The 2021 Nissan X-Trail has been leaked, with patent drawings revealing the strong-selling SUV’s sharp new look.
Motor1 shared these images, originally published on the website of the Brazilian Ministry of the Economy.
They reveal a mid-sized SUV bearing a strong resemblance to spy photos we’ve seen of the next-generation X-Trail, tipped to debut this year.
The images reveal the rear of the X-Trail is an evolution of the current model, with similarly-shaped tail lights that continue to touch the rear window.
The lights do, however, stretch further from the tailgate and towards the rear doors than those of the current model – in keeping with the Murano offered abroad.
Also similar to the current model is the rise of the belt line and kink in the rear quarter glass, creating an L-shape on the rear three-quarter glass.
Even the creases at the bottom of the doors are similar to the current model.
The most notable design difference is the front end, which resembles a larger Juke or a smaller Patrol, albeit with slightly different lighting elements.
The lighting is still split across two levels like the new Juke but the top tier, likely housing the LED daytime running lights and indicators, is thicker.
The second tier has a more rectangular in shape instead, of a circular lamp as on the Juke.
Nissan’s latest V-Motion design language means the X-Trail retains the prominent v-shape to its grille and the area between the headlamps.
The current model has a chrome ‘v’ set within the grille, while the new car appears to make the chrome ‘v’ the border of the grille.
The overall look is arguably cleaner and more modern.
Although Nissan hasn’t confirmed this is the X-Trail, it’s unlikely to be anything else. The size and design, along with the fact Nissan doesn’t offer any Brazil-specific crossover models, both point strongly to this being an X-Trail.
Last year, the X-Trail was the third best-selling mid-sized SUV in Australia, trailing the Mazda CX-5 and Toyota RAV4. It also recently held the title of world’s best-selling SUV, quite a feather in Nissan’s cap.
The continued strong sales are despite the X-Trail being one of the oldest models in its class. The current, third-generation X-Trail launched in 2014, though it received a facelift for 2017.
It’s not yet known if there’ll be new powertrains in the redesigned X-Trail.
The current car offers a choice of a naturally-aspirated 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine producing 126kW and 226Nm or a 2.0-litre turbo-diesel four-cylinder engine producing 130kW and 380Nm.
Both are mated exclusively to a continuously-variable transmission (CVT).
