If it ain't awd, I ain't interested.
Nismo, the factory poster child of Japanese tuning, has gotten ahold of the Juke, Nissan’s popular crossover. A crossover with a 215 horsepower turbocharged engine and a manual gearbox? We’re curious to drive it, to say the least.
We drove the 2014 model. As many of you know, the 2015 model was recently released at the Geneva Auto Show. The newer generation will feature more power, a finer suspension package and better equipment.
On paper, this has everything: turbo power, big wheels and aggressive stance. The Juke is practical, too, thanks to its five-door setup. It's close.
What torpedoes it for me? The front seats. Okay, fine, I'm not built like that Olympic swimmer who got busted for taking a few tokes. I'm me. And me don't fit in those seats. Okay, I do fit, but it's not something I want to endure when driving down the street to grab lunch.
These seats are aimed at two groups of people: track junkies and 16-year-olds. Small problem: I don't see either group buying this car. And at what is basically WRX money, is it going to steal people away from Subaru?
So, I like the idea of a track-ready Juke. Kudos to Nissan for pulling this one. I just wonder if it's more of a show car than something aimed at the general public.
OldGray320i wrote: It still looks like an ugly frog on steroids.
What did that poor ugly frog ever do to you to deserve that?
Interested in seeing raw performance data, at 2800lb and 215hp, it should at least be as fast as the new Civic Si... albeit a LOT uglier (not that I thought that was possible)
BlueInGreen44 wrote: Ugly? Maybe, but I think it looks cool. Call it "polarizing."
Well, in that case, I am about as far down toward the negative pole as it is possible to be.
If they made it so it could outrun a GT-R at the track.....I still wouldn't be the least bit interested in a Juke. I see a Juke RS in traffic every few days on my commute. There is no angle in which it looks good, even in the "R" trim. (IMO). Looks like someone just took an ugly juke, lowered it, and busted out their black and red paint.
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