A Week With: 2022 Nissan Kicks SR CVT

With the costs of recent car climbing and old style incentives disappearing, the seek for an reasonably priced car costing lower than $30,000 can appear daunting. 

Enter the 2022 Nissan Kicks, a subcompact crossover car with seating for 4 — or 5 in a pinch — that’s about half the worth of the everyday new car offered within the U.S.  

Overview

The Nissan Kicks is small, versatile and completely able to performing the essential on a regular basis features akin to commuting, working errands or going out for the night or for the weekend. It additionally has ample energy and the type of options, akin to a heated steering wheel and heated seats, motorists need and discover on costlier autos. 

The Kicks is small in comparison with the bigger autos standard with American patrons at present, however with Nissan “Security Sense 360” as an possibility, everybody can really feel like they’re getting huge car security at small car costs. 

It’s outfitted with security options, together with options akin to blind spot detection, ahead collision warning, rear cross-traffic alert and rear computerized braking and high-beam help in a package deal, costing lower than $25,000.

Exterior

The outside design of the 2022 Nissan Kicks isn’t one of many autos robust factors. The outside is formed by the trouble to squeeze out as a lot inside area as doable from a comparatively small engineering package deal. The consequence? Unbalanced proportions. 

The Kicks form winds up emphasizing the car’s width and top, that are by no means actually any car’s finest measurement. Nonetheless Nissan’s stylists have tried to decorate up the Kicks with a neatly designed grille and entrance fascia and grille. In addition they have gussied up the car’s lighting fixtures, that are fairly up to date, as are the 17-inch wheels and the rear elevate gate. Designers additionally painted the roof rails black. One other plus of the design of the rear liftgate is that it’s comparatively simple to deal with, which is nice as a result of an influence liftgate isn’t an possibility.

Inside

For a comparatively cheap car, the cabin of the 2022 Nissan Kicks is stunning effectively furnished. The seats are comfy, the steering wheel is wrapped in leather-based and the middle console is completed with a flourish and vivid accents. 

The controls within the heart stack are a mix of knobs and a contact display screen, whereas the instrument cluster consists of each an analog and digital pace studying in addition to a tachometer on the model I drove. The cabin is comparatively spacious with ample head room and a very good quantity of shoulder room, contemplating it’s constructed on what is actually a subcompact platform. 

As well as, the visibility from the driving force’s seat is superb and the atmosphere by way of the inside throughout an evening drive isn’t distracting. Within the rear, the Kicks has loads of room below the hatch for groceries and different packages if the second-row seats are occupied. 

Powertrain

The 2022 Nissan Kicks is powered by a 1.6-liter 4-cylinder, multi-valve engine with twin overhead cams matched to a constantly variable transmission to assist increase the car’s general gasoline economic system. The mixture produces 122 horsepower and 114 pound-feet of torque. The Kicks additionally has an built-in dynamic management module to assist management the chassis. The Environmental Safety Company charges the 2022 Nissan Kicks’ mixed gasoline economic system at 33 miles per gallon, together with 31 mpg within the metropolis and 36 mpg on the freeway. 

Security and Know-how

The protection tools on the Kicks consists of driver and passenger twin stage supplemental airbags for defense in frontal crashes in addition to facet curtain airbag for defense in rollover crashes. The car can also be outfitted with computerized emergency braking and pedestrian detection, rear computerized braking, blind spot warning, rear cross-traffic alert, lane departure warning and excessive beam help in addition to clever encompass view monitor. It additionally has an 8-inch coloration touchscreen, satellite tv for pc radio connection, Nissan Join with Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and a Bose Sound system plus 4 USB ports. 

Driving Impressions

Whereas the CVT appears to slide a gear going up uphill, the 2022 Nissan Kicks general delivered efficiency good due to its favorable energy to weight ratio. The 1.6-liter engine delivers solely 122 hp, nevertheless it weighs lower than 2,700 kilos so the engine has greater than sufficient punch. The Kicks suspension is nice on assorted surfaces, and it is extremely simple to maneuver into and out of tight parking areas with its very small turning radius, which turns out to be useful in city driving, the place the car appears fairly at dwelling. 

2022 Nissan Kicks SR CVT specs

Wrap Up

With the worth of gasoline climbing previous $4 per gallon, subcompact crossovers such because the Nissan Kicks grow to be extra enticing by the day. If you’re prepared to surrender a bit on the efficiency facet, the Kicks affords and a powerful array of security, connectivity and comfort options in a small package deal that match simply into city and suburban areas. The general price ticket is effectively inside attain of a broad cross part of patrons, who’re excited about spending much less on transportation to reduce the impression of inflation on their private budgets. 

2022 Nissan Kicks SR CVT ­— Continuously Requested Questions

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