While local buyers miss out on the brand-new generation launched overseas, the upcoming refresh brings sharper styling, upgraded cabin tech, and the trusted 2.5l engine back to showrooms.

Nissan South Africa has confirmed that the refreshed D23 Navara will return to local showrooms later this year as an imported model from Thailand following the recent acquisition of the Rosslyn plant by Chery, reports The Citizen.

No longer locally produced, the updated D23 Navara will feature a refreshed exterior and interior while retaining its familiar 2.5l turbodiesel engine.

Initially previewed in a single teaser image released last year, Nissan South Africa has now confirmed a local market debut for later this year.

Imported return

The Navara will once again become an imported model sourced from the Samut Prakan facility in Thailand.

This is the same plant from which the vehicle originated before local production commenced at Rosslyn five years ago. However, the South Africa-bound model will be a continuation of the current D23 that made its world debut in 2014.

Reportedly set to be revealed first in Latin America under the Frontier name (which has no relation to the US model of the same name), the D23 features a restyled design and what Nissan described at the time of the teaser reveal as enhanced infotainment and an impressive suite of advanced driver assistance technologies.

This means South Africa will forgo the new Mitsubishi Triton-based D27 Navara, which has only been approved for Australasia.

Both models will wear the Navara name in a dual-capacity role, with the D23 continuing with its coil-spring rear suspension setup while the D27 inherits the leaf springs from the Triton.

Engine retention

Speaking at the launch of the facelift X-Trail  yesterday (21 July),  newly appointed Nissan South Africa managing director Juan Wheeler said: “We are still working with Thailand as to how soon we can bring it to market. There will be some change to adapt it for our market, but we will still have in this final year.”

While final specifications remain unconfirmed, Wheeler verified that models bound for South Africa will retain the 2.5-litre YD25DDTI turbodiesel engine instead of reverting to the 2.3-litre YS23, which became obsolete when local production started in 2021.

Further details are sparse for now, though more information is expected to emerge following the official approval for a 2026 market arrival.

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