This week we are looking at the 2023 Nissan Armada Platinum, a luxury SUV that was completely redone for 2021. Calling it a luxury SUV from Nissan is not a stretch, it truly is luxurious, especially inside.
2023 Nissan Armada Platinum
Exterior
The 2023 Armada features an attractive but boxy exterior that includes a large grille, raised hood, LED headlights and fog lights, and the massive 22” wheels look fantastic.
Powertrain
Under the hood there is a 5.6-liter V8 with no turbos that is putting out 400-horses and 413-Pound feet of torque. It is mated to a conventional 7-speed automatic. My tester is 4-wheel drive, but 2-wheel is available.
Interior
The surprise for me was the interior. The front seats are slightly bolstered and the center section of the seats they are diamond-quilted. They are super comfortable and are heated and air conditioned. I am impressed with the huge amount of stitching across the interior.
The analog gauge cluster is a little old fashioned, but easy to see and there is a configurable driver info center in the middle that offers a lot of info and traffic sign recognition.
In the middle of the dash is a huge 12.3” screen that houses the 13-speaker Bose stereo, nav system, Bluetooth, voice recognition, settings, and apps for real-time traffic, sports scores, and gas prices. This also serves as a 360-degree around-view camera.
There is also a Wi-Fi hotspot, wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto, and new for 2023 the Armada has Amazon Alexa that you can ask questions to by voice, much like Siri.
Everything is easy to operate by touch, or there is a knob on the center console to scroll though if you don’t want to touch the screen.
Also, on the center console are two cupholders, the controls for the 4-wheel drive system, a couple of USBs, and behind a covered door, a wireless phone charger and 12-volt power supply.
Second row passengers have comfortable heated captain’s chairs and a massive center console with a big storage area. There are USB ports in the back and automatic temperature controls. Also cool, second row passengers can open the front center console if needed, and there are two 8” screens for the rear seat entertainment system built into the back of the front seat headrests.
Access to the third row is fairly simple with an easy flip manual operation of the second-row captain chairs. I expected more room in the third-row seat to be honest, two adults might be a little cramped, but would be great for children and even teens. You can power recline the third-row seat for comfort.
Utility
Going around to the power liftgate, you’ll find 17-cubic feet of cargo behind the third row. Just hit buttons to put the third row down and you’ll end up with 50-cubic feet and flip the captain’s chairs over to maximize your space to over 100-cubic feet or cargo.
Safety
The Armada features a multitude of standard safety technologies, including Nissan Safety Shield 360 and features such as Intelligent Lane Intervention, Intelligent Forward Collision Warning and Blind Spot Intervention.
Standard Equipment and Options
Armada Platinum comes with many standard features. Most notable are remote start, a power moon roof, a digital rearview mirror which works great, and adaptive cruise control.
Options-wise, the only expensive item besides floor mats and welcome lighting is the $750 second row captain’s chairs instead of a bench seat, and for that, you also get the rear DVD players. Cross bars for the luggage rack run $380.
Ride and Drive
The Armada drives and handles great. Acceleration is strong, and it is quiet inside on the highway. Steering is a little soft to me, but overall the ride and drive characteristics are very good for a large SUV.
Fuel economy is not great at 13 in town, 18 on the highway, but it’s a huge V8 that will tow 8500 pounds.
What You'll Pay
MSRP as equipped is $72,925 and I have to say, by today’s standards, this is an awesome buy.
Verdict
Nissan has done a great job with this large SUV and I wasn’t always a fan, but am now.
- What I liked most: The interior quality and powerful V8.
- What I would change: Really need more 3rd-row seat room.
- MSRP: $69,720 base price/as equipped: $72,925 with destination.
- Fuel Economy: Rated at 13 city/18 highway/15 combined.
- Odometer reading when tested: 4,600 miles.
- Weight: 6,034 pounds/7,500 GVWR.
- Spare Tire: Full-sized spare.
- Length-Width-Height: 208.9” long/79.9” wide/75.8” high.
- Fuel Tank Capacity: 26 gallons with fuel filler on the driver's side.
- Official Color: Gun Metallic.
- Towing Capacity: 8,500 pounds.
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2023 Armada in a few words: A very nice, large luxury SUV with plenty of room, a great ride, and priced well under is competition.
- Warranty: 3-year/36,000 mile bumper-to-bumper; 5-year/60,000 mile powertrain warranty with roadside assistance.
- Final Assembly Location: Los Angeles, CA.
- Manufacturer's website: Nissan
