By Karl Peskett.
Some things just defy logic. Like soft-serve and French fries, strawberries and balsamic vinegar, or even apple and wasabi, there are certain combinations that shouldn’t work but actually come together perfectly.
The Nissan Juke by itself, for example, is a bit of a mixed bag. It looks like a frog on the outside, feels dated inside and drives with all the enthusiasm of a wet tea-towel. It has plenty of included equipment, though, and having a manual gearbox is a nice change in this age of auto ubiquitousness.
But hand the Juke over to the NISMO team, and things get a little interesting. NISMO (which is short for Nissan Motorsport) is Nissan’s performance division, a bit like M for BMW and AMG for Mercedes-Benz. The offshoot has a storied history of enhancing Nissan’s sportiest models, and the cynics would also argue that it makes money from a few sticker packs as well.
The Juke’s treatment is thankfully more than just cosmetic, although there’s a bit of that as well. For example, the front and rear bumpers, side skirts and roof spoiler, NISMO front grille, rear diffuser and red mirror caps all make the Juke look a little tougher than the slightly effeminate vehicle it usually is.
Also helping are the larger wheels with a good-looking spoke pattern. And while the photos we have are in white, the Juke NISMO RS looks its best in black with the red and chrome accents really setting off all the curves of the bodywork.
Inside, there’s a leather-accented shift knob, Alcantara steering wheel with red stitching and centre mark, plus NISMO suede sports seats with red stitching, as well as push button start, a NISMO tacho, branded front kick plates and floor mats.
There’s something a bit old-school about the cabin, which is because it looks like it’s come from an early 2000s vehicle, rather than something sold in 2019. Possibly it’s because there’s plenty of curves inside, echoing the car’s exterior design.
Despite being classed as an SUV (in Australia, at least), it’s nothing more than a crossover, which means it’s small, so don’t expect to fit a family of five, but for a young couple with the occasional passengers in the rear, it’s fine. Really, though, it’s how it drives that we’re interested in.
Thankfully, NISMO has fettled the engine to produce more power than the Ti-S, so while it has the same 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol, there’s 20kW and 40Nm more. Making a healthy 160kW and 280Nm, the engine has been lifted from the Renault Clio RS and been given a few tweaks. It also has a NISMO exhaust system, which can be a tad droning at highway speeds, but does help it sound a bit better than the standard setup.
While it’s listed as 7.2 seconds to 100kmh, it’s not super quick, but because there’s a bit of lag, it does feel a bit faster than that. That sounds counterintuitive but when it starts to wind up, it’s an enjoyable experience, so you end up rowing the gears and riding the power at the top end.
Also making it more involving is the short-throw manual, which couples with a progressive clutch. The shift action has a nice click into each gear, and the brakes work really well, too. But the two-edged sword is the steering.
The feel is excellent, with a true indication of exactly what is going on at the front end. But you feel something else – torque steer. In the middle of a corner, let’s say in second gear, when you put your foot down, the torque pulls the steering wheel further into the corner and you end up wrestling with the car to pull it straight again. It’s a typical consequence of being a front-wheel-drive, and even with the limited slip differential, there’s no getting around the massive torque steer. It’s a bit heavy-handed but like the gear shift, it actually feels quite involving.
When you learn to drive around it, the Juke RS becomes a fun and fast little car. Its short wheelbase and relatively wide track means it handles very well, even with the slightly taller body.
So, it looks unique, is enjoyable to drive, has motorsport pedigree and has an endearing, almost puppy-like feel to it. So, what’s the problem? The price.
At $37,790, it’s almost in hot-hatch territory. So, if it’s a quick little car you want, you’ll just new a few thousand more and you can grab a Hyundai i30N and leave the Juke RS for dead. Or you could spend a little less and get a Subaru WRX which will outhandle and out accelerate the Juke as well. Plus, there’s the surety of all-wheel-drive.
We get the idea behind the Juke NISMO RS, and it’s definitely a fun machine, but it’s about $5K too expensive to recommend as a genuine alternative to some very experienced and talented machines.
