Tommy! As a shameless car nerd that has watched or read 2-10 car reviews daily for the past 20 years, I can honestly say that you have finally come into your own my man. I've probably watched every video your dad has ever posted on this platform and I consider him one of the greats. You were right up there with him this time dude. Nice work! As for the car, I started with the typical Nissan skepticism that any car guy has these days (mostly because of the CVT and gutless engines) but as the review went on the Kick made more and more sense to me. By the end I was convinced this would be THE perfect first car for a high schooler or even someone fresh out of college looking to live frugally while they pay off their loans (assuming it passes the crash tests with flying colors). Some may argue that title should go to a Civic or a Corolla (or HRV or CHR) but have you seen what they look like lately? If I had a kid of my own I wouldn't put them through the embarrassment of driving something that awful looking. If Nissan isn't going to give up on the CVT yet, at least they're checking all the right boxes otherwise.
Great looking and very serviceable not to mention, sporty runabout for the average urban car buyer. Just note the room for 4 people comfortably and loads of cargo ( groceries/ sports gear etc. etc.) Not too bad a job Tommy,...!
Karl Robles I totally agree. My lease just came due on my '15 Juke and I looked into the Kicks as a replacement. Test drive it and anemic engine killed it for me. They called it peppy. My Juke will run circles around this. So, I bought my Juke outright. I talked to the Nissan Dealership manager, and this has happened several times he said ove the last 2 weeks. They need to offer the 1.6 turbo as an option.
Tech Pappee this is made in Mexico so that’s why it sucks but the juke was made in japan and the least a,punt of power was 188hp 1.6 liter with a turbo! So it’s nissans fault. But in Europe they still make the juke.
The nice thing about the Juke was the fact it had a 1.8l Turbo making around 180hp and could be had with awd. I think that combo needs to be an option on this car.
NA 1.6l with CVT and 125hp? Sounds like it would be a struggle to pass people doing 50mph up a mountain pass... Too slow for me. Maybe with a manual it would be alright, but of course they don't offer one.
Drum brakes and a CVT. I'd say snore but the droning from the CVT holding 5000rpm won't allow anyone to fall asleep. The drum brakes may be acceptable on the base trim, but this model was obviously a higher trim level.
Not a Nissan fan, but the "Kicks" is good looking and at those attractive price points they'll sell lots and lots of them. The lack of AWD wouldn't matter to me at all. The only thing I would do if buying Nissan is to definitely get the extended warranty.
You can get the Bigger Mitsubishi Outlander Sport with 4 wheel drive and a much longer warranty for less money. It also has a bigger and more powerful engine.
I want one. About the power, I have a Versa now and it is a very excellent Car! I want this because I love the way it looks! It will get you anywhere you want to go!
The Qashqai which is just a bit bigger (having 53cuft with seats down which is = to an Impreza) has available AWD. AWD is a $3000 option for Nissan. The 32 cuft of the Kicks is hard to fit bikes back there.
For all of the dislikes of the car, this one is cheap, gets decent mileage, can store a lot of stuff, and is probably fairly reliable. Tough to beat if you're a starving college student.
Not sure what Nissan was thinking with this car, most people will probably get a Rogue Sport (if they want the best value in the Nissan lineup). The new 2019 Altima actually looks sharp. The VC turbo engine makes me nervous since it hasn't been around that long.
Hyundai Kona will eat this thing up and shit it out... Why are manufacturers making such underpowered sub-compacts? Otherwise this thing would be pretty cool!
I hope it gets better crash tests than the Versa Note. Trims are insane. SR's are way too pricey; SV is the sweet spot but SV's are usually what Nissan pushes out on fleet deals to rental car agencies; and the entry models USUALLY leave off one or two important features - the base Versa is a real penalty box. Let's hope the base Kicks is better equipped.
Nissan has been selling this for a little over a year now in Mexico, and it is already in the top 5 sales list, it is practical but slow and not very engaging to drive, average sub compact in my opinion.
I think the only disappointing thing about the Kicks is that it has rear drum brakes. Why would you do that to a Subcompact SUV? Honestly, I would've paid a bit extra for all around disc brakes.
New Nissans are a joint company with Renault and Mitsubishi. They're just parts bin cars these days. Americans don't really know about Renault, but the influence is definitely there. Kinda like what Fiat is doing to Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep... That's what is happening to Nissan.
Sadly Nissan once made great cars like the 510, orig Sentra SE-R, 280zx, 300zx, 240's, g20's g35's. Now they are dropping turds like the versa, this outdated armadas, pathfinders, and titans for truck buyers with slightly better credit than Mitsubishi's target buyer.
Hyundai Kona is more unique looking and has a real automatic transmission If I were looking in this class the Kona seems to be a better vehicle. The juke was more polarizing but more unique. Plus you could get a manual transmission.
Great review but it’s not cohesive. Rather than jumping around start from the exterior work towards the interior. The features of the vehicle were scattered through out the video
I don't hate it. Wouldn't buy, but wouldn't turn one down at the rental counter (as long as they didn't try to overclassify and charge more than an econobox rate for it, but that's on the rental industry not Nissan).
And I was just getting used to the Juke's quirky style. The new Kona from Hyundai pretty much took that over. The Kicks should be interesting, we will see.
I’m 27. Which means that I am supposedly in the target demographic for this car. I wouldn’t touch this thing with a ten foot pole. Companies don’t have a goddamn clue about what millennials want because it’s a bunch of old fart baby boomers who think they know what millennials want coming up with the ideas. If millennials were coming up with the ideas they wouldn’t need to say it’s marketed towards millennials.
If I were in the market for this sort of thing the Suzuki Vitara would be on top of my list. What really sucks about it and makes it feel incompletev and low rent is the omission of the center console between the front seats. Like there's a gaping chasm in there separating both front occupants. This Kicks kinda helps alleviate that feeling of lack by including that one armrest. They're still ugly but I suppose it's better than nothing. Still, I really wish they did what Hyundai did with the Kona and put in a center console in there.
my sister has one, the only thing that i dont like is that, its pretty slow, like if you're gonna use it on the city is not a problem but meh, pretty disappointing engine... the interior makes for it kinda, it really has a nice interior for the money
Nissan sponsored video works great, meanwhile Scott Kilmer releases a video critical of Nissan variable compression and its having playback issues for everyone.
The speakers are only on the drivers side headrest and the arm rest is only on the drivers side. Sounds like even Nissan admits that anyone who buys this car, should get use to being alone.
Drive great no power 😂 cvt not good as much, good fuel economy thoug lowest i got is 5.2L/100KM if you want a cool and cozy ride. interior look great, SR trim with bose sound system probably the same on SV without the headrest, Anyway id recommend buying it for the price its selling at
Unlike the Juke this has had a personality by-pass !! Doesn't even look in the least off-roady ,fooling no-body. The Suzuki Vitara about the same size LOOKS like a small S.U.V. and comes with an all-wheel drive option.
Seriously what is up with crossovers and there underpowered trashed engines the lack of passing power on these is a huge turn off. I’ll keep my gas hogging FX35 till it dies.
Rain Santiago The buyers in this segment have said that they want a crossover for as cheap as possible that is fuel efficient. They don’t care if it’s slow and drives like crap.
CVT: be very wary. Will most likely soon lead to annoyance and frustration. Car and Driver review stated the car screams out for a manual transmission, which it will never have. Believe it.
luisinhoens Thanks but could not give a shit if manual is available elsewhere but not in USA. If I were considering a Kicks, I would not purchase it with a Nissan CVT, the only option in USA now, OR EVER, according to Car and Driver.
They really think millennial want only 125 hp and a cvt? Um no we don’t, well at least the millennials that like cars and want fun. Those power numbers are just going to further provoke an accident that is just not enough power in today’s world. I’ll stick to my V8 RWD Infiniti.
Why don't they make the hp at the least to be 180 and 200 ftp of torque. Stop making under powered vehicles that you have to floor it just to merge into traffic.
Great vid .... love the two tone paint scheme, a lot of bang for the buck. Juke was a good entry level vehicle, just too quirky with the motorcycle theme... gas tank styled center console, non esthetic headlight/fog light/ turn signals... The Kick is a entry level vehicle without a low tier appearance
It will be light on fuel if it ain’t going anywhere fast. Great honest review thank you
Tommy is just getting better and better with every review. Keep up the great work! :)
Tommy! As a shameless car nerd that has watched or read 2-10 car reviews daily for the past 20 years, I can honestly say that you have finally come into your own my man. I've probably watched every video your dad has ever posted on this platform and I consider him one of the greats. You were right up there with him this time dude. Nice work!
As for the car, I started with the typical Nissan skepticism that any car guy has these days (mostly because of the CVT and gutless engines) but as the review went on the Kick made more and more sense to me. By the end I was convinced this would be THE perfect first car for a high schooler or even someone fresh out of college looking to live frugally while they pay off their loans (assuming it passes the crash tests with flying colors). Some may argue that title should go to a Civic or a Corolla (or HRV or CHR) but have you seen what they look like lately? If I had a kid of my own I wouldn't put them through the embarrassment of driving something that awful looking.
If Nissan isn't going to give up on the CVT yet, at least they're checking all the right boxes otherwise.
Great looking and very serviceable not to mention, sporty runabout for the average urban car buyer. Just note the room for 4 people comfortably and loads of cargo ( groceries/ sports gear etc. etc.)
Not too bad a job Tommy,...!
You've been doing more solo reviews lately, Tommy, and I can definitely see why. You did a really good job with this.
Who designs a car by sitting on the sidewalk in Brazil, watching cars go by? XD
So Nissan is targeting the market that toyota did with scion... But waited until they are old enough to actually afford new cars!
Great Review Tommy. Sounds a lot more professional than previous videos I have seen you in.
It should have the the juke's engine the 188 hp and a 6 speed manual transmission and awd,stupid move by Nissan
Karl Robles I totally agree. My lease just came due on my '15 Juke and I looked into the Kicks as a replacement. Test drive it and anemic engine killed it for me. They called it peppy. My Juke will run circles around this. So, I bought my Juke outright. I talked to the Nissan Dealership manager, and this has happened several times he said ove the last 2 weeks. They need to offer the 1.6 turbo as an option.
That’s too expensive
Stop saying Millennial your ruining the look of the car lmao
I like it overall... not a big fan of the different color roof (are they copying the Mini or the FJ) and it definitely needs a turbo version!
I like the Kona more. More power (175hp/195tq) and AWD with locking diff. This the the Versa (budget) of sub compact CUVs.
Tech Pappee this is made in Mexico so that’s why it sucks but the juke was made in japan and the least a,punt of power was 188hp 1.6 liter with a turbo! So it’s nissans fault. But in Europe they still make the juke.
The nice thing about the Juke was the fact it had a 1.8l Turbo making around 180hp and could be had with awd. I think that combo needs to be an option on this car.
NA 1.6l with CVT and 125hp? Sounds like it would be a struggle to pass people doing 50mph up a mountain pass... Too slow for me. Maybe with a manual it would be alright, but of course they don't offer one.
Dont worry it will reach up at same speed but at 6200RPM 😂😂😂
Just bring back station wagons already
Keith Waugaman. Absolutely True!
People Are Still Complaining About The Cvt Like Nissan Hasn’t Been Using Them For Over A Decade .
Price is about right!. I'd buy it over any compact sedans!.
Drum brakes and a CVT.
I'd say snore but the droning from the CVT holding 5000rpm won't allow anyone to fall asleep.
The drum brakes may be acceptable on the base trim, but this model was obviously a higher trim level.
Well, the Active Outdoorsy Lifestyle Dude is completely right about the xB! Great review btw, just wish it didn't have a CVT.
I also share this guy's regret over not having a scion xb anymore.
Well done, Tommy!
Well done Tommy! Made me smile . No manual ? Not gonna happen
Not a Nissan fan, but the "Kicks" is good looking and at those attractive price points they'll sell lots and lots of them. The lack of AWD wouldn't matter to me at all. The only thing I would do if buying Nissan is to definitely get the extended warranty.
Saab!
Start/Stop button on the floor!
Flashback to a real car... RIP Saab 💔
Good review!
You can get the Bigger Mitsubishi Outlander Sport with 4 wheel drive and a much longer warranty for less money.
It also has a bigger and more powerful engine.
My 65 year old grandmother just got one of these last month.
I want one. About the power, I have a Versa now and it is a very excellent Car! I want this because I love the way it looks! It will get you anywhere you want to go!
It’s fun to drive and gets good gas mileage. It’s not boring like a Toyota Corrolla.
The Qashqai which is just a bit bigger (having 53cuft with seats down which is = to an Impreza) has available AWD. AWD is a $3000 option for Nissan. The 32 cuft of the Kicks is hard to fit bikes back there.
Good video Micah. Well done. Catchy music used.
And I really liked the car. Good job Nissan.
I think "Kicks" might be the stupidest car name I've ever heard
juke ?
Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross or Volkswagen Touraeg has it beat.
Nissan Cube?
Nah you can just give a kick for how unnecessary this car is 😂.
Plural?? Kicker or even Kick would have been less Too cute
Grreat review Tommy. I still like the Juke more though. Maybe if this was more of an updated Juke and not an entirely new vehicle I would like it.
For all of the dislikes of the car, this one is cheap, gets decent mileage, can store a lot of stuff, and is probably fairly reliable. Tough to beat if you're a starving college student.
The heat is very strong and defroster as well.... It’s very reasonably priced if you want a new car and save money
There is only 1 way to get this remarkable car......and that's with the 8 speaker Bose sound system.....it's terrific !!!!
Keep the XB buddy that motor from 1.5 won’t die and the 4 Speed on that is way better than the shitty CVT.
...unless he scored one with a manual which is better still.
Yeah, it’s a manual. 😎
Good review - good mileage - ugly boring small x over car. Come on Nissan why do u make your economy cars ugly?
Not sure what Nissan was thinking with this car, most people will probably get a Rogue Sport (if they want the best value in the Nissan lineup). The new 2019 Altima actually looks sharp. The VC turbo engine makes me nervous since it hasn't been around that long.
They offer the 1.6 Turbo from the Juke and all-wheel drive I'd be sold
That will probably come along pretty soon if sales are slow
Car looks good but it needs more power and not a cvt auto
Andrew King nissan has dumped god knows how much money into cvt development, it's not going away anytime soon.
Tflcar is now more infomercial than review.
The Kicks w/a manual & 1.6L Turbo w/188 HP would be a really fun car to drive. NISSAN hit the mark on Price; missed the mark on Performance.
The speakers in the headrest would be in the way if you want to remove the headrest for cargo clearance.
Hyundai Kona will eat this thing up and shit it out... Why are manufacturers making such underpowered sub-compacts? Otherwise this thing would be pretty cool!
I hope it gets better crash tests than the Versa Note.
Trims are insane. SR's are way too pricey; SV is the sweet spot but SV's are usually what Nissan pushes out on fleet deals to rental car agencies; and the entry models USUALLY leave off one or two important features - the base Versa is a real penalty box. Let's hope the base Kicks is better equipped.
The muffler is rusty already?
Robert D. I noticed that, too.
We have to understand that this car is not for the enthusiasts, but for the average people who just want a reliable but not too bland A to B car.
Should’ve come with a Stick as an option
Absolutely, thing is millennials don´t even know what a stick is...
They couldn’t handle one.
Its basically just a tall hatch back. Not a bad thing, but its market is pretty much limited to the warm states with maintained roads
Nissan has been selling this for a little over a year now in Mexico, and it is already in the top 5 sales list, it is practical but slow and not very engaging to drive, average sub compact in my opinion.
I prefer the Kia Soul. If I wanna buy the Nissan Kicks, I’ll get the top trim in red.
Price is fair and looks good.
I think the only disappointing thing about the Kicks is that it has rear drum brakes. Why would you do that to a Subcompact SUV? Honestly, I would've paid a bit extra for all around disc brakes.
its 2018 and rear drum brakes are still being used
Jimmy M Going to disk brakes are not a huge price difference, just a cheap omission imho.
It's Nissan what do you expect
u mother pancit!
If the Tacoma uses it, why wouldn't Nissan (penny counters) use it on a cheaper vehicle?
New Nissans are a joint company with Renault and Mitsubishi. They're just parts bin cars these days. Americans don't really know about Renault, but the influence is definitely there. Kinda like what Fiat is doing to Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep... That's what is happening to Nissan.
Sadly Nissan once made great cars like the 510, orig Sentra SE-R, 280zx, 300zx, 240's, g20's g35's. Now they are dropping turds like the versa, this outdated armadas, pathfinders, and titans for truck buyers with slightly better credit than Mitsubishi's target buyer.
Hyundai Kona is more unique looking and has a real automatic transmission If I were looking in this class the Kona seems to be a better vehicle. The juke was more polarizing but more unique. Plus you could get a manual transmission.
Side view is Volvoesque. At least it has real exhaust, not some fake one. Btw, that music is so 90’s,
Thanks Tommy for a great review
Great review but it’s not cohesive. Rather than jumping around start from the exterior work towards the interior. The features of the vehicle were scattered through out the video
I don't hate it. Wouldn't buy, but wouldn't turn one down at the rental counter (as long as they didn't try to overclassify and charge more than an econobox rate for it, but that's on the rental industry not Nissan).
And I was just getting used to the Juke's quirky style. The new Kona from Hyundai pretty much took that over. The Kicks should be interesting, we will see.
No manual version... which is a MUST with such an anemic engine.
I’m 27. Which means that I am supposedly in the target demographic for this car. I wouldn’t touch this thing with a ten foot pole. Companies don’t have a goddamn clue about what millennials want because it’s a bunch of old fart baby boomers who think they know what millennials want coming up with the ideas. If millennials were coming up with the ideas they wouldn’t need to say it’s marketed towards millennials.
Millennials don't know what they want either....so there ya go!
If I were in the market for this sort of thing the Suzuki Vitara would be on top of my list. What really sucks about it and makes it feel incompletev and low rent is the omission of the center console between the front seats. Like there's a gaping chasm in there separating both front occupants. This Kicks kinda helps alleviate that feeling of lack by including that one armrest. They're still ugly but I suppose it's better than nothing. Still, I really wish they did what Hyundai did with the Kona and put in a center console in there.
Another car that you will see being driven by Uber
I’d like those seats with the speakers in the headrest in my Juke
Under 3,000 lbs is pretty insane for a CUV
Cap10 Newport no its not the Juke FWD was 2800-2975. It a shame that they bailed on the Juke instead of redesigning front-end.
Love my 2022 Kicks! ❤️👍
Normally I find higher trims on cars to be stupid expensive but you can max this thing out for cheap.
Looks like another option for old people who used to drive long sedan
I actually like this. I'd get it.
I recently bought the used Nissan kicks and in no video I saw was it mentioned that the sport mode is activated with the button in the gears
Great review!
I heard nissan will come out with a new nissan juke for the 2020 model
Well I won't miss the Juke .
If you're sitting on a sidewalk in Brazil you can't afford a car your too busy watching your back.
Micah can get it, he’s super adorable
Great nissan, now can you redesign the pathfinder and frontier. And work on making all safty tech standard across the line?
Good review bro top class
my sister has one, the only thing that i dont like is that, its pretty slow, like if you're gonna use it on the city is not a problem but meh, pretty disappointing engine... the interior makes for it kinda, it really has a nice interior for the money
SR version needs the 1.6L Turbo + 6spd manual...Come on NISSAN!!!
All new? Is it identical to the one sold in Mexico like one ofr 2 years by now?
The problem it has no horsepower not the CVT
What if all cars with a USB port were Qualcom Quick Charge certified... Epic!
between the ages of 21-35 I'm 32 years old so i guess i'm almost out of the millennial age range for these cars lol
Nissan sponsored video works great, meanwhile Scott Kilmer releases a video critical of Nissan variable compression and its having playback issues for everyone.
This is not a sponsored video. they paid us the same amount they paid you to write this comment.
The speakers are only on the drivers side headrest and the arm rest is only on the drivers side. Sounds like even Nissan admits that anyone who buys this car, should get use to being alone.
I think the next gen Versa will share the same platform.
Nice enough look, but wow no drivetrain options? Old Juke drivetrain as an upgrade? Or even the new leaf drivetrain would be great.
Drive great no power 😂 cvt not good as much, good fuel economy thoug lowest i got is 5.2L/100KM if you want a cool and cozy ride. interior look great, SR trim with bose sound system probably the same on SV without the headrest, Anyway id recommend buying it for the price its selling at
Unlike the Juke this has had a personality by-pass !! Doesn't even look in the least off-roady ,fooling no-body. The Suzuki Vitara about the same size LOOKS like a small S.U.V. and comes with an all-wheel drive option.
Seriously what is up with crossovers and there underpowered trashed engines the lack of passing power on these is a huge turn off. I’ll keep my gas hogging FX35 till it dies.
Rain Santiago The buyers in this segment have said that they want a crossover for as cheap as possible that is fuel efficient. They don’t care if it’s slow and drives like crap.
Exactly.
CVT: be very wary. Will most likely soon lead to annoyance and frustration. Car and Driver review stated the car screams out for a manual transmission, which it will never have. Believe it.
luisinhoens
Thanks but could not give a shit if manual is available elsewhere but not in USA. If I were considering a Kicks, I would not purchase it with a Nissan CVT, the only option in USA now, OR EVER, according to Car and Driver.
125 hp vs 106 on the Versa Note? What are they doing, injecting nitrous on the Kicks?
They really think millennial want only 125 hp and a cvt? Um no we don’t, well at least the millennials that like cars and want fun. Those power numbers are just going to further provoke an accident that is just not enough power in today’s world. I’ll stick to my V8 RWD Infiniti.
How fast are you people driving???
No Turbo on Kick. Such a disappointment they could refresh Juke instead.
Why don't they make the hp at the least to be 180 and 200 ftp of torque. Stop making under powered vehicles that you have to floor it just to merge into traffic.
Instead of making the Nissan Kicks, they should make their transmissions better.
Great vid .... love the two tone paint scheme, a lot of bang for the buck. Juke was a good entry level vehicle, just too quirky with the motorcycle theme... gas tank styled center console, non esthetic headlight/fog light/ turn signals... The Kick is a entry level vehicle without a low tier appearance
Did they only put the bose speakers in the drivers headrest? Should of just went with a basic setup.
Please do not send him back on assignment.. bring Roman back for first looks :-)
Beach Boys preset in the radio lol