Well, well, well, would you look at that! In production since 2006, the Nissan Qashqai currently enjoys the title of best-selling sport utility vehicle in Europe. And at long last, the Qashqai has been adapted to U.S. specification. Ladies and gents, please put your hands together for what Nissan calls the 2017 Rogue Sport.
Slotted between the subcompact Juke and the compact Rogue (or X-Trail in Europe), the Rogue Sport measures 172.4 inches in length and boasts a wheelbase of 104.2 inches. By comparison, its bigger brother is 184.5 inches long and offers 106.5 inches in terms of wheelbase. As such, as fate would have it, the newly introduced Rogue Sport is also compact sized.
Described by Nissan as “right sized,” the new kid on the block is pitched as a more maneuverable machine in city traffic. It’s also pretty spacious, offering seating for five and a cargo area of 29.9 cubic feet with the rear seats upright. Folding them down into the floor ups the ante to 61.1 cubic feet.
Under the hood, there’s only one engine available for Nissan’s newest U.S. product. Coming in the form of a 2.0-liter naturally aspirated four-cylinder with direct injection, the unit is paired as standard with a Xtronic continuously variable transmission. In terms of output, that’ll be 141 hp and 147 lb-ft.
"The new Rogue Sport is a perfect addition to the red hot Rogue lineup, which is also adding a first-ever Rogue Hybrid model for 2017," explained Michael Bunce, the vice president of product planning at Nissan North America. Deare Michael, “red hot” isn’t the right choice of words for what is just another crossover. The Rogue may have sold 329,904 units in the United States in 2016, but calling the lineup “red hot” is pushing it. Signed, everyone.
Slated to go on sale in spring 2017, the 2017 Nissan Rogue Sport will be available in six grades: S, SV, and SL in front- and all-wheel-drive guises.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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