From Autoweek.com:

Nissan concept offers glimpse at next-generation Pathfinder


By MARK RECHTIN | Automotive News


Squint and you'll see the next Nissan Pathfinder, riding on a 112.2-inch wheelbase.
The angular, aggressive look of the Nissan Titan full-sized pickup and Pathfinder Armada SUV will move downmarket to the next-generation Pathfinder SUV.

Nissan offers a glimpse at the styling of the redesigned mid-sized SUV in the concept Dunehawk. Nissan will place the Pathfinder on a downsized version of the Titan ladder-frame architecture.

Patrick Pelata, Nissan Motor Co.'s executive vice president of product planning and strategy, says the Dunehawk combines the ruggedness of an SUV with the packaging of a minivan.

The vehicle's off-road capability is enhanced by Nissan's All-Mode system, previously used in the Infiniti QX4. The system is based on a rear-drive system, sending up to 50 percent of power to the front wheels in cases of poor traction.

Inside, the Dunehawk has seven seats, while the outgoing Pathfinder has five, a change that a Nissan source said was necessary to succeed in the segment.

The Ford Explorer and Chevrolet TrailBlazer are available with seven seats.

The Dunehawk seats fold flat, allowing for stowage of two upright mountain bikes.

The concept did not specify an engine displacement, but a Nissan source said the Pathfinder likely will have a 4.0-liter enlargement of the V-6 engine used in numerous Nissan and Infiniti vehicles.

The production version will be shown in Detroit in January.

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It appears as if FreshAlloy was right and the Dunehawk, shown at Frankfurt, is the concept for the next Pathfinder. The article also mentions that the engine will most likely be the VQ increased to 4.0L. Could a 400Z be far behind?

 

Boy Nissan is making sure that they get their moneys worth out of the VQ if they increase it to 4.0. I don't see why they just don't use the Q45s engine.

 

Because they need a torquey V6... not a smooth (though powerful) V8. I think the next Pathfinder might have only around 260hp... but I think they'll try to pass 300lb/ft torque.

 

From what I've read about engines, I thought that you'd get more torque from a V8 than you would with a V6. My only concern here is that the smoothness of the VQ will be taken away by bumping up the displacement to 4.0L. Maybe I'm wrong though:dunno:

 

I think the cost of the VK is much more than the cost of the VQ. That might be one of the biggest reason to use the VQ over the VK. VK is more technologically advanced the VQ in term of the material used. I think that's the major reason to use the VQ. If you noticed, all the cars/SUVs w/ the VK engine start their price above $40k. Bumping .5L in a 3.5L engine is only an increase of 15%. That's not that large when comparing with others such as the K-series engine from the RSX/TSX or the EJ-series engine from the Impreza/STi.

 

Exactly, the VQ is in almost every vehicle in Nissan's USDM line-up. Its costs would be significantly lower because the enlarged engine could be applied to various applications w/o causing too much of an overlap (i.e. bread and butter sedans sharing the same engine as the flagship). As it is right now, I think that certain products such as the Maxima/Altima, and Pathfinder/Murano/FX45 need to be better differentiated in terms of engine and performance. And a larger 4.0L VQ could open the way for a more powerful Z that would compete with say a Mazdaspeed RX-8 and new Supra.

 

Here are some more concept pictures



I pray that it keeps that interior, or at least something close to it. So far this is my favorite Nissan Concept that I've seen.

 

is this supposed to be the next pathfinder??

 

Nissan sure likes that roof idea.

 

Yeah, with the Maxima and Quest Nissan is going buck wild with sunroofs.