I can honestly say that I've driven/ridden in a few other cars with CVTs and the performance/function was definitely underwhelming. Probably the absolute worst modern car was the Fiesta a family member. Believe it must've had the tranny that so many complain about as the dealership was pretty much begging her to trade it in on something else. The shifting/feel was horrendous. I've been driving for 35 yrs and have gone from old school automatics, to 4/5 speed manuals, modern automatics in quite a few cars to my current/likely last car, the Nismo Juke w/CVT. Never really knew much about CVTs and started reading about them after buying the Juke. Of course lots of complaints about the function/longevity, but I have nothing but praise for mine as it's the total opposite of most of what I've read. Maybe Nissan got it just right with that car/drivetrain. At the dealership that night they did have a 6 speed manual Nismo, but it is/was available only in FWD. If you want AWD, which I did, it had to be a CVT due to the torque vectoring. I've also read that the AWD has a much better rear suspension than FWD only models, which of course is a good thing as well. Just hit the 74K mile point, had a CVT fluid exchange done and expect it to last indefinitely as far as I can say now. Also had front/rear differentials/brake fluids done while there.
Nissan Kicks SUV long distance rental
- Thread starter Cujet
- Start date
33 mpg in a little SUV is pretty good though for being driven that hard. The market for these is 45+ women who need a cheap taller vehicle, and decent mileage. I'll bet half of them won't even know its FWD instead of AWD. As long as its not obnoxiously noisy, the actual rpms or CVT habits don't matter to most buyers.
Seems like the Kicks is basically the CUV version of the Versa?
Hard to believe Nissan updated the 2020 Versa when so few buy sedans these days.
Hard to believe Nissan updated the 2020 Versa when so few buy sedans these days.
We have a 2013 Juke Nismo FWD 6 speed. Has been a great car. 114k miles today. Good power for the size. The Kicks was a horrible replacement
I don't think we can call that an SUV. Its a poorly designed hatchback at best.
I like the lack of shift shock of the CVT, but the buzzing on the highway and the lack of reliability are deal breakers.
wemay
Site Donor 2023
Because the vast majority of drivers prioritize other things over acceleration.
True, I used to want a powerful boom boom sports car...then I grew up and realized I can only do 30mph on the street and 50mph on the highway legally haha. Now I care about a car being economical and reliable, and having cheap replacement parts.
The 2020 Nissan Versa was so bad that Consumer Reports autos issue said that instead of buying a new Versa, you should buy a much better used car instead for the same money. Think about that. They are coming right out and telling people not to buy a Versa.
I understand wanting other things such as tech and high fuel economy, but I am not willing to trade for an anemic engine. I’m not talking sports car here, just enough to easily get up to speed without stressing the drivetrain.
