Boy is this thing improved over the first gen! This mid-trim hits the sweet spot with content, has a really good 6-spk stereo with profound bass, a Costco-worthy trunk and a bunch of neat design touches that places it closer to Renault than Nissan. It's not a canyon carver by far, but ride/handling is pleasant and the 2.0 does a better job than the 1.6 did.
Interesting IP, with proper buttons and a soft, padded fabric "shelf".
See plenty of these in our area. I don't mind the styling and the interior has a nice look. Hopefully it does well for Nissan, they really need a strong seller.
Finished the week at 9.1 l/100 km, shaming the Honda HR-V !
I mean, it better be improved given the price increase... I remember being on the launch for the original Kicks back in '17 or '18 and it started in the $17,995 range!
Reviews coming out finally after the major website revamp: https://www.autohebdo.net/editorial/essai-routier/nissan/kicks/nissan-kicks-sv-awd-2026-essai-routier/ (https://www.autohebdo.net/editorial/essai-routier/nissan/kicks/nissan-kicks-sv-awd-2026-essai-routier/)
(https://cms-assets.autoscout24.com/uaddx06iwzdz/3hXozLzFDRqhJ17Pnx9mpL/828de275ee36eb5b1f7d30772fcf1849/2026_Nissan_Kicks_-_TD_-_DB_-_260106_-_6.jpg?fm=webp&w=1100)
I had a base model one of these for a week in Vancouver.
The ride was pleasant enough and it had a decent amount of room for its small footprint. I didn't get it on the highway, but it seemed reasonably quiet and refined.
The two issues I had were a super aggressive throttle tip in and the infotainment was initially a pain to connect to my phone.
But overall it was a generic blob of a car, not unlike the Kona I've rented earlier.
A lady down the street has one of these, its not that old, the CVT noise it makes is horrible. This thing isn't bad looking but, that Nissan CVT yo.