Reinventing search and rescue

Nissan has called upon all its light commercial vehicle (LCV) and electric vehicle (EV) knowledge to create a durable and tough all-terrain pickup, designed to operate as a life-saving rescue platform in some of the world’s most harsh and extreme environments.

Unveiled this week at the 2016 IAA Hannover Motor Show, it’s called the Nissan Navara EnGuard Concept and is based on the Double Cab Tekna version of the Nissan Navara – the current holder of the International Pickup Award.

With ground clearance raised by 50 mm, and the roofline raised by 136 mm, it features many bespoke design elements and performance upgrades.

For example, choice of colours and their placement was given careful consideration during the vehicle’s development. Nissan research revealed fluorescent green is the most visible colour in daylight, and also most easily identifiable by people affected by colour-blindness.

Two pull-out fibreglass trays in the load bay contain rescue items such as two-way radios, ropes, an axe, an oxygen tank and resuscitation kit, life jackets and buoyancy aids.

Key to the vehicle’s rescue role is the DJI Phantom 4 drone, which relays images back to the vehicle to be viewed on a pop-up HD screen hidden in the load-bed wall. With an operating ceiling of 6 000 m and weighing just 1,38 kg, it can fly at speeds of up to 20 m/s for close to 30 minutes.

The Navara EnGuard Concept also marks the world debut of a prototype portable battery pack, designed and developed by Nissan to be an efficient alternative to a petrol generator. In a rescue environment they could be used to operate specialist cutting or heavy-lifting equipment.

Two input (charge) sockets and five output (discharge) sockets are integrated into each battery pack. They utilise the brand’s tried and tested EV battery technology, with each 2 000 W unit utilising seven Nissan EV battery modules inside a weather-proof, machined aluminium housing.

With zero emissions and no flammable fuel, the portable battery packs can also be used in enclosed spaces such as a building or a cave. Additional power sockets are integrated into each side of the pickup’s load bed.

Philippe Guerin-Boutaud, corporate vice president, LCV, Nissan, comments: “The Nissan Navara EnGuard Concept showcases how our award-winning pickup is perfectly suited to tackle the toughest terrain and save lives. It opens a new chapter in the Nissan Intelligent Mobility vision, featuring our commitment to zero fatalities and zero emissions.”