Nissan X-Trail sized PHEV en route

A plug-in hybrid family SUV from Nissan is “very likely” for Australia, according to Nissan Oceania managing director Steve Milette, though he stopped short of confirming it would be an X-Trail.

The new vehicle is likely to come from Nissan’s partnership with the Dongfeng Motor Group, but the brand says it won’t just be badge engineering but a bona fide Nissan.

Other options on the table include the Terrano but this is expected to be a more expensive and rugged proposition that takes aim at the Mitsbusihi Pajero and Denza B5.

Nissan Australia knows it needs PHEV SUVs in its line-up and asked whether the X-Trail’s e-POWER system could evolve into a bigger-battery plug-in, the Nissan Oceania chief chose his words carefully.

“I don’t know that we can comment on plug-in and X-Trail, if it’s in the pipeline or not,” said Milette.

But he did concede that the brand is almost certainly going to bring a PHEV to Australia in due course, something to rival the Toyota RAV4 PHEV and other strong selling PHEVs from challenger brands such as the Geely Starray and BYD Sealion 6.

“Is a plug-in potential in that [mid-size SUV] segment in the future, no matter what the name is? Very likely,” he explained.

“But nothing to confirm today, and actually, it may or may not be that [X-Trail] nameplate.”

It’s not the first time Nissan has flirted with an X-Trail-sized PHEV. Overseas, the brand has been linked to a Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV-based model, while its China joint venture has a raft of plug-in options – including the Forthing Taikon 5 that just launched in Australia.

Milette said the 2026 Beijing motor show offered a glimpse of what’s possible.

“If you look at China Auto, what was announced? On the stage there you had a plug-in hybrid, you had a full EV, you had a bigger utility.

“Whether it’s that version or a similar version, those are all things that, as a company in this market, we’re all very interested in. Because it obviously resonates well with Australians.”

Resonates is putting it mildly.

August 2026 VFACTS data shows plug-in hybrid SUV sales are up 206.7 per cent year-to-date, from 19,016 in 2025 to 58,314 12 months later.

Across passenger cars, SUVs and light commercials, PHEV sales have more than doubled to 75,206.

In the mid-size or medium SUV class, the BYD Sealion 6, Geely Starray EM-i and Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV are all chasing those buyers, and Toyota now offers a plug-in RAV4.

Nissan currently fields nothing with a plug in the segment.

Its X-Trail range is split between petrol and the e-POWER hybrid, which uses a petrol engine purely to generate electricity for the electric motors.

Milette said a broader powertrain mix is non-negotiable for a mainstream brand.

“As a mass market brand, we need diversification of segments and powertrains,” he stated.

Nissan’s first plug-in SUV in Australia will almost certainly be the Frontier Pro ute in 2027, which pairs a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine with an electric motor for 300kW and 800Nm.

A mid-size SUV with PHEV capability could follow, either as a variant of the next-generation X-Trail due by the end of 2027 or as a China-sourced model with its own badge.

Nissan Australia’s senior product marketing manager Alex Pecanac said any Chinese-built products sold in Australia wont just be badge-swap specials, saying a “…dedicated Nissan management team from Japan,” manages export market vehicles.

He also noted that “specific Nissan vehicles that won’t actually have a Chinese copy per se.”

Either way, Nissan knows it needs a plug in its biggest segment, and is working to make it happen.

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