Thursday, January 10, 2019

Just for Kicks, check out this crossover SUV

A menu of Mark Glover’s AutoGlo car reviews can be seen on the Business page of The Sacramento Bee’s website  www.sacbee.com/news/business/article4005306.html

Sacramento, California -- Leave it to Nissan to let you get your kicks with something new, saucy, affordable and loaded with youthful appeal.

This time it's the Nissan Kicks, an all-new crossover SUV that made its debut as a 2018 model.  My tester was the Kicks SR model with the Premium Package.  And while that's the top-end version among the trim levels, the bottom line was a most reasonable $22,630.

My Kicks tester was sporty looking, accented by a sharp-looking "Gun Metallic" exterior paint job topped by a "Monarch Orange" roof.  The sporty feel was continued inside the cabin with orange stitching throughout.  Interior comfort was fine, and it was surprisingly roomy for a crossover SUV.

I was surprised by the extensive list of perks, given the bargain price.  My ride included heated outside mirrors, a blind spot-warning feature, rear cross-traffic alert, LED lights, a superior Bose audio system and heated front seats.  I might expect to see a bottom line of $30,000 on a similarly appointed motor vehicle.

Also surprising was the pop delivered by the Kicks on the move.  The 1.6-liter, four-cylinder engine puts out a max 125 horsepower, but my ride felt much stronger than that, whether it was zipping down a freeway on-ramp or dusting off a surface street slowpoke.  The Kicks motored uphill nicely but did produce a fair amount of noise at full song.

Some fellow auto reviewers have criticized the Kicks for calling itself an SUV and offering no all-wheel drive system.  Frankly, this didn't trouble my mind during my test runs.  And some of those same reviewers praised the Kicks for its performance in off-road tests.  For the record, the continuously variable transmission on my front-drive Kicks functioned flawlessly.

Given all this, the Kicks stacks up as a near-perfect ride for a young family that might otherwise assume it can't afford a sport-utility vehicle.  Likewise, it's a good choice for suburbanites who need a trustworthy multi-tasker that also functions as a comfortable ride on long road trips.

I give it a solid A-minus grade for a new-to-market ride in an ultra-competitive segment.

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