Displaying items by tag: Nissan Kicks

Thursday, 21 January 2021 05:20

2021 Nissan Kicks Review: Same Value, More Friendly

 

Still cheap, still cheerful, the 2021 Nissan Kicks keeps its tech current while adding some customizable flair.

Versus the competition: With its solid combination of safety equipment, multimedia tech, versatile interior space and value pricing, the Kicks holds its own against competitors like the Hyundai Venue, Kia Soul and other front-wheel-drive-only tiny SUVs. That lack of all-wheel drive keeps it from being fully competitive against models like the Ford EcoSport, Hyundai Kona and Honda HR-V.

The cheap and cheerful end of the SUV showroom is getting a lot of attention from automakers as buyers continue to eschew subcompact hatchbacks and sedans in favor of the slightly larger, slightly taller SUV-style models. Tall crossovers like the Nissan Kicks, Hyundai Venue and Honda HR-V are replacing the Nissan Versa, Hyundai Accent and Honda Fit in the eyes of consumers as the more desirable entry-level models. They’re more expensive than their sedan counterparts, but that hasn’t stopped buyers from making them their choice. In order to keep the Nissan Kicks competitive in the wake of a growing field of competitors, the brand has released a slightly refreshed version for 2021 with some subtle changes inside and out that it hopes will keep the diminutive runabout fresh.

Looks a Little Sharper
Nissan has done a good job updating the look of the Kicks to more closely fit in with the rest of the redone Nissan showroom, all of which is getting a redo as part of the global Nissan Next product update plan. There’s a new grille, headlights, foglights, bumper and trim up front, and revised taillights and trim out back. The look is a very slight change, but it does modernize the Kicks a bit more, and it helps to draw the eye to a wider look even though the car’s track measurements haven’t changed at all. There are also some new wheels available, which are themselves customizable.

2020 Nissan Kicks Specs & Reviews Find a 2020 Nissan Kicks Near You
Nissan is introducing a new program that will allow Kicks buyers to personalize their rides through the Kicks Color Studio, which will offer more than a dozen colored elements — including wheel caps and inserts, mirrors, interior vents and more — that can be mixed and matched in ways to suit the buyer’s tastes. We haven’t yet seen what might be accomplished through use of the Color Studio, but the car itself does benefit from all of the styling changes that have been made. It sports the now-ubiquitous, optional, two-tone floating roof treatment that nearly all SUVs seem to have adopted, but its edgy styling does differentiate it from more generic boxes like the Hyundai Venue and Ford EcoSport. The difference between the 2020 and 2021 model Kicks is subtle, and you’d likely have to park one next to the other to spot the changes, but the new aesthetic is more attractive than the outgoing one.

Hope You Aren’t in a Hurry
Powering the Kicks is a dinky 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine making 122 horsepower and 114 pounds-feet of torque. If that doesn’t sound like a whole lot of grunt, that’s because it’s not. It’s mated to a continuously variable automatic transmission that actually does a decent job of keeping the engine in its limited power band, giving the Kicks the descriptor of “adequately powered, but only just.” Let’s put it this way: In a stoplight drag race between a new Kicks and new 121-hp Hyundai Venue, neither would win. If you want more power, you’ll have to look to a Kia Soul, Honda HR-V or a turbocharged Jeep Renegade. But the lack of any sort of sportiness or alacrity to the drivetrain is OK, as the steering and handling aren’t tuned for entertainment purposes, either. The Kicks rides quite nicely, absorbing bumps and road imperfections with impressive damping, but it’s also a bit floaty, leaning more than you might expect in corners or on highway on-ramps. The steering is highly boosted and not blessed with a quick ratio, but again, this isn’t a ding against the Kicks, as the SUV is basically designed to do one thing well: be cheap, reliable, useful urban transportation.

The benefit of seemingly being powered by a band of lethargic gerbils is fuel economy that tops the list of competitors: 31/36/33 mpg city/highway/combined, unchanged from the 2020 model year. You won’t achieve those levels if you drive it with a heavy foot, but if you’re using the Kicks as it’s intended to be used, these numbers should be achievable. Part of the reason they’re achievable is that the Kicks is available only with front-wheel drive, similar to vehicles like the Hyundai Venue and Kia Soul, and unlike the Honda HR-V, Ford EcoSport and Jeep Renegade that offer optional all-wheel drive.

This really is intended as a city car, one you’d buy if you have limited parking space, fight narrow streets filled with delivery trucks all the time, or need a basic conveyance to get you and friends or cargo around town easily. In that role, the Kicks excels — lower-speed stop-and-go traffic is where it truly feels most at home, with excellent outward visibility, surprisingly good sound insulation and an upright, high-sitting driving position that makes you feel like you’re piloting something other than a dinky little subcompact SUV. It’s not that the Kicks can’t handle the highway — it does so rather well, with a surprising amount of steady high-speed calmness for such a small vehicle. It’s just that the compact dimensions, clever packaging and ease of use lends itself to tighter urban environments instead of America’s wide interstates.

New Tech, Nicer Inside
The interior gets a little love from Nissan in this refresh, as well, but just like the outside, changes are minimal and designed to further improve the experience, not dramatically change it. First and foremost is the new optional 8-inch touchscreen; a 7-inch screen (2020’s only offering) is still standard. The new 8-inch model feels big in this compact interior, and all versions now feature standard Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, another thing that used to be optional. The rest of the interior looks largely the same, with Nissan insisting there are new materials, new vents, new trim and new covering material for the dash and doors. A new center console armrest replaces the previous driver-seat-mounted armrest, but it’s still too small and too low to be of any use for actually resting your arm.

The interior isn’t overly spacious, but it doesn’t feel cramped. The seats sit high but are oddly firm and not terribly comfortable for longer missions. Backseat room is adequate, with decent room for two to sit without their knees pressed against the front seatbacks. It doesn’t feel like it has the bountiful legroom of a Nissan Versa or Sentra, but it’ll do for getting friends to dinner across town or younger kids to soccer practice. The cargo area is surprisingly large, with a deep well and a surprising reach from the liftgate to the rear seatbacks that make for more room back there for luggage or boxes than you might expect to find. Of course, those seatbacks fold to increase the cargo area, but they don’t fold flat; they remain raised above the level of the cargo floor, so the surface isn’t totally flat for larger items.

Research the Nissan Kicks
The cabin is competitive with others in the class thanks to the updated multimedia system, the option of up to four USB ports (two type A, two type C), and its acceptable level of space and utility. The Honda HR-V still feels like it has a more cavernous cargo area, especially with its trick folding backseat stowed, and the Hyundai Venue’s interior feels a bit more upscale, with a multimedia system that simply seems better designed and a level of standard safety systems that hasn’t yet been beaten. But the Kicks feels like an easily viable alternative to any of them, with its subtle improvements keeping it in the hunt for those first-time buyers seeking something new and relatively affordable with all the latest tech, a solid level of standard safety equipment and a value equation that definitely works in its favor. It’s a decidedly competitive entry to the burgeoning field of entry-level vehicles and should be on anyone’s consideration list when shopping for one.

Full pricing for the 2021 Kicks was not yet available at the time of publication, but overall pricing is not expected to be appreciably different from the outgoing 2020 model given its starting price of $20,595 (including destination), a modest $430 increase.

Source: cars.com

Published in Nissan

Small but welcome updates keep the nearly new Kicks SUV fresh and competitive.

If I'm entirely honest, the Nissan Kicks didn't have the makings of a hit when it was first announced for the U.S. market. Adapted from elsewhere in the world and a bit behind Nissan's own styling curve, it appeared to be a quick and dirty move to get something, anything in a suddenly hot segment. Driving it, though, revealed its charm. What it lacked in specs it made up in value and practicality. It surprised with a carefully chosen but impressive list of standard features and a genuinely enjoyable driving experience. Even so, Nissan has kept on top of updates, culminating in this smartly refreshed 2021 Nissan Kicks.

The biggest fix is right up front, where Nissan has given it a nose job. Although the Kicks has always had a fun, funky vibe going on, the old car's puckered face always made it look like it had already been on Nissan lots for years. Pumping up the grille and upgrading the headlights (all the way up to full LED units on the SR trim we drove) have gone a long way toward making the Kicks look like a new car rather than a retread. The rear end didn't need as much help but got it anyway for a net gain.

The most important work, though, was done inside. It sounds like a small thing, but a new center console is worth talking about here. Few things remind you of how cheap a car is as not having a center armrest for the front passengers. Nissan has fixed that with a full-length center console featuring an enclosed bin for your things, an armrest, and big cupholders. Deleting the old-fashioned handbrake made it all possible, and you get a modern electric parking brake as a bonus. Unfortunately, you do have to pay for it because you can only get it on the SV and SR trims. The base Kicks S keeps the old setup.

Hovering above all that is an updated infotainment system. Seven inches is standard, but it now provides Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionality free of charge. The optional upgrade unit grows to 8.0 inches and now includes a Wi-Fi hot spot and over-the-air software update capability.

You have to look a little harder for the other big get. The Kicks has always had the hardware needed for adaptive cruise control but didn't offer the feature until now. Add it to the shockingly long list of active and passive electronic driver aids, which already got a big upgrade for the 2020 model year and most of which is standard on all models.

The new splashes of accent colors on the seats and doors are more visible. It's a small thing, but on a car with fun two-tone paint options, the black-on-black interior needed more pizazz, and it didn't take much to dress things up. The Kicks already felt like a screaming deal at $25,000 fully loaded (before dress-up accessories), and the '21 updates only make it feel like you're getting more for your money.

That feeling doesn't extend to the mechanical bits, but they were already doing a fine job. With only 122 horsepower and 114 lb-ft of torque and no substantial weight added, the Kicks drives exactly the same as it always has. Here again, there's nothing special on the spec chart, but Nissan does a lot with a little. Its simple suspension works quite well at providing a comfortable ride and chipper handling. It still has a bit of body roll, and the steering still feels disconnected, but somehow it's fun to swing around a corner when you get the chance.

Similarly, the continuously variable transmission is tuned well to make it feel like the little engine is really trying. It's still among the slowest new cars on the road— it needs more than 10 seconds to get up to 60 mph—but its eager demeanor makes it feel quicker than it is. Meanwhile, it continues to get excellent fuel economy at 36 mpg on the highway.

It can get noisy getting up to speed and then cruising on the freeway, so I again have to recommend the SR Premium package if you can swing it. The Bose Personal Plus stereo included in the package delivers better sound quality than some luxury cars I've driven. It's an easy recommendation when the whole package, which gets you nice faux-leather seats, a security system, a cargo cover, and heated steering wheel and front seats, only rang in at $1,000 last year. Now, though, it includes the NissanConnect services, a WiFi hotspot, and over-the-air software update capability, so don't be surprised if the package price goes up.

Although Nissan hasn't released complete pricing yet, we do know the starting price has gone up by $430 to $20,595. That's still an incredible deal, though it's worth remembering the base model didn't get any upgrades. We're still waiting to find out how Nissan will price the SV and SR models with the new goodies. Even if those prices do go up a bit, the Kicks will likely top out in the neighborhood of $27,000, and that still could be a killer deal, especially now that there's even more to back it up.

I've always maintained the Nissan Kicks' greatest quality is its honesty. It's an inexpensive car that doesn't try to trick you into thinking it's something it's not. The good features aren't all reserved exclusively for the top trims or buried in dozens of add-on packages. Everything is straightforward and a solid value. It's a car that knows what features you actually want and delivers them with unpretentious style.

Source: motortrend.com

Published in Nissan
Monday, 28 October 2019 05:40

2020 Nissan Kicks

The company did not make a mistake when Juke crossover merged with Kicks. The American market is eagerly waiting for the new model to be found in sales. The designers took care that he came with minor cosmetic changes, both in terms of packages of both equipment. 2020 Nissan Kicks is one of the most efficient small SUVs on the market, will work on its engine, drive, electrification and will surely maintain the level of the most efficient model. His competition can certainly be the Toyota C-HR, Mazda CX-3 and Honda HR-V, Hyundai Kona and Kia Niro, Jeep Renegade and Chevi Trak, which can certainly not be ignored on the market.

Engine choice for new Kicks


2020 Nissan Kicks comes to a market with a 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine. Connected to a CVT transmission that sends power to the front wheels. The four-wheel drive is not available for Kicks, but next season we expect this. Nissan Kicks will return to 33 miles in the gallery in combination with FVD, and the AVD will make 32 million gallons, most likely. The capacity of the wolf 2020 Nissan Kicks will be around 1,100 pounds, which is enough for a small trailer.

2020 Nissan Kicks Interior


Technology is what will surely enrich this model and surely overshadow you. 2020 Nissan Kicks comes with several features based on the Pro Pilot project. This model will get a new system that should improve the current characteristics and raise it to a higher level. For now, front sensors can lead to reduced speed and stop if Nissan is too close to the vehicle in front. Also, there will be sensors that will stop cars on traffic lights, and speed will not be controlled only by front sensors but also by radars around a small SUV. it also carries superior navigation with the Bose Auto System, Support, Seven-inch Touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto for SV trim, save yourself to be charmed.

2020 Nissan Kicks Exterior


The company opted for bigger wheels replacing 16 inches. Also new modern details will appear, such as orange swords and the rear spoiler, and of course, expect modifications that will leave you breathless.

2020 Nissan Kicks Price


The new model will keep the current price starting at $ 19,000. This is the best SUV price you will have the opportunity to find. Also, upgrades to the SV level of equipment will surely raise the price for $ 2,000, $ 500 for the SR version. The price will surely jump, but be sure that the investment is good and that this is the cheapest model in the subcompact crossover class that you can find.

Published in Nissan

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