A truly interesting one is the Intelligent Key System. It’s hard to see its point beyond being different. From the driver’s point of view, it has all the features of a traditional key-in ignition, including a slot for the key, except it doesn’t actually have one. The advantage of effective push-button start and keyless access is that you don’t have to fumble around for keys. Since your hands are usually full of coffees, bags or babies, it’s advantageous to simply pull the door open, get in, press the start button and go. In the case of the Intelligent Key System, you still have to click the fob to unlock the car –nothing unique at this price range – but, once inside, you also still must grab the ignition knob between your index finger and thumb and twist it with your foot on the brake to start up. Only the unit’s truncated because no key was inserted in the slot. Strange and interesting, but not necessarily advantageous.
  2013 Nissan Rogue S AWD. Click image to enlarge |
If you like the look of SUVs, you’ll probably like this one best with its angular spacecraft accents. It looks faster from the outside. Indeed, ‘roguish’ is a good word to describe the look of the Nissan Rogue. (Insert Sarah Palin joke here.)
On the inside it’s only changed marginally from last year, including a few more metallic accents. The black cloth seats and black plastics in the interior attract dirt and salt in the winter. Unless you’re fussily neat, consider upgrading to leather seats.
Which leads us back to the price, with a quick detour to review the warranty. Nissan’s ‘Satisfaction Advantage’ entails: three years or 60,000 km of bumper-to-bumper warranty; five years or 100,000 km warranty for the power train; three years of roadside assistance and travel-planning services; five-year warranty for any corrosion perforation, which would be easy to justify with this tester’s three-coat paint option.
It’s all baked into that price. Which, as is mentioned above and displayed below, barely but definitely cracks the $30,000 barrier.
Pricing: 2013 Nissan Rogue S AWD
Base price (S AWD): $26,778
Options: Special Edition – $1,400 (16-inch aluminum allow wheels, power moonroof, front fog lights, privacy glass, intelligent key system, tonneau cover, mood lighting, Special Edition badging); 3-coat paint – $300
Freight: $1,750
A/C tax: $100
Price as tested: $30,228
Competitors:
Ford Escape
Honda CR-V
Hyundai Tucson
Kia Sportage
Mazda CX-5
Mitsubishi Outlander
Toyota RAV4
Crash test ratings:
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
