I've been in the market for a while and test drove everything under the sun. I had to replace my '95 Nissan Maxima that I had since new. Loved the Maxima but was showing it's age and being a manual transmission, it wasn't practical in bumper-bumper traffic.

I had tested EVERY 4 door sedan in the 20-30K range and liked just about all of them. I had never owned American yet and was ready to try out the new Malibu, but quickly gave that up when I visited our Chevy dealer. By far the worst people to deal with. Totally inept at their job and had terrible inventory. I still think that Malibu is great value for the money and should do Chevy well.

In the last few weeks, I had started seriously considering a small and efficient SUV since it would actually fit our needs much more than a sedan. I test drove a new Honda CR-V last month and was not impressed. Interior was too minivan like and motor felt sluggish. The Toyota was not considered since the interior seems to be dated and not to my liking. The Rogue seemed to offer great value and technology that I was looking for (Bluetooth, HIDs).

Over Thanksgiving, my only other vehicle sprung a coolant leak. Got it into the dealer this last Friday and had their shuttle drop me off at the Nissan dealer so that I could finally test out the new Rogue. The driver thought that was funny dropping me off at Nissan. BTW, I made sure that the Nissan salesman heard me say to the driver that I'll call for a pickup so they knew I wasn't trapped there.

They only had one SL AWD rogue with the premium package and thankfully the one of the two colors I liked. Took it for a nice test drive and came back to dealer to ask them to make me a killer deal.

Sticker was $27,100. I offered $26,000 OTD. They nearly fell over and I said thank you very much and started to walk. A few more rounds we agreed on $27,100 OTD. Not too bad, but figure I could have done about a thousand better with some more work. Oh well. I'm happy and that's what counts. I do have to say, the experience was the easiest I've ever delt with when buying a new car. From the time we walked onto the lot to the time we drove off was 3 1/2 hours.

So far, here are my likes/dislikes.

Pro: HID lights, bluetooth, cargo management, cloth seats seemed very durable, huge center compartment, interior lighting is great, XM and Bose stereo are very nice.

Cons: Paddle shifters are a joke and will get zero use. Not sure why all the manufactures think everyone wants these, especially on low performance vehicles. I know just about every manufacture uses some cheap plastic, but it would have been nice if they used just a little more quality on the shifter. The thing really feels Fisher Price like. Kinda dumb that you have to have full leather interior to get a leather wrapped steering wheel. Many manufactures let you keep cloth interior and have leather steering wheels.

Overall, after two days, I love this car and I'm sure it will serve us well.

Welcome to the club Most of the cars I saw did not offer leather steering wheels without leather interior. They usually hold back small stuff like that for some reason. Same thing with the heated seats and mirrors, climate control, and in the case of the Canadian models, you can't even get bluetooth or an upgraded BOSE system without leather, which is another reason I bought a US model. A non-leather steering wheel I can handle

On the subject of the paddle shifters, I personally love them. I thought I would use them much more since I used to drive stick, but I'm actually so impressed with the CVT engine that I find I rarely need it. I usually only use it when I need quick acceleration, as a quick depression of the gas pedal takes about a second to kick in without first downshifting with the paddle.

Welcome aboard...

I must say that the Rogue is growing on me and I think it will be a good platform for some mods in the future as well.

Well, out here in the south west US, the leather steering wheels are not as hot to the touch as non leather steering wheels. My Maxima had cloth interior and leather steering wheel. That's about the only reason I'd like to have leather steering wheel.

I have noticed that some manufactures offer heated seats now with cloth interiors. Very few, but I think the Mitsubishi Outlander has them.

That really sucks that there is such a difference with US and Canadian models.

Hi there, am in the market for a new car, and have been doing research when I found this website. Had it narrowed down to the Rav4 and the Rogue, but I must say, after reading all these great testimonials, I'm almost sold. I"m hoping once I take my test drive in the Rogue, I too will be a Rogue-a-teer! This will be my first time on my own to purchase a car, so I'm a bit intimidated with the process. I'm also from So Cal, and the best quote Ive rcvd so far is 300 above the invoice price. The Rogue I want MSRP's @ 27,600 & invoices @ 25,439, so once I add tax & destination charges, Im already @ 28,000. So I guess my question is, if I can get an OTD price of what the car's MSRP is--?I'm Haggling a good deal? Any tips on the "price agreement process" would be greatly appreciated from anyone. Also, any advice on adding on a warranty, maintenance or an alarm @ the dealer as opposed to doing it after? Thnxs so much, I really love this site!

gypsylien wrote:Hi there, am in the market for a new car, and have been doing research when I found this website. Had it narrowed down to the Rav4 and the Rogue, but I must say, after reading all these great testimonials, I'm almost sold. I"m hoping once I take my test drive in the Rogue, I too will be a Rogue-a-teer! This will be my first time on my own to purchase a car, so I'm a bit intimidated with the process. I'm also from So Cal, and the best quote Ive rcvd so far is 300 above the invoice price. The Rogue I want MSRP's @ 27,600 & invoices @ 25,439, so once I add tax & destination charges, Im already @ 28,000. So I guess my question is, if I can get an OTD price of what the car's MSRP is--?I'm Haggling a good deal? Any tips on the "price agreement process" would be greatly appreciated from anyone. Also, any advice on adding on a warranty, maintenance or an alarm @ the dealer as opposed to doing it after? Thnxs so much, I really love this site!

I test drove the RAV4 and the Rogue and it was no contest. My mother actually purchased a RAV4 the same time I purchased my Rogue. She regrets getting the RAV4 now because the Rogue is just so much better. The interior is a LOT nicer, and it has all of the bells and whistles. Also for tall people such as myself, there is MUCH more room in the Rogue in the driver's seat.

RAV4 advantage is the V6 engine. If you plan on towing anything, or carrying lots of cargo around, it might be worth it. I went with the Rogue because 99% of the time I'm commuting on my own, and its the odd weekend project or time when I need to bring the dog and cargo to the cottage when I need the room. Although I haven't tested the Rogue under lots of cargo, perhaps it will do just fine

As for pricing, there are a few sticky price threads in the forum where you can find information. If you've found a dealer willing to give you a Rogue for $300 over invoice, take it before someone else does 99% of the dealers I talked to wouldn't give me $300 under MSRP!

The RAV is a great vehicle, no doubt. It's just the Rogue fit me better since I didn't see the need for the V6 and I liked the interior of the Rogue better. The HID or Xenon lights were a big seller for me since I rode in a car with one a while back and saw the benefits. The smart key system is super nice too.

As far as pricing, I agree that you won't get any killer deals right now. Maybe after the first of the year, but the dealers are having a tough time keeping them in stock right now which means, no deals to be had. I got my SL AWD with everything but leather and paid $27,100 OTD. I upgraded my warranty to 100,000 miles or 5 years since I put the miles on out here where I'm at. Basically, read what everyone else has wrote about the prices they paid and start with the low pricing there. I offered the dealer $26,000 OTD when they originally wanted $30,000 OTD. We met half-way at $27,100 OTD. Not too bad in my opinion, but understand it's just hit the market. Besides mine, I have yet to see one on the road around here.

On the way home today I was approaching a very nice looking SUV on the road. I was very intrigued by it, and it took me a few moments to realize that it was another Rogue! It had dealer plates on it and someone was taking it for a test drive. I'm not sure if that counts as my first sighting

Sure is a nice looking car though

Thanks for the info, it does help. Your right about not seeing any on the road out here. Kinda strange, since there's not many in the dealerships either. The salesman had a tough time finding the color I want in stock anwhere here in Cali (iridium graphite in grey leather)May have to factory order one, downside is I'd have to wait 6weeks for it. I do my test drive tomorrow--lets see if it holds up to all the great testimonials!!

Do let us know how your test drive goes.

I found one more small dislike. I think they should have made the trip computer display either bigger or located it on a small eyebrow on the dash. Having to reach through the steering wheel to access the different displays/settings is kind of awkward. This morning was the first time I noticed the ICY warning. Why do they even bother if you can barely read it. Small dislike but feel they could have done a little better in that design.

I'm still loving this ride though.