The Y62-generation Nissan Patrol is posting record sales in Australia, but despite its renewed popularity, a basic cabin upgrade introduced overseas is still years away from local showrooms.
Last year, the Nissan Patrol received a bold new nose and a refreshed interior – with a new dash – in the US (detailed here), preceded by a similar update in the Middle East in 2019 (detailed here).
But Australia only received the external styling update, and carried over the old dashboard that was introduced with the Y62 in 2011 globally and 2013 in Australia.
While the old dashboard itself is not a major setback – and the Nissan Patrol in showrooms today has Bluetooth wireless phone connection – the design precludes the Nissan Patrol from receiving smartphone mirroring technology such as Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, two features now considered bare essentials on most new cars.
The current-generation Nissan Patrol has three dashboard treatments globally, depending on which market it is sold in (the US, Middle East, and Australian dashboards are different designs).
The boss of Nissan Australia, Adam Paterson, told Drive “the challenges of right- versus left-hand-hand drive” were the main reasons for the delay.
More than 75 per cent of new cars sold globally are left-hand-drive, which tends to take priority over the 25 per cent of the automotive world that is right-hand-drive (such as Australia).
Within that data, new-car sales in Australia account for about one per cent of global vehicle volumes.
“The interior application (for the Y62 Nissan Patrol) differs between markets,” said Mr Paterson.
“So the Infiniti has a different interior than the Armada, and the Armada has a different interior than the (Middle East) Patrol, and there is a different interior in the Patrol in Australia,” said Mr Paterson.
“In addition, there are wiring requirements that differ by market. There are regulatory differences that happen by market. So it’s not just (a matter of) ‘hey, we’ve got left-hand-drive and we can apply it everywhere’.
“The console is different as well, so making that right-hand-drive is even more work, and creates even more challenges.”
The Nissan Australia boss declined to nominate arrival timing of the dashboard upgrade and the arrival of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto in the Nissan Patrol in local showrooms, but dealer sources estimate it is due some time in 2023.
“We are looking to make enhancements (to the Nissan Patrol) at any time we can take advantage of the best offerings that Nissan has in market globally, and obviously we want to do it as fast as possible,” said Mr Paterson.
Despite the absence of a diesel option, the Y62 Nissan Patrol has already eclipsed its previous annual sales record with two months remaining this year.
Waiting lists for the Nissan Patrol in Australia stretch six to 12 months depending on the model, due to production interruptions and semiconductor shortages during the pandemic.
Nissan says after several months of assembly line slowdowns and shutdowns, it hopes to ramp up production in December 2021 and begin to fill some back orders early next year.
The post Nissan Patrol: Apple CarPlay and Android Auto years away appeared first on Drive.
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