2025 Nissan Armada First Drive Review: Come Sail Away

Williamson county is consistently the most affluent in Tennessee, and in fact one of the top-ranking counties in the whole country.

This being the launch location for the 2025 Nissan Armada sends a clear message. After the outgoing model trundled along in the market for nearly a decade, Nissan’s big body-on-frame SUV is new again, offering buyers a modernized 2020s experience that the brand says better addresses customer demands. The Armada is marching upmarket with a look and feel (and price) that says the folks around here are prime potential customers. Can it tempt them away from the default Tahoe or Expedition? Nissan invited AutoGuide down for a day to find out.

Out goes the V8, as the Armada follows in the footsteps of every competitor except the GM twins. A twin-turbo V6 slots in under that tall hood, bringing with it useful output improvements: 425 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque represent gains of 25 and 103, respectively. A nine-speed automatic sends power to the rear wheels as standard in America, thought 4WD is optional on most trims. Canada sticks to 4WD for everything.

A PRO-4X model joins the lineup for the first time this year. As the name implies it is all-paw only, applying the recipe from the Frontier to a larger canvas. This includes redesigned bumpers for better approach and departure angles, a locking rear differential, skid plates, and more.

The Armada is still big and blocky, so that hasn’t changed. Length is up less than an inch, and it rides on the same 121.1-inch (3,075-millimeter) wheelbase as the outgoing model. The detailing is crisper and more angular now however, from those tall, stacked headlights to the cleaner side vents and tidied up tail. Nissan has cleaned up the rear bumper too, no longer giving the backend an underbite look. American buyers will find 18-inch alloys on the base SV; the rest of the trims use at least 20s, with enormous 22s on the top-shelf Platinum Reserve.

After just sampling the Infiniti QX80 back home, which sits on the same platform and utilizes a premium-swilling version of the V6 (with an additional 25 hp), the Armada feels unsurprisingly familiar. It handles its power perk-up well, gathering speed with the calmness and consistency that only very large vehicles can manage. Throttle response is good and the transmission easily and quickly swaps between cogs. There’s even a healthy—if muffled—growl from up ahead.

Fuel economy is also better across the board: even the PRO-4X and its light all-terrain rubber can beat the ancient outgoing V8. The rugged option accomplishes 15 mpg city and 18 mpg city, for a combined figure of 16 mpg. Canadian equivalents are 15.7, 12.9, 14.4 L/100 km, respectively. The rest of the lineup sees slightly better ratings of 16/19/17 mpg (14.7/12.4/13.7 L/100 km).

Nissan splits the day between on-road driving in the Platinum Reserve and light off-roading in the PRO-4X. The roads outside Franklin, TN are seemingly made for the big SUV: gently winding and uniformly well-surfaced. The Armada never “shrinks around you” or “drives small,” but it remains consistent and predictable nonetheless. There is just enough weight in that redesigned steering wheel to remind drivers that yes, there’s over 6,000 pounds of metal and glass behind them.

Off-roading is a similar story. Evidence of the unseasonable dump of rain earlier in the week is slim, with only small patches of slick mud on the trail as signs. Swapped into 4LO, with the air suspension at its maximum 9.6 inches of ground clearance and the rear diff, the PRO-4X scampers up and over steep inclines. There is impressive articulation over a series of offset yumps, too. Spinning through the drive mode selector to mud/rut mode, pedal sensitivity and traction control are both softer, letting the driver fine-tune the approach. I still don’t expect many folks to be rushing to off-road their near-six-figure family SUV, and width remains a challenge, but it’s good to know the Armada is this capable should the situation call for it.

While the air suspension is useful in both on- and off-road driving, it sure is noisy.

Towing remains capped at up to 8,500 pounds when properly equipped, same as the outgoing V8.

With the aforementioned air suspension, the Armada handles most smaller bumps or surface imperfections without issue. Larger bumps send reverberations through the cabin and backside. Nissan touts a 25-percent increase in torsional rigidity and a huge 57-percent improvement to lateral stiffness, but one can’t fight the effects of gravity and low-profile tires. Visibility remains excellent because yep, this is still a box on wheels.

The Armada’s front seats are incredibly comfortable, utilizing Nissan’s Zero Gravity design with standard heating on all trims. Our Platinum Reserve tester includes both ventilation and a massage function: they work well but like the air suspension are noisier than I’d like. Second-row accommodations are adult-friendly, and while knees sit high in the way-back, it’s acceptable for shorter trips.

This is where Nissan’s designers took a big swing. The Armada’s cabin now appears of this decade with a tasteful and upmarket dashboard design. There are soft-touch materials all over, and even on this pre-production model the fit and finish is uniformly great. Three dual-tone color schemes are offered on the Reserve, including the almond-and-chai you see here and a rich double-brown (chestnut and rye). The PRO-4X nets its own seat design, the intricate quilting picked out by the bright orange stitching.

There was a collective sigh of relief when Nissan first showed off this Armada and we all clocked the multitude of physical buttons in the center of the dash. Huzzah! The selection of toggles, dials, and buttons is welcome, but it’s a shame everything is coated in shiny piano black.

Standard infotainment kit consists of a dual-screen setup with each measuring 12.3 inches across. The PRO-4X and both Platinum trims bump this up to a pair of 14.3-inchers. Both use the latest Nissan infotainment including Google Built-In, which makes for an easy migration for those who are already playing in the G ecosystem. If you’d prefer to connect through smartphone there’s good news there too: standard wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, plus a wireless charger.

The setup unlocks other features too, including a revamped exterior camera setup. Not only is there a 360-degree camera, drivers can activate a 3D image in the infotainment to “peek” around corners or check out obstacles. An “invisible hood” feature extends the front camera’s view “under” the Armada by way of a slight delay, which can prove useful while maneuvering tight situations. When necessary, drivers can extend the front view across both screens as well, ensuring no obstacle goes unnoticed.

Special mention to the 12-speaker Klipsch audio system. At 600 watts its not particularly powerful, but the clarity is impressive.

Every modern driver assist you can reasonably expect is standard on the Armada, including automated emergency braking, rear cross-traffic alert, and blind spot monitoring. Nissan’s ProPilot Assist 2.1, which enables hands-free driving on select highways, is also included, though the short stretch of highway on our drive route sent back a “route under maintenance” message, so we couldn’t test it.

In America, a 2025 Armada SV 4x2 kicks off the lineup at $58,530 including destination. The trim walk then proceeds through SL, Platinum, and finally the $79,000 Platinum Reserve. Add an $3,000 to any of these model for 4WD; the PRO-4X slots in between the two Platinums at $75,750.

Canada skips the SV, making the $86,093 CAD Armada SL the entry point of the lineup. The Platinum trim is a significant jump up at $95,093 CAD, while the rugged PRO-4X is just a grand more. From there it’s another big jump to the $106,093 CAD Platinum Reserve, which can be had with second-row captain’s chairs for an additional $1,000 CAD.

Now that pricing catapults the 2025 Nissan Armada right into the center of its fiercely competitive segment. Nissan is up-front about it: simply put, brand spokespeople acknowledge the outgoing model didn’t address North American buyers’ needs quite so well, and had to use the value angle instead.

On this first encounter, the new Armada appears much more in-line with market demands. It is comfortable, easy to use, and chock full of standard kit. Nissan is confidently sailing to meet its competitors head-on now, and the Armada looks capable of peeling off more than a few would-be buyers.

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