Known as the Patrol in other parts of the world, Nissan Motor Co. is taking its full-size sport utility vehicle to our shores as the Armada.
Rightfully named as such, the Armada has enough room and enough power to take an entire family out beyond concrete roads for an adventure. Or, it can be used as modern day van to take the kids and their friends out to soccer practice.
Either way, Nissan's new Armada is expected to be one of the stars of the country's largest auto show happening later this week in Chicago. The Armada, however, won't be the only utility vehicle on the showroom floor at the Chicago Auto Show.
In fact, it's the pickup and utility vehicle categories that are expected to make the biggest splash. Updated pickups, utility vehicles, and hybrids from Kia, Chevy, Ford, Hyundai, Ram and Toyota will be unveiled.
What sets the Armada apart from the competition really doesn't amount to much, however. As the second-generation model of the Armada line-up, it is bigger and bolder than its predecessors. That much is expected. This time though instead of being based on the Titan full-sized pickup, the Armada is based off the Infiniti QX80 SUV.
Put the two side-by-side — the Nissan Armada and the Infiniti QX80 — and the similarities will become glaringly obvious. The Armada, of course, being the more affordable one does come in less fancier trimmings. Nonetheless, one look at the vehicle and you'll know it's a Nissan.
"The look of the new Armada is instantly recognizable as a Nissan, with its wide V-motion grille and distinctive boomerang-style LED daytime running lights," describes Nissan North America Vice President of Product Planning, Michael Bunce.
Seating as many as eight passengers inside the cabin, the Armada is outfitted with the same 5.6-liter engine as last year's model but with an increased horsepower of up to 390 from the previous model's 317-horsepower.
For kids and friends not behind the wheel, the Aramda also comes with plenty of entertainment features to keep everyone occupied. There are a pair of 7-inch monitors behind both headrests of the front seats, two USB ports, two VTR jacks, two wireless headphones, and of course, a single controller.
The Nissan Armada will come in three variants: SV, SL and Platinum. When it does become available for sale, expect to shell out about $63,000.
