Description

If I see one more SUV with sharp, upswept rear-quarter windows, I'll know it's time to start applying for jobs in automakers' design departments, seeing as they obviously can't come up with anything better. The Rogue is yet another victim of this hackneyed design, but surprisingly the generic profile glass doesn't lead to significant blind spots here like it does in some competitors. Besides the bland styling in the car's profile, the Rogue does stand out as a thoroughly Nissan product. The front end resembles the larger Murano SUV, which helps the Rogue's "Nissan-ness," but the rear definitely stands out on its own and falls decidedly on the attractive end of the design scale. Large, 17-inch wheels on the SL add to the athletic stance, as does the Rogue's low height compared to its competition. That height doesn't cut into headroom, but the design inside creates a cockpit feel that's more akin to a sports car than the airy feel of an SUV. That's intentional, and when driving a black-leather-equipped Rogue SL, I definitely had flashbacks to a recent drive in the sportier Altima coupe.