2020 Nissan Rogue

If you're looking for a consumer-friendly, affordable crossover compact SUV, the Nissan Rogue should definitely be on your shortlist. It may be less powerful and offer less in terms of tech features compared to rivals but it has great cargo capacity and fuel economy, appealing to those seeking a high-utility daily driver. The 170 horsepower 2.5-liter four-cylinder might not be the most potent, but it performs adequately enough. However, compared to more athletic rivals like the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V, the Rogue may be found wanting. And, with a starting price of $25,200, the Rogue may struggle to stay competitive versus more dynamic rivals.

The exterior aesthetic of the Rogue hasn't changed since 2017, when it last underwent a makeover. The metal V-frame grille takes up most of the front fascia, flanked by automatic halogen headlights. Fog lights are added on the SL trim, with optional LED headlights. LED daytime running lights and a rear spoiler are standard across the range, while roof rails are added from the SV up, with an optional moonroof on the SV or SL. The 17-inch wheels, or available 19-inch wheels, sit low within high wheel arches.

The Nissan Rogue is quite large for a compact crossover, with a length of 184.5 inches, a width of 72.4 inches, and a height of 66.3 to 68.5 inches depending on trim level. The 106.5-inch wheelbase is more average for the segment. The Rogue is also slightly heavier than its top competitors, with the front-wheel-drive variants starting off at 3,456 lbs, while the heaviest all-wheel-drive equipped variant carries a curb weight of 3,668 lbs.

A palette of nine body colors is available to the Nissan Rogue. Glacier White, Brilliant Silver Metallic, Gun Metallic, and Magnetic Black Pearl are applicable to the base S trim. The SV expands on choice with the addition of Midnight Pine Metallic, Caspian Blue Metallic, and three $395 premium options: Pearl White TriCoat, Monarch Orange Metallic, and Scarlet Ember Tintcoat. With stylish looks, we'd recommend opting for a vibrant paint color such as Monarch Orange or Scarlet Ember to bring out the Rogue's more extroverted nature.

Performance is not where the Rogue shines. The 170 hp engine is not overly powerful, to begin with, and when paired with the economy-biased CVT automatic, it takes a slothful 10 seconds to reach 60 mph from a standstill. This is significantly slower than sporty rivals like the Honda CR-V (8.6 seconds) and Toyota RAV4 (8.2 seconds). The SUV also tows less than competitors, with a max capacity of 1,102 lbs. Despite this limited powertrain and uncommunicative steering, the Nissan Rogue still handles quite well.

A 16-valve four-cylinder engine displacing 2.5 liters powers the Nissan SUV, with a CVT automatic directing the 170 hp and 175 lb-ft of torque to the front wheels, with optional all-wheel-drive available. The transmission offers the option of Sport or Eco modes, allowing drivers some control over outputs. However, with the limited power on hand and the relative weight and large dimensions of the vehicle, the Rogue struggles to move even under duress, meaning highway merging and passing will result in some real mouthiness from the engine.

The SUV offers enough power for daily driving around town at slower speeds, but you will more often feel like you are dragging a stubborn donkey down a flight of stairs rather than riding even the tamest of mares around an open field.

Steering on the Rogue is an extremely one-sided interaction, with the wheel silently taking inputs and giving nothing in return. Only a whisper of resistance is given at higher speeds, if only to make the driver feel like the car has any idea what it is doing. Handling is, at least, slightly better. The SUV won't roll out of your control, but don't expect to get any pleasure from getting it to behave on the road. Sadly, even the brakes inspire no confidence, as they suck up input before any reaction becomes evident. Nevertheless, they are strong enough to bring the Rogue to a halt in a segment-average 127 ft from 60 mph

The one area where the Rogue is better than just average is comfort. Comfortable seats and a soft suspension soak up most road imperfections, though consecutive larger bumps put one in mind of sitting on the floor of a bouncy castle. Luckily, the chassis recovers quite quickly. Despite the engine giving off whines of displeasure at higher speeds, the cabin remains remarkably insulated from any external noises. The Nissan Rogue won't thrill, but it probably won't actively ruin your driving experience either.

With EPA estimates of 26/33/29 mpg city/highway/combined, the SUV's gasoline-engine efficiency is around average for the segment. Opting for the all-wheel-drive will cost you a little more, as it gets a worse EPA estimates of 25/32/27 mpg. In its most-efficient setup, coupled with a 14.5-gallon tank, the Nissan Rogue gets up to 420 miles between refuels. Rivals like the Chevrolet Equinox and Honda CR-V offer slightly better mileage in their most efficient guises.

If you want to know where most of your investment is going when buying a Nissan Rogue, look no further than the interior. While performance might be lacking, style certainly isn't. But while seat comfort that is among the best in the segment, and a long list of safety features come standard, the SUV certainly seems to focus more on presentation than practicality. The infotainment is functional, but dated, with haphazard, button-centric controls. And it's a good thing that blind-spot monitoring is a standard feature, too, because visibility inside the Rogue is far from ideal.

The Nissan Rogue is capable of seating five passengers, with a total passenger capacity of 105.8 cubic feet within the cabin. Those up front get 41.6 inches of headroom and 43.3 inches of legroom, meaning even the tallest of driver's and passengers should be comfortable. Those in the back get quite a bit less space with 38.5 inches of headroom and 37.9 inches of legroom, but it should be more than enough for the kids. The driver's seat comes standard with six-way manual adjustability, with eight-way power adjustability available. This helps to alleviate the poor outward visibility, but it can't completely mitigate it. Ingress and egress are simple enough with wide-opening doors and accommodating chassis design.

While the interior seems to go out of its way to look good, one touch is all it takes to know that beauty is only skin deep. The cabin is awash with hard plastics, despite the presence of soft-touch padding here and there, and build-quality is not up to standard throughout. Charcoal cloth upholstery comes standard, with Almond available on the SV. When upgrading to leather appointed-seats on the SL, you have the choice of Charcoal or Almond color options. The dashboard and door panels are colored to match your color and fabric choices.

A segment-leading 39.3 cubic feet of trunk space is available with the rear seats upright, which increases to 70 cubic feet when the seats are folded down, enough space for 22 carry-on bags. The rear seats fold down in a 40/20/40 split, while the front passenger seat folds backward, allowing for eight-foot-long items to be stored. Only a few competitors, like the Honda CR-V, offer more total cargo space than the Rogue.

Small-item storage around the cabin is sufficient, with well-sized door pockets and a glove compartment, but trays for phones or other small items are minimal and undersized. Lowering the rear armrest to access the cupholders can result in cargo in the trunk being disrupted. The Divide-N-Hide system allows for multiple cargo area configurations and some smart storage options.

The suite of features that comes standard on the Rogue is adequate, comprising keyless entry, rear door alert, air conditioning, a six-way manual driver's seat and four-way manual passenger's seat, split-folding rear seats, and four cargo tie-down hooks. The driver-assist tech is more extensive, with cruise control, hill-start assist, automatic emergency braking, a rearview camera, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and an advanced drive-assist display being standard. Stepping up to the SV trim, a motion-activated liftgate, remote engine start with intelligent climate control, heated front seats, an eight-way power driver's seat, rear sonar, and rear automatic braking are equipped. Top-tier features include an auto-dimming rearview mirror, heated leather-wrapped steering wheel, driver's seat memory function, adaptive cruise control, ProPILOT assist, and a surround-view camera.

A seven-inch NissanConnect touchscreen display, a four-speaker sound system, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Bluetooth hands-free calling and audio streaming, AM/FM/CD playback, SiriusXM, and two USB ports are standard features on the base S trim. The Rogue SV adds two speakers to the sound system, while a nine-speaker Bose audio system is present on the SL. Other premium features include NissanConnect Services, door-to-door navigation, and SiriusXM traffic. This infotainment suite is less extensive and more outdated than most rivals', with clunky menus and generally dated graphics.

J.D. Power awarded previous models of the Nissan Rogue with a dependability score of 78 of 100, but even the 2019 version hasn't been rated yet, so it may be some time before the 2020 model receives a rating. With there being no real mechanical differences between 2018 and 2020 models, we assume this rating will remain applicable, for the most part. The SUV has been the subject of numerous user complaints, but the manufacturer has only recalled the vehicle twice in recent years: in 2018 for poorly welded seat frames, and in 2016 for faulty passenger airbags. Newly purchased Rogue's come with a 36,000-mile/36-month limited warranty, and a 60,000-mile/60-month powertrain warranty.

After evaluating the Nissan Rogue in front and side crash, as well as rollover, the NHTSA awarded the 2019 model with a mediocre four-star safety rating. With no mechanical changes made to the new 2020 Rogue, this score is likely to remain unchanged. Similarly, the IIHS gave the 2019 SUV an overall rating of Good.

A wide array of safety features are available on the Nissan Rogue, including Nissan's patented ProPILOT assist. While this, along with adaptive cruise control, and a surround-view camera are reserved for the premium SL trim, even the S comes equipped with many features standard. These basic features comprise cruise control, a rearview camera, automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, lane-keep assist, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and hill-start assist. The mid-range SV adds rear parking sonar, and rear automatic braking. All these features are directed through the advanced drive-assist display.

The Rogue is getting old now, and it has made little effort to keep up with the times. It might have received a facelift in 2017, but what it really needs is a complete overhaul to bring it more in line with the competition. While it offers an array of driver-safety features, they are dated and don't provide the level of safety the SUV promises. The underpowered 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine has been one of the car's weaknesses for quite some time now, and the rest of the powertrain has received no updates either over recent years.

At the very least, the interior looks decent, despite some less refined elements showing through the stylish facade, and cargo space is undoubtedly among the best in the class. But at a price that many better SUVs can beat, is the Rogue really worth it for the few redeeming qualities it offers?

It could be argued that the Nissan Rogue is a good car, but we believe such an argument would be specious. There are certainly much better SUVs out there, and Nissan should be focusing on redesigning this antiquated compact model before it completely loses credibility in the segment.

The Nissan Rogue is an affordable SUV, but no more so than its rivals. The S has a starting MSRP of $25,200. For just $1,420 more, you can get behind the wheel of a better-equipped SV. To get the top-of-range features, you will need to put aside $31,590 for the SL. These are the starting prices for the front-wheel-drive models; all-wheel-drive versions come in at $1,350 extra on each trim. These prices do not include tax, registration, licensing, and the $1,045 destination charge.

Three models comprise the Rogue range: S, SV, and SL. A 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine producing 170 hp and 175 lb-ft directed to the front-wheel via an automatic CVT gearbox is standard on each trim level. All-wheel-drive is available.

The S comes with basic infotainment features – a seven-inch NissanConnect touchscreen, six speakers, Android CarPlay and Android Auto, Bluetooth, and two USB ports. The driver-assist suite is more elaborate, including cruise control, automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, a rearview camera, and lane departure warning.

Two speakers, rear parking assist, rear automatic braking, remote engine start with intelligent climate control, dual-zone climate control, a motion-activated liftgate, and an eight-way power driver's seat with heated front seats are added to the SV trim. Roof rails and power heated exterior mirrors with LED turn indicators are added to the body.

The SL rounds out the Rogue's offering with an auto-dimming rearview mirror, leather-appointed seats and a four-way power passenger's seat, NissanConnect Services and navigation, a nine-speaker Bose audio system, adaptive cruise control, a surround-view camera, and ProPILOT assist. 19-inch alloy wheels and fog lights are equipped as standard with LED headlights and a moonroof available.

A number of packages are available across the Rogue range. The $800 Special Edition Package for the S upgrades the 17-inch wheels to alloys while adding power heated exterior mirrors, roof rails, rear privacy glass, heated front seats, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and shifter, and Special Edition badging. The SV offers a $1,800 Premium Package which upgrades the wheels to 18-inch alloys, and adds door-to-door navigation, SiriusXM traffic, adaptive cruise control, ProPILOT assist, a heated steering wheel, driver's seat memory, a surround-view mirror, and rear automatic braking. LED headlights and a dual-panel panoramic moonroof can be installed on the SL with the $1,820 Premium Package.

You can get most of what you need, or may want, from the Rogue without aiming for the top trim level. The SV offers almost all the driver-assist features available to the range, minus the surround-view camera, and ProPILOT assist. It has the same engine and most of the desired comfort and tech features. Sure, you miss out on leather seats, power passenger seat, and a premium audio system, but if you're considering the Rogue, then you probably want an affordable family car, and opting for the $4,970 price hike may not be the most economical choice for so few extra features.

Sporting a brand-new design for 2019 and more sporting performance figures, the Toyota RAV4 has a lot to offer. In many ways, it is very similar to the Rogue, offering a lot of standard safety features and excellent cargo capacity – although the Rogue still offers more trunk space. But the potent 203 hp engine in the RAV4 is hard to argue with, promising significantly better drivability. However, the Rogue does offer a more comprehensive infotainment suite, despite the RAV's recent redesign. If you don't mind sacrificing smartphone integration and a bit of comfort, the Toyota will offer more enjoyment on the road. But passengers may prefer the better-appointed interior of the Rogue. The Toyota will cost you around the same as the Nissan, initially, but it offers better fuel economy guaranteeing savings in the long run.

With its punchier 184-hp 2.4-liter inline-four engine and optional 190 hp turbocharged four-cylinder, the Honda CR-V delivers significantly better performance on the road, offering buyers an athletic and engaging driving experience. While the Honda does come with fewer standard features than the Nissan, it makes up for this with extra maximum cargo space, a better-built cabin, more refined handling characteristics, and almost identical fuel economy. Looking at the two SUVs objectively, it is all but impossible to choose the Rogue over the CR-V.