running lights a nice safety touch. Of
course there’s a reversing camera, and
it worked well. Parking sensors are
easilyswitchedoffbyawell-placed
button to avoid annoying all occupants
when dropping the trailer in the drink.
Likemostofyou,Irelyonmy
smartphone for navigation almost
entirely.Thesmallpercentageof
time I’m not using it, my significant
other knows better. I’ve often said
in-car navigation is dead for these
reasonsbuttheNavaraprovedapoint;
your phone doesn’t always work and
although the Navara’s in-dash system
coulddropcontactwiththesatellites
too, it didn’t when our phones were
useless. More importantly, it was super-responsive and really easy to use, too.
Soitwasthatwiththebossesof
Surtees sharing the car with me in
a strange town, failing to find their
$289,000 boat, which had been
deliveredtoalocalengineeringyard
before our arrival, was starting to get
embarrassing. After no luck from any
ofourphones,theNavarasavedme
fromgettingatotallyredface.
The audio system is immense and
passed myAceofSpadestest with
flying colours. Calling via Bluetooth
wassimpleandtheon-wheel
controls for volume, calling and audio
adjustmentsareeasytofindanduse.
Possiblythecoolestfeatureonthe
ST-X is the electric rear port-window –devoid of heavy clunks or pauses in
power delivery. Cruising at highway
speeds, she sat on 1500 to 1600rpm
in seventh, sipping fuel slower than a
wine taster with a fancy bottle open.
In low range, first becomes super-low
(44.5:1) crawling at infant speeds and
only getting up to walking pace at
3000-odd rpm. No issues bogging down
on the ramp, then.
YOUNG PEOPLE ISSUES:
TECHNOLOGY
TheST-Xiswelldesignedandfullof
fruit – ANCAP 5-star rating, leather
interior,greata/candheating,cruise
controlandplentymore.Whatsetsthe
ST-XapartfromlesserNavaramodels
arestandardisedoptionssuchasthe
tub liner, utili-track tie-down points in
the bed, good-looking 18in alloys, and
chrome accents, among other details.
The tie-down points are worth the
askingpriceifyoubuyalower-spec
model, as is the tub liner.
Theleatherseatsaregood;we
tested the heaters after a wet morning
on the water and appreciated their
effectiveness. Entry is via remote with
keylessstart–fancyforavehicle
with its roots in commercial use. The
headlights are super-bright, with LED
TOP one of the ST-X’s best features, the
truly modern interior design is let down by
a lack of seat and steering adjustability
ABOVE CENTRE The new 2.3L twin-turbo
diesel was happy in its task, towing all
manner of boats in the week we had itOPPOSITE TOP ST-X benefits from big
alloys, roll bar, extra lights and chrome
finishings, and is the pick of the range66 tradeaboat.com.au