The Nissan Juke caused a stir when it arrived in 2010 with its unconventional styling, but it really is received the hearts and minds of United kingdom consumers in droves. It was the second-very best selling Nissan following Qashqai in 2013 and is vital conquest vehicle for the brand name: eighty five% of customers are new to Nissan. 4 a long time right after it arrived, it faces a swathe of copycat rivals in what is the speediest increasing segment in Europe, so it’s been revised to keep the audio taking part in.
What is been done to Juke for 2014?
The exterior facelift has freshened up the outside the house, but stored that general character in spot. Nissan says that fashion is the greatest single issue for purchasers, and so it has resisted the temptation to mess with success.
There are new front and rear bumpers, with projector lamps for the decrease headlights, putting front and rear LEDs and that chrome ‘V’ in the grille to mimic the new Qashqai and X-Path as element of the brand’s a few-prong assault. There’s also much more colour coding, new exterior colour selections, but the in terms of seems to be, it truly is the new customisation that should engage in a robust function in keeping its 38,000-odd Uk income momentum from final year.
Inform me about the customisation
Nissan’s adopted the likes of Mini, Fiat and the Toyota Aygo below, but instead of fifty-million alternatives to make existence a misery for sellers, a al Vauxhall Adam, you will find a mere 300 alternatives for the new Juke. Outside, that sees optional color-coded alloys, doorway handles and side skirts, as effectively as coloured rings about the lower headlamps.
Inside, you may find a body-colored plastic console shrouds, air-vent surrounds and equipment lever. Purchasers can select some or all of it, and although we uncover the yellow vile, it’s a lot more tasteful in the darkish blue – but every single to their possess, which is the total point. You will find also now an optional glass roof for a more airier really feel.
Has the cabin been redesigned?
No – and it still seems garbage. It feels a tiny outdated, but largely low-cost. The materials, surfaces and layout of the instruments, for instance, all scream built to a value, and although the operation of all the switchgear is fine, it appears tacky. Visibility is excellent, but this automobile is clearly not a high quality or an extravagance: its type outside is not translated to the inside of. Consider a Skoda cabin, for instance: uninteresting, but still tasteful.
The boot was usually also modest in the Juke
Nissan has addressed this by repackaging the boot, even if the Juke is the exact same bodily entire body and platform as before. You will find now a two-phase flooring technique as well as flat-folding rear seats, and the fettling has improved boot ability impressively from 251 to 354 litres. If you want a even bigger boot, purchase a Qashqai, states Nissan.
What about engines?
The largest information is that the 117PS (115bhp) edition of the in a natural way-aspirated 1.6-litre petrol engine has been dumped: one particular of the key issues from existing Juke owners has been its relative thirst. So as an alternative, there is the 113bhp one.2-litre four-cylinder turbocharged engine that was very first launched in the Renault Megane in 2012 and is provided in identical spec in the greater Qashqai .
It is provided only with entrance-wheel drive listed here, but is loaded with tech, such as direct fuel injection and start/quit. It weighs much less than the outdated engine as well.
This is a brilliant unit: it’s responsive, free of cabin vibration and relatively really, with an correct, light-weight gearshift from the six-velocity guide. The 1.two-litre can make this crossover nimble, chuckable and fun. Its 140lb ft of torque is far more than the old 1.6-litres’ 116lb ft, and it’s achieved at 2000rpm – not 4000rpm like just before. It helps the Juke push more like a hatch, not a truck, with steering that is moderately precise and entire body roll which is predictable and not so wallowy. It feels energetic, spritely, and exciting.
Whilst it achieves the goal of considerably less higher effectiveness – its fifty one.4 mpg figure is performs the outdated 1.six-litre’s 47.1mpg – it wants revs to perform, and could do with far more reduced-down torque.
Any other mechanical modifications?
Indeed – as effectively as the new one.two-litre, the 187bhp 1.6-litre petrol has been give more torque and debuts the X-Tronic Repeatedly Variable Transmission when optioned with all-wheel drive. In overall, there are 5 engines supplied (apart from the Nismo design), with the 93bhp and 115bhp one.6-litre petrols, as well as the 108bhp diesel, all carried in excess of from the current model.
There are no chassis alterations to make the Juke far better to drive. It nonetheless has the jiggly journey – an additional frequent grievance – but our examination on smoother Portugese streets is not a distinct indicator of how it will carry out in the British isles, so we are going to hold fireplace right up until we travel it here. On international soil, it soaked up bumps reasonable but did transfer all around a tad much more than we would like son what have been reasonably easy surfaces.
Verdict
The Juke is one particular of Nissan’s accomplishment tales, and in spite of the competition, this facelift plays to its strengths – fashion and value – as nicely as strengthening its weaknesses – boot dimension and gas financial system. The customisation offerings also indicate that the new Juke won’t search like the five hundred,000 that’ve been sold given that 2010, and that new 1.2-litre motor is a pearler. It is not the most sophisticated in its class, but the Juke combines it appears, price tag and drivability like no other.
