Reader Review: 2021 Nissan Rogue SV AWD

Nissan says the design of the all-new 2021 Rogue ‘reflects the spirit of the vehicle – versatile, fun, edgy, and adventurous.’ So, does it live up to that description? Calgary’s Pat English recently got behind the wheel of a ‘21 Rogue SV AWD to find out. First released as a 2008 model, the Rogue is a five door, five passenger compact crossover SUV. The second generation rolled out for 2013, and the 2021 model is the third generation Rogue.

In Nissan’s Rogue lineup, the SV is mid-range. It’s also available in base S and top of the line Platinum specification. The S and SV are offered with front wheel drive and all-wheel drive is a $2,300 option for both. On the Platinum, AWD comes standard. All Rogues are powered by a 2.5-litre inline four-cylinder engine that makes 181 horsepower and 181 lb.-ft. of torque. Power is transmitted through a continuously variable transmission with an electronic shifter. The CVT features a ‘manual’ selection function operated via paddle shifters. On FWD Rogues three drive modes include Standard, Eco and Sport. On the AWD version, two additional drive modes are offered with Off-Road and Snow.

English’s tester, the SV AWD, was finished in Boulder Grey Pearl paint for $300 extra. It also came equipped with the $2,200 premium package that adds rear heated seats, leatherette seating surfaces, rear door sunshades and a power liftgate. With delivery and other charges, but before taxes, her Rogue rang in at just under $40,000.

“I liked the look of it,” English says of her first impression. “I wasn’t a fan of the colour, but that’s pretty subjective.”

Did she find it ‘edgy’? Not particularly. In fact, English says there wasn’t a single design element she could point out that really helped set the vehicle apart from those of its competitors. Those vehicles include the Toyota RAV4, Honda CR-V, Subaru Forester, Mazda CX-5, Ford Escape and Hyundai Tucson. For its part, Nissan has given the Rogue a floating roof – essentially created by blacking out all of the window pillars. The Rogue also gained what the automaker calls an ‘evolved V-motion grille’ surrounded by uniquely shaped LED headlights.

“Inside,” English says of the Rogue, “it’s roomy without being cavernous. I really liked the floating centre console and the little compartment with a coin holder, that’s handy. There’s a rotary knob for selecting the drive mode, and that’s easy to reach. The shifter was a little odd, because it was a short box with buttons for drive, reverse and park. The reverse button is to the front, and the drive button is to the rear. To me, that’s backwards.”

English could stow her medium-sized purse in the open space under the floating console, and she though that feature was a great concept. All controls were within easy reach, she adds, and there was no difficulty setting the position of the power adjustable seat or side view mirrors. The 8-inch infotainment touchscreen “juts up out of the centre of the dash with open space behind it, and I’d prefer to see that built into the dash.” Overall fit and finish was rated as excellent, without anything feeling plasticky.

Setting off down the road, English felt the four-cylinder engine offered good acceleration and plenty of pick up. “There was enough power to do what I wanted to do,” she says. “For the most part, I just put it in drive, and I didn’t investigate the manual feature of the transmission. It felt a little sluggish in Eco drive mode, while Sport was a bit more responsive.”

English commutes from Calgary to Black Diamond for work. That’s a 110-kilometre round trip and she had plenty of time to experience the Rogue on the highway.

“Overall, I was really happy with how the Rogue handled and drove,” she says. “It was great on the highway, smooth, cornered well, and offered good acceleration and it was quiet in the cabin. In the city, it had a great turning radius and was easy to get into and out of parking spots.”

Was the Rogue ‘versatile’? English enjoys spending time visiting local estate sales and finding odd and unusual collectibles. Often, she’s hauling a diverse range of objects. While she didn’t find and load up a vintage television set or anything else large and funky, she says the Rogue would have handled anything she might have wanted to carry.

However, English says, “My one complaint about some of these compact SUVs, including my 2018 Honda CR-V, is the lack of storage cubbies to carry items such as jumper cables or a first aid kit – I couldn’t find any little cubbies in the Rogue, apart from the one the jack was in.”

She thinks the Rogue suits a wide driving audience. As a solo driver making a long commute in all weather conditions, English was pleased with the overall performance, and appreciated the all-wheel drive feature.

As for the Rogue being ‘adventurous and fun’, English says, “A family could easily use it around town or to go camping with bikes and gear. It would be easily adaptable to just about any kind of lifestyle, and I really did find it fun to drive.”

Nissan wasn’t an automaker on English’s radar prior to her experience with the Rogue.

Now, she says, “This was a bit of an eyeopener for me, and I’d put Nissan on my shopping list in the future.”

DRIVER’S JOURNAL

Really nice ride, easy and effortless, handles well and offers good acceleration. Right shoulder check is easier to make than in my Honda CR-V. Backup camera works great. Did find the driver’s seat a bit ‘huggy’ at thighs, not as skinny as I used to be. Was good and easy to park in the local farmer’s market parking lot.

Love blind spot monitoring, first time having it and it was a couple of times before I realized that was what the light was for in the side view mirror. Highway to work in Black Diamond, couldn’t get cruise control to work. It is a soft ride, in a good way, doesn’t make you work to drive it. Seat adjustment easy to reach and manoeuvre, along with side view mirrors.

Concentrating on dash and console — one of my favourite things is storage space available up front. Has a spot forward of shifter for phone, two USB ports and has two USB ports at back of console for rear passengers. Figured out cruise control; you have to have drive assist (Nissan’s ProPilot Assist) turned on for it to operate. Tried out economy drive mode; not as good acceleration as in sport but was fine.

I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I was going to.

Playing with screens. Fairly easy to navigate screens even for me, gives all the info from tire pressure, fuel economy etc. One view gives 360-degree safety view around vehicle. Found the rear hatch is automatic open and close, came in handy a couple of times.  Lots of room in back for whatever you can fill it with.

Drove to Airdrie today, and as before, it’s great on the highway. Still find the shifter a bit weird, a small box with R and D and P buttons. Oddly, reverse is forward, and drive is to the back of the box. It fits the hand nicely but when you’re looking over your shoulder to back out of your driveway it seems unnatural not to press the button to the rear of the shifter box. Parking brake is easy to use. Took a bit to figure out that pushing the vent selection more than once gave options for air flow. A/C was good.

Left the house at 5 a.m. for work commute, auto headlight a nice feature. Drove through a heavy rainfall, and the water seemed to have stopped the forward drive assist from working. A ‘not working’ warning came on and went off when the raindrops dried about 15 minutes later. Drove home on some back roads, loose gravel where it handled well.

Another day driving to work, just enjoyed the last long ride in the car before returning the Rogue. Gas mileage was comparable to the Honda. Did over 600 km of almost straight highway driving, and it was a good overall, comfortable vehicle to use. I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I was going to.