Is a Nissan Navara expensive to maintain?

Workshop labour costs vary between different dealerships (and various non-OEM service centers), so this factor is a variable for which this article cannot account. However, there’s one element of a car’s repair cost that can be reliably compared to its competitors, and that is the price of spare parts.

To get this data, as well as comparisons with the Nissan Navara’s market rivals, we consulted the , as issued in September 2021. In this report, various market segments and the vehicles which compete in them, were evaluated on a like-for-like basis. The latest Nissan Navara features in two of these comparisons, appearing in both single- and double-cab formats.

We then tabulated this data with a specific focus on their maintenance parts baskets, and compared it to the vehicles with the lowest-priced maintenance parts baskets in their categories, as well as to the vehicles with the most-expensive maintenance parts baskets. This should give an indication of the relative cost of Nissan maintenance costs, even if we can’t pin-point the labour variable.

​Related: Shop for new and used Nissan Navara bakkies here.

 

Single-cab bakkies (Entry-level)

	Nissan Navara 2.5 XE	Isuzu D-Max 250c Fleetside	Fiat Fullback 2.4
Maintenance Parts Basket	R 24 701.63	R 9 706.07	R 51 396.85
Maintenance Parts Basket as % of New Car Price	7.06 %	2.79 %	15.87 %

The Isuzu D-Max is far ahead of its opponents as far as maintenance parts go, largely on account of its archaic but proven and stone-reliable drivetrain, although the Ford Ranger 2.2 TDCi isn't too far behind in this regard. However, the Navara's maintenance parts basket price is only eclipsed by that of the Fiat Fullback, while the Toyota Hilux 2.4 GD S comes quite close to the prices commanded by the Nissan.

In other words, the Navara single-cab isn't the most expensive bakkie in its group to maintain, although a middling performance in this department is still much more expensive than the class leaders.

 

Double-cab bakkies (4x2)

	Nissan Navara 2.5DDTi LE AT	Ford Ranger 2.0 SiT XLT FX4	Mitsubishi Triton Extreme 2.4 AT
Maintenance Parts	R 28 161.49	R 11 433.79	R 31 417.84
Maintenance Parts Basket as % of New Car Price	4.16 %	1.62 %	4.49 %

In the double-cab segment, the Ford Ranger emerges as the clear winner (at 1.62%), although the Isuzu D-Max 3.0TD LX isn't too far behind, and they both lead  the Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 Raider (at 2.91%). In contrast, the Navara's maintenance parts ratio of 4.16 % isn't far ahead of the VW Amarok's percentage of 4.14%, and is still more expensive than all but one vehicle in its class.

 

Verdict

At the time of writing, the Nissan Navara had some of the highest maintenance parts basket prices in both the single- and double-cab bakkie categories – in fact, it eclipsed even some imported models in this regard. The same unfortunately holds true for service- and body repair parts, as we found in this comparison, indicating that the latest Navara is among the most-expensive vehicles in its class to repair and service as well.

This may well be due to the Navara’s freshness in our market, with the locally-made model having been launched in SA only a few months ago (it was fully-imported before). Spares availability might be a driving factor in this model’s high parts basket prices, a problem that should subside as local production ramps up to full volume. 

We hope that, as stock levels build at retailers, the Navara’s body parts prices will drop to a similar level as its top opponents’. But in the meantime, you’d better try not to crash or break your new Navara, for it could end up costing you dearly indeed!