# X-Trail GT - first impressions



## xtrailgt (Oct 14, 2010)

Test drove an X-Trail GT yesterday and was blown away with how good is was. Today I am its new owner 

It has the 276bhp SR20VET engine and yes, it is quick. The engine is responsive and moves the car effortlessly. The suspension and brakes are upgraded over the original and handle the extra power no problem. Ride quality and noise seem excellent so far. It also has a bigger, rumbly exhaust - not too loud but you easily notice it when you put your foot down

Throttle seems to have 3 settings:
- normal (gentle push)
- fast (little pressure)
- fun (full shoe)

The 2wd option has been removed so only have adaptive (4wd kicks in when required) or locked 4wd.

It is a Japanese import so comes with a Clarion navigation/entertainment centre. It's all in Japanese and can't be changed to another language. Nav only has Jap maps so no use. 

With a band expander, the radio works fine. Also includes a mini-disc (remember them?) player and a memory stick slot (that the obsolete first generation one). CD player works fine and also accepts DVDs (Region 2 NTSC encoded ones) - I will rip some DVDs in this format to see if it works. 

The best part though is the rear view camera which displays on the 7" screen whenever reverse is engaged.

I'll happily answer questions about it where I can (I'm no mechanic!).

Ben (xtrailgt)


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## Mitch2791 (Jul 15, 2007)

Any chance of some pictures?


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## simmo (Aug 14, 2006)

Hi Ben, we in the UK do not have a GTmodel do you know what is the Uks nearest comparison model to yours or does anyone else know?


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## aussietrail (Sep 24, 2004)

Simmo, there is no comparison to an xtrail GT as it has a completely different engine to the rest of the xtrail family. As far as I know only the local Japan market has the GT model, but New Zealand got some through the grey import market.


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## simmo (Aug 14, 2006)

Thanks for that Jalal, are you saying that it is a special model just designed for the Japanese market or should I say mainly for the far east market.


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## aussietrail (Sep 24, 2004)

It's designed for the Japanese market.


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## simmo (Aug 14, 2006)

Hi Jalal, there seems to be a massive difference of xee models around the world, not just different names but also different specs, it is amazing how some are available in one country but not in the next. I have been looking at the x trail Axis it looks awesome but only seems available in Japan (is that correct?).

In the UK we have now changed to ( what I think) is the soft model of the Acenta, and Tekna, with in your face consuls rather than the raw centre type.


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## aussietrail (Sep 24, 2004)

Yeah Simmo, the Axis is also a tuned Japanese version of the exy for the local market.

We have had the T31 X-Trail launched in Australia in 2007, but we now also have the Series 3 of this T31 model. Everything has changed compared to our T30 one which is now being considered an "old" shape.


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## simmo (Aug 14, 2006)

Thanks for that Jalal, what is the present top model out your way and it's price, over here it is the Tekna and it's price is £27,500, i personally think this is a fairly price, you can see how world prices have risen as my exy was £21.000. five years ago and i believe mine is just as good as the new type.


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## aussietrail (Sep 24, 2004)

Prices for the new Series 3 T31 model for the top of the range as follows:

2.5LT Ti CVT transmission £30,380
2.0 LT Diesel Auto £30,885
2.0LT Diesel Manual £29,400

These are drive-away prices with all taxes and registration included.

I bought my T30 in January 2003 (new) for $32,000AUD which is £20,000, so it seems the prices between UK and Australia are very close, given the current strong Aussie Dollar.


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## xtrailgt (Oct 14, 2010)

Yes, this model was only available in the Japanese Domestic Market. There is no equivalent in other markets. It's quite hard to find (English) info on this vehicle as the engine (SR20VET) is unique to this model - more engine info here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nissan_VVL_engine

There are quite a few jap imports in NZ so a lot of second hand X-trail GTs make it over here where they can be picked up for around NZ$15k. There are 5 for sale here: 

TradeMe.co.nz - x-trail gt for sale, New Zealand

Mine is a red one and looks exactly like the one listed on the site above.

Took it off-road the other day and very happy with it's performance - with the turbo you can climb steep hills like they're not there.


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## royroy (Jun 4, 2014)

xtrailgt said:


> Test drove an X-Trail GT yesterday and was blown away with how good is was. Today I am its new owner
> 
> It has the 276bhp SR20VET engine and yes, it is quick. The engine is responsive and moves the car effortlessly. The suspension and brakes are upgraded over the original and handle the extra power no problem. Ride quality and noise seem excellent so far. It also has a bigger, rumbly exhaust - not too loud but you easily notice it when you put your foot down
> 
> ...


 Hie Ben.

I'm wondering if you still have your Xtrail Gt. I'm thinking about getting one but I'm concerned about the reliability of the turbo engine. The turbodiesels have issues with the turbo and intercooler, is the same true for this turbopetrol? 

Is the mechanism the same for the two engines?

Help


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## GX-Trailer (May 31, 2015)

Hi ROYROY, I'm a newcomer to the Forum and have just bought the GX version with a 2.5 petrol engine. I would love a diesel version, but they're not available here in Brazil. What I can tell you is that, having had a JPX jeep with a Peugeot diesel engine, if your motor is designed to have a turbo and an intercooler , without the former in particular, it will lack power and fuel economy. I hope this helps, but I bow to anyone in the Forum with deeper technical knowledge. Good X-ing, BRIAN


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## Nistech46 (Jun 11, 2015)

I have a 06 2.5l gas (qr25de)x-trail as well. Was hoping to one day do a sr20vet conversion. Any info on compatibility ie. motor mounts drive shaft spline counts ect. 
Thanks. 
Simon
12yr nissan tech


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## Nismo GT (Jun 26, 2015)

Hi Nistech46, i had completely made conversion from my xtrail 2.0 (QR20) to SR20VET. that's no any modification for engine mounts or drive shaft for all, everything just plug & play simple and nice. Engine swap with GT halfcut from japan car wreck.


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## quadraria10 (Jul 6, 2010)

That is cool. What changes were needed for brakes and suspension? Wonder why Nissan never sold it elsewhere than Japan? It was basically almost 10 years ahead of its time when you consider the new 2.0 Turbo offerings in SUVs or CUVs


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## Nismo GT (Jun 26, 2015)

Nothing changes needed and for better brakes system performance i had purposely upgrade to R32 front & rear brake caliper, which's 4 pot for front & 2 pot for rear. And also it's 10 years ahead of NeoVVL with Turbo that currently just used in Honda Civic type R VTEC Turbo engine.


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## 477354 (Apr 1, 2020)

I was close to buy a GT in Melbourne that was for sale in 2012. The owner had been living in Japan for at least 12 months so he was allowed to bring it back with him. He was selling it for $17k. It was just a little bit too much for me at the time but it was sold a couple of days late, needless to say. I'm now seriously considering the half-cut idea. I can then either buy a cheap X-Trail or slip it into my U13 Attesa Limited.


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## Dm.Crown (Dec 10, 2020)

[QUOTE = "Nismo GT, сообщение: 1511817, участник: 209433"]
Никаких изменений не потребовалось, и для лучшей производительности тормозной системы я намеренно обновил передний и задний тормозные суппорты R32, у которых 4 потенциометра для передних и 2 для задних. Кроме того, он на 10 лет опережает NeoVVL с Turbo, который в настоящее время используется только в двигателях Honda Civic типа R VTEC Turbo.
[/ QUOTE]
Приветствия! Если бы этот двигатель было так же просто установить в кузов X-TRAIL T31))


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## ShazX-TrailGT (3 d ago)

R32 brakes are they a direct bolt on, or modifications need to be made?


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