The fourth-generation Nissan X-Trail, otherwise known as the Rogue in the United States, was recently subjected to the infamous moose test in Europe. The evasive maneuver that has left deep marks on the egos of multiple vehicles over the years has revealed the understeer-y nature of the mid-size crossover.
In the first attempt, the 2023 Nissan X-Trail understeered a lot, but despite this tendency, the driver said that it felt fairly stable and easy to control. Having gotten used to it, the folks at Km77 then set out to see what it is capable of in between the cones, and the highest entry speed at which it was capable of staying away from them was 74 kph (46 mph), with a lot of intervention from the ESC.
That’s a normal result for a vehicle in this class, the Spanish YouTube channel noted, but a fail, nonetheless. You see, in order for a car to pass the moose test under their terms, it has to perform the maneuver at an entry speed of at least 77 kph (48 mph), and the X-Trail failed to do that. Therefore, it failed the test too. In the slalom, it did 25.5 seconds, which was identical to the Nissan Ariya, and faster than the Range Rover Sport. The Polestar 2 still holds the crown here, with 22.8 seconds.
As for the model put to the test by the road-cone connoisseurs, it was the e-Power Hybrid, which uses a 1.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine acting as a generator for the motor at the back. The all-wheel drive variant has 213 ps (210 hp/157 kW) combined available on tap, and this allows it to hit 100 kph (62 mph) in 7 seconds. The sprint time is dealt with one second quicker compared to the front-wheel drive version, which is less powerful at 201 hp (204 ps/150 kW). As for the wheels and tires, the tested X-Trail had 20-inch alloys, shod in 255/45 Michelin CrossClimate 2 rubber.
In our market, the Rogue is in the 2023 model year, and it comes in the S, SV, Midnight Edition, SL, and Platinum trim levels. For the entry-level variant, you are looking at a minimum of $27,360, before destination, whereas the top-of-the-line grade kicks off at $38,640. A 1.5-liter DOHC engine with twelve valves sits under the hood, pumping out 201 horsepower. Working in conjunction with an Xtronic CVT, the three-cylinder gasoline turbocharged unit delivers 225 lb-ft (305 Nm) of torque to the front wheels. The all-wheel drive is an extra that is going to set you back another $1,500.
Its smaller sibling, the Rogue Sport, aka Europe’s Qashqai, was phased off in December stateside, but for now, it is still listed on the U.S. website, with a $24,960 MSRP.
After a series of unfortunate events put an end to Cristian's dream of entering a custom built & tuned old-school Dacia into a rally competition, he moved on to drive press cars and write for a living. He's worked for several automotive online journals and now he's back at autoevolution after his first tour in the mid-2000s. Full profile
Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?
Google News