The 2012 Nissan Juke: Jack of all Trades... Or Master of None?

It looks like a frog… at least, as like a frog as a car possibly can. Then again, is it even a car? These are the questions that popped into my head upon first sighting Nissan’s new Juke… and I’m here to tell you that after fourteen driving-intensive days spent piloting its frog-like countenance around Vancouver, I feel no better prepared to answer that question.

Because somewhere between that unique styling, decent ground clearance, and pretty damn good all-wheel drive system is what I can only describe as a compact crossover utility vehicle. The over-the-top styling seems right at home on the same dealership floor as the similarly extreme cube, but trades the cube’s jellybean cuteness for sweeping curves, winking headlights, and what may possibly be the most dynamic silhouette ever produced. From every angle, the Juke’s appearance is simply unrelenting; there’s not a lazy moment to be found. Each individual panel and piece doesn’t secede one square inch of space to sloth, and the result is something that is, love it or hate it, one of the most interesting looking vehicles to have come out in quite some time. That said, if you told me that each individual panel and piece had been penned in a complete and utter design vacuum, with no thought to the overall vehicle’s design, I could believe it. The turn signals bubble up above the hoodline (and actually remain plainly in view from behind the wheel), the headlights have the subtlety of a Baja 1000 buggy’s lighting setup, and the join between the car’s pinched rear end and its bubbly bumper has the fluidity of a granite slab. But, for all its quirks (and there are plenty), I actually think it looks pretty good. In a sea of quasi sports utility vehicles and shapeless blobs, it’s nice to finally see something that’s unmistakably different.

But although the styling may be unmistakably  in your face, there’s one thing that might come as a surprise: the Juke’s size. Take a long look at the photos and you might think it’s destined to slot in between the Rogue and Murano… and you’d be wrong. With a wheelbase that’s smaller than a Kia Soul’s and an overall length that’s less than that of Suzuki’s SX4 hatchback, this thing is decidedly subcompact. But even after two weeks, its size continued to come as a surprise. Spend any amount of time in its spacious cabin, and you quickly forget you’re driving something that can compete for tiny parking spaces with the likes of Honda Fits and Toyota Yarii, as the Juke’s upright cabin and commanding seating positions give it an expansive cabin that feels larger on the inside than it really has any right to. Ingress and egress is subsequently vastly easier than you’d suspect, and I often found myself marveling at the thing’s amazing ability to grow and shrink as required; feeling large and well-planted on the highway but nimble and concise around urban areas and parking lots. Honestly, nearly every time I stepped out of the Juke I found myself reminded of its small size in the most pleasantly jarring ways; from how much room its small size leaves between it and the car next to it in parking lots to how near the ground was when it came time to step out.

Although perhaps these repeated epiphanies were simply the result of the Juke’s equally amazing ability to wipe your mind completely and utterly clean while underway. I won’t bore you with the inner workings of its wonderful 1.6L, direct-injected and turbocharged engine paired with a great little all-wheel drive system, but I will say that it’s downright delightful to drive. The suspension ignores the current trend to make a modern vehicle ride like a buckboard in an attempt to make it feel sportier, and the Juke benefits as a result. Although there is a bit of body roll, it almost feels as if it helps the all-wheel drive system do its job even better; weighting up the outside tires on those long, sweeping highway curves. Try as I might, no amount of abrupt maneuvering could convince the Juke to put a foot wrong, and even the most aggressive of pedal mashing behavior was sloughed off as the car’s various electronic systems modulated fuel, air, spark, and grip to proffer up maximum traction, and thus, maximum velocity. It’s small size and short wheelbase help it feel quicker than it probably is, and it certainly gives off a significantly more go-kart like feel than it does that of a proper sports car… but that’s not a complaint... quite the opposite, in fact. In a world filled with severe penalties for wayward behavior, it’s much better to have a vehicle that’s entertaining at 80 or 90 than a sports car that’s only waking up at 120.

And even more important than that (at least for most Canadians) is a vehicle that works well at 5-50 kilometres per hour. Thanks to its upright nature and truck-ish seating position, the driver’s sight lines are quite good in nearly every direction. That makes it much more comfortable to drive in heavy traffic and next to commercial trucks as you never feel as if you’re one glancing blow away from becoming road pizza; as you do in some other cars of this size. Also, the ability to use the car’s interesting Integrated Control to tailor the car’s driving style and responsiveness to the situation is a feature previously unheard of in this class. Stab the I-Con button and the and display and switches that normally control the HVAC system transform into buttons labeled sport, normal, and econ. I was somewhat suspect of the system, largely due to the mind-bending reality that such a system could be found in a vehicle that starts at just under $20K, but was surprised to find how dramatic a difference each mode made. In sport, the turbo and cvt transmission both seem more eager to get in the fight, with passing maneuvers and quick acceleration both dispatched substantially faster than you get in normal. Conversely, keeping the car in econ smoothes out the throttle modulation and seems to both reduce the engines eagerness and increases the transmission’s propensity to maintain lower engine speeds. It’s quite useful and does allow a driver to take this already flexible vehicle and make it all the more capable of handling whatever pavement-pounding task it’s asked.

But for all its on-road performance, I can’t shake the feeling that I’d barely scratched the surface of Juke ownership. Exceptionally good Juke’s real strength lies in its all-encompassing character. Although I was woefully road-bound during my testing period, not a day went by that I didn’t pray for snow, as I’m fairly certain the Juke would make a better winter toy than any Magic Carpet I ever rode. Likewise, I’d have loved to have gotten it onto any number of the local backroads. Sure, the CVT transmission and lack of proper transfer case means it’s never going to venture too far off the beaten path, and Nissan certainly isn’t marketing it as your next off-road vehicle, but I have a feeling it’s a real pleasure on the average forestry road. But this isn’t a formula we’re unfamiliar with. There’s been a veritable deluge of vehicles that have attempted to bend the lines that separate car and SUV lately, but none that attempt to do it on this scale. Sure, people are happy to hop into their Ford Edge or Nissan Murano, content that it’s carlike composure and SUV-like size promises the best of both worlds, but to hop into a subcompact with a turbocharged performance, all-wheel drive, and plenty of ground clearance, and you might end up with a product that most people simply can’t grasp; just ask the folks at Isuzu how it worked out with their equally strange looking, but equally compelling Vehicross. People expect to find a compromise when they see something this small claiming to be capable of doing big things, and although many cars have struggled to make that argument in the past, I’m pretty secure in the knowledge that the Juke might just be the one to finally convince the masses. Because as far as I’m concerned, the little Nissan Juke isn’t just a jack of all trades; it’s a master of them.