its most logical opponent – fellow Japanese off-road 4x4 heavyweight, the Toyota LandCruiser GR Sport.

You can throw other rivals in there like the Land Rover Discovery and Defender, the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Wrangler and the newcomer INEOS Grenadier, but the Patrol and LandCruiser have always been arch-rivals and always will be.

As mentioned above, the 2023 Nissan Patrol Warrior by Premcar is based on the Patrol Ti, so it gets a lot of the same equipment including side steps, remote keyless entry and push-button start, tri-zone climate control, an eight-way powered driver’s seat and six-way powered front passenger seat, leather-accented trim for the seats, steering wheel and gearshift, and eight seats arranged in a 2-3-3 layout.

The substantial under-skin mechanical (primarily chassis) changes made to the Warrior we’ll examine further along, but the readily identifiable Warrior-specific externals include unique 18-inch alloy wheels fitted with Yokohama Geolandar GO15 all-terrain rubber, a Warrior-branded red 2.5mm steel bash plate, new front and rear bumper valances, a black grille and mirror caps, injection-moulded fender flares and mud flaps, and Warrior badging and decals.

Inside, instead of rather loud wood-ish trim, there is a Warrior-embossed Alcantara garnish above the glovebox and gloss-black material in the centre console and around the infotainment area. There is also Alcantara door trim.

Being based on Ti means the Warrior does miss out on some equipment exclusive to Ti-L, such as a 13-speaker Bose stereo, sunroof, heated and cooled seats, cool box and a power-operated tailgate.

And no, you can’t get a Ti-L based Warrior. Parts like the front bumper don’t interchange and roof rails mean it would be more than 2.0 metres high once the 50mm ride height increase is added, excluding it from access to many car parks.

The Warrior also comes with a full-size spare tyre with alloy wheel, something made possible by a redesigned tow hitch that also includes two recovery points.

The Warrior comes with a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty offered jointly by Nissan and Premcar. There’s five-year roadside assistance plan and 12-month/20,000km service intervals. Capped price servicing is exactly the same as the standard Patrol, working out at $2715 for five services pre-paid. Pay as you go and it costs $3017.

Like the rest of the Y62 range, the 2023 Nissan Patrol Warrior by Premcar is untested by ANCAP.

Despite the age of the Patrol it does have a reasonable suite of driver assistance systems, including autonomous emergency braking (AEB), adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning and intervention, blind spot warning and intervention, rear cross-traffic alert and tyre pressure monitoring including a readout.

The Warrior gets a 360-degree camera with multiple grainy views, front and rear parking sensors, front and side airbags for front-row passengers and curtain airbags that extend to the third row.

There are two ISOFIX and two top-tether anchors for child seats in row two and a single anchorage point on the back of the third-row right-hand seat.

LED headlights, fog lights, DRLs and rear combination lamps are all standard.

The 2023 Nissan Patrol Warrior by Premcar really shows its age when it comes to technology.

Most obviously, there is no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto connectivity and no wireless smartphone charging pad. You do get Bluetooth phone and audio streaming, an iPod plug (yep, iPod) and four USB-A ports spread across the first two rows.

There is also satellite-navigation with traffic monitoring and a six-speaker auto system that supports AM/FM radio and even a CD/DVD function. There’s no DAB+ digital radio band.

There is a small 8.0-inch touch-screen on the centre stack, while the instrument panel includes two backlit analogue dials.

The 2023 Nissan Patrol Warrior by Premcar is powered by the same VK56DE 5.6-litre petrol V8 as every other Y62 Patrol that’s been sold in Australia.

The 5552cc DOHC 32-valve engine makes 298kW of power at 5800rpm and 560Nm of torque at 4000rpm. That’s unchanged from the standard outputs.

Also unchanged are the seven-speed automatic transmission and the permanent 4x4 system with low range gearing, which is topped off with a lock for the helical limited-slip rear diff.

What does change is the exhaust system, which gains a bi-modal outlet on the right side in front of the rear wheel.

The engine exhausts through the standard system with a rear outlet until the throttle is used aggressively or the transmission’s manual mode is selected. Then an electronically actuated bi-modal valve activates and the audio goes from mild to wild.

There have been some concerns expressed that the stainless steel side-exit pipe could be prone to damage, but Premcar insists that won’t be the case. It said it hasn’t dinged one during testing, nor did we during a tough off-road test.

This is one of the least attractive aspects of the 2023 Nissan Patrol Warrior by Premcar story. That engine sucks fuel!

Its ADR combined rate is 14.4L/100km, but on test with plenty of low-range off-roading and some high-range mountain roads thrown into the mix, the average was more like 22L/100km.

The engine also prefers 95 RON unleaded or higher, so more expense there as well.

At least the 140-litre petrol tank delivers a reasonable range. Based on the claimed consumption it’s just under 1000km, but at 20L/100km it’s absolutely maxxing out at 700km.

That means something like a Toyota LandCruiser GR Sport with an 8.9L/100km claim from its V6 turbo-diesel combined with a 110-litre tank has an advantage as an Outback cruiser.

The obvious goals for the 2023 Nissan Patrol Warrior by Premcar have been improved off-road capability and to look tougher while doing it. After all, that is what the Warrior brand is all about.

The good news is the upgrades have helped the Patrol on-road as well. It’s still no spry, manoeuvrable lightweight, but it does feel more cohesive in the winding stuff.

That’s quite an impressive achievement considering the Warrior weighs in at nearly 2.9 tonnes and is 50mm taller than standard thanks to a 29mm suspension lift and 21mm taller wheel and tyre package.

The key to the improvement is Premcar retuning the Patrol’s hydraulic body motion control (HBMC) damping system, supported by the use of softer front springs, progressive triple-rate rear springs and retuned taller rear jounce bumpers.

Premcar says the re-valving of HBMC is a key reason this the most extensive Warrior program it has yet conducted.

The Patrol Warrior rides over most road surfaces with comfort and doesn’t get too rolly-polly in corners. The 40mm wider tracks courtesy of the new wheel offset also helps with stability.

The Geolandar all-terrain rubber does transmit a bit of vibration, but proved trustworthy on dry bitumen.

There’s a safety-first understeer tune for the steering, which makes sense. But steering feel and response from the vehicle’s hydraulically-assisted speed-sensitive rack-and-pinion system is the weakest part of the chassis.

It’s too light, lacks bite and, in our test vehicle, offered some unruly kickback in rougher corners.

The engine does an impressive job when you consider how much weight and aerodynamic inefficiency it has to deal with to propel the Patrol Warrior. With a 6000rpm limit, there’s flexibility of response for overtaking and dealing with climbs.

The weak point is the transmission response, which is lazy. The press-throttle, pause then go process was annoying enough on a winding road to stick the gearbox in manual mode and go DIY (there’s no sport mode).

That had the side benefit of activating both throttle blipping on downchanges and the bimodal exhaust, which does have a Days of Thunder vibe about it.

Our off-road assessment of the 2023 Nissan Patrol Warrior by Premcar took place on a section of the notorious Climies Track on the southwest coast of Tasmania near Zeehan.

It’s rocky and technical with short climbs and descents. It’s all about moving slowly and carefully in low range and picking your line.

And it was an almost perfect track for the Warrior. Only ‘almost’ because in places the bushes closed in and there was some spectacular pin-striping to remind us the Warrior is 84mm wider than the standard Patrol Ti, as well as 94mm longer.

But a generous 40-degree approach angle (5.6 degrees better than Ti), 50mm more ground clearance and the Geolandar rubber ensured there was little if any touching down of the undercarriage or well-tucked-away side steps.

On the downside, the new tow hitch reduces the departure angle from 26.3 to 23.3 degrees, but that’s with the tow bar included (which was removed for this test).

The engine is a pearl when just bopping along, happy to trickle out just enough torque to walk up obstacles. Delivery can be modulated via three off-road modes – sand, snow and rock (the latter dulls throttle response to avoid bouncing, which is just what we wanted).

The lightness and looseness of the steering became an asset in this environment, making it easy to operate.

Hill descent control proved effective and not as juddering and noisy as some other similar systems (hello Prado!).

The only real drama came with some reticence on behalf of our test car to sometimes engage the diff lock. At one stage the ignition had to be cycled before it would activate.

The engineering crew behind the 2023 Nissan Patrol Warrior by Premcar have fought a rear-guard action to preserve as much of its donor vehicle carrying capacity as possible.

But the fact remains the Warrior is the Patrol variant that’s capable of carrying the least payload without or without a trailer attached.

However, the good news is it’s well ahead of the LandCruiser GR Sport.

The Warrior has the highest gross vehicle mass (GVM) of any Patrol at 3620kg (versus 3500kg for the Ti and Ti-L), but it’s also 169kg heavier than the Ti at 2884kg.

Gross combined mass (GCM) remains unchanged at 7000kg. Premcar would like to have increased that, but it just wasn’t affordable within its budget.

With the maximum braked tow capacity maintained at 3500kg, the Warrior emerges with a payload of just 386kg, compared to the Ti’s 435kg. Towing 3500kg, the LandCruiser GR Sport has just 300kg!

Without a trailer the Warrior can carry 736kg of payload, compared to Ti’s 785kg and the Ti-L’s 750kg, so it’s pretty close. The GR Sport’s payload is 650kg.

In terms of sheer space in the cabin, the Warrior is extremely generous. With all the seating rows in place there’s still 500 litres of space (with a bin under the floor), expanding to 1490 litres with row three folded and then a gargantuan 3170 litres with row two folded.

If you’ve been in any Y62 Nissan Patrol then the 2023 Nissan Patrol Warrior by Premcar is not going to surprise.

The minor trim changes do calm things down a bit compared to the standard Ti, but the essential asset inside the Warrior is space – just like any Patrol.

It’s most obvious in the second row, where there is sprawling space for two passengers and three can fit with some comfort. Air-con vents are adjustable, the seat reclines but the base does not slide and there is a fold-down armrest with pop-out cup holders.

Row three is for kids and trying to fit three of them in there is asking for trouble. Entry and exit is easiest after flipping the single seat behind the driver, which means potentially stepping into traffic.

Grab handles help haul passengers into all three rows of seats. Row one and two also get overhead grab-handles and sturdy door grabs.

Up front, the driver has a manual reach- and rake-adjustable steering wheel and a generous seat with decent side bolstering for support. The ability to adjust that height of both the front and back of the cushion is a positive, but the foot park brake is another reminder of the age of the Y62.

Both front seat passengers get sunshades with illuminated mirrors.

The analogue instrument panel is ancient, but the backlit white-on-black dials deliver legible information. And if you like buttons then the Patrol is your kind of car. None of this drilling through eight different screens to set the temperature!

Storage across all three rows is decent. Up front, various holes and slots in the centre console can be covered by a spring-loaded lid. There’s even cup holders in row three, as well as air-con vents.

The 2023 Nissan Patrol Warrior by Premcar is an expensive, thirsty, noisy and specialised vehicle.

It’s also very capable when it comes to delivering superior off-road ability. As a neat spin-off, it’s also a better drive on-road that the standard model.

All that means the Patrol Warrior is not for everyone. But if heading beyond the bitumen and taking some people with you is your thing, then it makes perfect sense.

2023 Nissan Patrol Warrior at a glance:
Price: $101,160 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 5.6-litre V8 petrol
Output: 298kW/560Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel: 14.4L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 334g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Not tested