Motoring

Renault-based Nissan NP200 successor coming, but prepare to wait

Nissan confirms new half-ton bakkie before decade end

Nissan’s replacement for the NP200 has taken its biggest step towards becoming a reality, but not within the next 12 to 18 months, according to a newly uncovered report from Brazil.

Timeline

Back in October, the Japanese marque announced that plans on introducing a successor for the now 15-year old half-ton, based on the first generation Dacia/Renault Logan and Sandero, came to nothing as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

ALSO READ: Next Alaskan? Renault unwraps new Niagara Concept bakkie

In a statement, Nissan said it had been looking at the former as sourcing country for the next generation NP200, but decided against it based on what it described as the current “geopolitical situation” brought on by the conflict.

*_{Eventual production model will differ from the concept, though exactly how remains unknown. Image: Renault}*

According to a report from motor1.com Brazil, the planned “second generation”, while still on the cards, will only bow around 2027.

Nissan’s Renault Niagara

Based on a product presentation slide obtained by the publication, which forms part of Nissan’s “Mobilise” strategy, the unnamed newcomer will remain a half-ton and take-up station below the next generation Nissan Navara, which will be based on the all-new Mitsubishi Triton within the next 18 months or so.

*_{Screengrab confirming the still unnamed NP200 replacement based on the eventual production Renault Niagara. Image: motor1.com Brazil}*

Set to be a rebadged version of the Renault Niagara Concept that premiered in October, the newcomer will ride on the CMF-B platform and as with the Renault, eschew diesel motivation for petrol and hybrid assistance, as well as the option of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in some markets.

*_{Based on the Nissan Navara, the Alaskan will remain Renault’s flagship bakkie in select South American-markets only. Image: Renault Argentina}*

“We will enrich our line by using Renault’s expertise in half-ton pickup trucks, recently revealed under the name Niagara.

*_{Current Navara, known as the Frontier in South America, will soon be replaced by an all-new model based on the equally new Mitsubishi Triton. Image: Nissan Brazil}*

“Similarly, Nissan will provide our proven capabilities in our 1-ton pickup truck, the Nissan Frontier, to help Renault increase its production presence in Argentina,” Nissan CEO, Makoto Uchida, was quoted by the publication as saying.

End or Oroch?

Unknown though is how the Niagara will align with the next generation Oroch reportedly already in production.

*_{Still based on the first generation Duster, a second generation Oroch is expected to happen around 2025. Image: motor1.com Brazil}*

Not mentioned on the Mobilse presentation sheet, which names the Navara – known as the Frontier in South America – and its Renault sibling, the Alaskan, the absence of the Oroch and presence only of the Niagara seemingly suggests the second generation Oroch will have a short production run based on the Niagara becoming a reality in 2027.

*_{Production of the Nissan NP200 wraps-up in March next year after what will be almost 16 years. Image: Nissan}*

Supposed to have debuted in South Africa at the end of this year, but delayed and not due to arrive in 2024 as a result of “unfavourable economic market factors”, the Oroch, still based on the first generation Duster, looks set to remain a left-hand-drive only model despite being showcased with right-hand-drive at the Nampo Agricultural Expo in Bothaville in the Free State in May in a “prototype” configuration.

Stay tuned

As it stands, little else about the production Niagara or its Nissan equivalent continues to be known, though with the confirmation now made, expect more to be uncovered in 2024 despite the year of reveal being less than four years away.

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