2009 Nissan Armada

The 2009 Nissan Armada is generally unchanged for 2009, which unfortunately means that many of the problems which blighted the success of the 2008 model are still hanging on to the Armada. A few things have been resolved though, making the Armada a slightly more noteworthy vehicle than it was.

The new Armada uses a 5.6-liter DOHC V8 which delivers 317 hp with 385 ft-lbs of torque at just 3,400 RPM. This gives it an excellent towing capacity of up to 9,000 pounds. The standard 5-speed automatic transmission comes with a tow/haul mode, which is a handy feature. Unfortunately, all that power results in a frankly atrocious 12 mpg city, 18 mpg highway fuel economy.

The Armada borrows much of its basic design from Nissans Titan Pickup, which isn’t a bad thing at all. It means that the chassis is tough but relatively light weight and also guarantees the Armada a decent amount of cabin space for its class.

Unfortunately those problems that we hinted at in the first paragraph remain. Poor ride quality, more like a large truck than most competing full size SUV’s. Unresponsive handling which hasnít been improved an iota since the 2008 version and a generally poor interior quality to fixtures and fittings. Still, even with all these problems the 2009 Nissan Armada puts in a decent appearance and is forgivingly priced compared to higher quality competition.