2022 Nissan Juke Ti review – Long-term farewell

The little white 2022 Nissan Juke Ti, with yellow number plates and an orange dashboard, has been handed back, and despite it taking a bit of time to settle into a real groove, we feel our time with the car gave us the chance to work out just where the compact SUV really belongs.

Just because the Juke is a modern and stylish high-rider with a diminutive footprint doesn’t mean it has to live in the city.

In fact, in our ‘City Mouse’ update, we actually felt that the Juke wasn’t entirely suited to the urban jungle.

Sure, the impressive list of technology, safety and assistance inclusions as well as the useable and reasonably flexible space inside the car make it a good choice for a hard-working suburban runner.

Ride quality and steering feel are good, even on the big wheels, and there is great visibility from all angles, even with the somewhat crimped rear pillar.

We would have preferred a flat load floor in the boot, but even without that the space is better than expected and the car worked well as part of the production team.

Blend that with the snappy looks, which do really grow on you, and the Juke isn’t bad at all… when it is parked.

Get things moving in low-speed city driving though, and the little Nissan hits a few speed bumps. Literally and figuratively.

In this environment, we found the dual-clutch gearbox quite ‘elastic’ to engage from a standstill, and that the car’s efficiency software would try to force low-rev changes to improve consumption rather than let the buzzy little three-pot spin up happily.

In summary, movement off the line isn’t what you’d call zippy.

Gear changes are enacted around 2000-2500rpm, which is right at the peak of the 180Nm torque band. It’s just that the car’s modest 84kW isn’t available until 5250rpm, meaning that the transmission shifts just as things start to get interesting.

Which means nothing is interesting.

You can engage a sport mode that stretches this out, or even engage manual override for the paddle shifters. Both of these help make the engine feel less anaemic, but you’re almost forced to push the car which just cranks up your fuel consumption.

The Juke’s claimed consumption for a combined cycle is 5.8L/100km, ours crept up to 7.9L/100km – even with plenty of highway driving – due to the extra loading asked of the engine around town.

Here, there’s no low-speed, short-shifting from the transmission as the car settles well at both 80- and 100km/h and even manages short bursts of acceleration if you need to overtake.

The steering that felt good around town shines even more as the Juke feels balanced and well-mannered on undulating regional roads and highways.

Like an animal freed from captivity, it is as though the wide open spaces of ‘big Australia’ give the Juke a new lease on life. A real raison d’etre if you will.

While supporting regular content production as well as Drive TV shoots, our very own Photographer Ted spent plenty of time behind the wheel of the Juke and had the following thoughts to share…

Sufficed to say I have clocked more than a handful of miles in the little Juke!

The thing that without a doubt made the biggest positive impact on me was the driving position. I’m tall (194cm), and contrary to the small car’s size, I found the seating to be really good.

The low-slung and heavily bolstered seats mixed with the steering wheel that has both tilt and telescopic adjustment meant I could feel snug and comfortable in there, even on the longest of drives.

I spent most of my time in the Juke driving long distances with it fully loaded with gear, and didn’t mind the it around town once I figured out how to smooth things out with that gearbox, but was most happy driving it on an open road that had a bit of character.

Overall, I found the Juke pretty good to be in.

Did I want more power? Yes. Did I want more space? Not really. Was the cabin any good? Absolutely. Was it surprisingly fun? Yes, it was!

Regardless of environment or role too, there are some features of the Juke that worked well.

The BOSE Surround stereo is better than many competitors, and the Apple CarPlay integration is easy to use. There’s plenty of information presented in the instrument display and the driver assistance tech is easy to use and good on a long trip.

We ended up putting some 10,000km on the 2022 Nissan Juke Ti over six months, so it worked hard. And while we got used to how to drive effectively in town, it was the dynamic capability shown in an extra-urban environment where it really shone.

As a country car then, the Juke makes quite a bit of sense.

There are over 150 Nissan dealers around Australia, so there’s good regional support, and there are plenty of buyers who need a smaller car to live with day-to-day, yet need to put good distances under the wheels on a regular basis.

In our Aesop fable analogy, Country Mouse, after spending time in the city, worked out he didn’t need the glitz and glamour of the fast-paced life that Town Mouse had introduced, and that a more managed pace, with a lot less stress, was where he preferred to live.

Perhaps not a direct metaphor for Juke, sure, but it at least reminds us that sometimes it is good to know where you fit so you can stick to what works the best.

If you live in a regional area, and need to spend a bit of time on the road,but don’t really want to drive a big car, then take a look at a Nissan Juke.