Nissan Armada — brute force with style

“Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” may have been boxing great Muhammad Ali’s motto, but it suits the Armada just fine.

Nissan, though, selected “Big on Adventure, Big on Space” as the 4×4 sport utility vehicle’s official motto.

Fair enough. The Armada is one big SUV from its V-8 engine, with 317 horsepower and 385 foot-pounds of torque, to its incredibly roomy three rows of seats.

But let’s back up a bit before we get into those details.

Once you get over the initial shock of the very size of the Armada, you start to notice its bold, masculine physique highlighted with features including a raised roof, flare fenders, fog lights and a chrome roof rack with cross bars.

It’s heartening to find a plus-size SUV that puts its big-boned body to good use. I was lucky enough to have family visiting when I had the Armada for a test drive and can tell you that four adults, two teenage boys and two young children sat comfortably with plenty of space to spare. What was particularly welcome was no one was fighting for leg or headroom. It was that comfortable.

Another plus was the climate control system that kept air flowing throughout the cabin even in the summer heat. No refrigerator zones or boiler room conditions in any of these seats.

As a general rule, I’ve often found it difficult to acclimate to an oversized SUV, and the Armada — tipping the scales at more than 5,500 pounds and measuring 78 inches high and more than 79 inches wide — certainly fits that category.

I won’t kid you — I was nervous driving the Armada through crowded city streets, but it was nimble enough to meet the challenge, gliding easily between cars and around tight corners.

The global positioning system was intuitive and easy to program, and the 7-inch color display on the dashboard was clear and easy to read.

It’s a safe car, too, with all four- and five-star government crash test ratings.

When you consider this car is rated to haul 9,000 pounds — and reviewers who’ve used it for that purpose report it does so with ease — this SUV comes off as ideal for a family on the go.

Now the downside — the Environmental Protection Agency gives the Armada a fuel rating of 12 mpg city and 18 mpg highway. That’s going to mean you’ll get to be a regular visitor at the service station.

There’s little doubt the Armada is a rugged family SUV that offers reliable performance and plenty of creature comforts. But like a champion fighter, it needs plenty of fuel to keep it moving.