Hey there..test drive a Hyundai 2007 Santa Fe today. I was very impressed with the ride and options. I was told that it should get over 20 mpg.The Santa Fe was very loaded with dual ac controls, sunroof, leather seats and plenty of cargo room. The V6 was nice, ride was smooth. So now I have the Rogue and the Santa Fe on top of my list.

Cool, let us know which one you go for, and how you like the Rogue when you get to test drive it.

My local dealership is one of 3 in SW PA that received a preview Rogue for one day. This Rogue traveled from Charlotte to our area to be part of a car display at an outdoor music venue in the near future.

My dealer, who has been working with me to find exactly what I wanted, gave me a “Heads Up” yesterday that it was arriving and I could drive it too.

It was a silver SL AWD with the Premium Package, but no leather. When I pulled into the dealership, to my surprise, it was in plain view. A first glance I thought it was a Murano, but a second confirmed that it was too small; Honey, I shrunk the Murano!! A quick walk around revealed an insect covered front end that doesn't make for great 1st impressions. I was eyeing the notorious rear window with that pillar that has raised so many concerns. From the outside it did not seem so ominous.

Soon a salesman appeared with the Intelligent Key. Without further ado, I climbed into the driver’s seat and manually adjusted it for comfort. I’m 5’11’ and is was a snap to get positioned for comfort. No sun roof left me with many inches above, so even with, no problem. There was a full view of the hood, really appreciated since I have been driving an 04 Max for the last 3.5 years. I fully adjusted those mirrors for I was fearful of that blind spot.

Leaving the lot and on to a winding 2 lane that climbed most of the way to an intersection showed me immediately that “I was not in Kansas anymore.” The Max would have never hesitated, but the 4 cyl. with that CVT began to labor just a little. I downshifted with the paddles and it helped. This is what will be the hardest to get used to, for this gas-sipper has consequences in power. The steering was very responsive and did not wander. The braking was predictable and very Nissan. And that blind spot, well the side window that I always use for my peeking, was covered with sheets of information. Really! I had to look thru not a window, but a small crack on the window. Still got by. When I returned to the lot, I backed in between a Mercedes and Titan, no problem. Not parallel.

Anyways, crawling around afterward, I was most interested in the cargo area. I found it to be all that I needed and with seats down, very generous for my needs. Sitting in the back seat gave me all the room I could have wanted. Nice. I never thought that I was looking at a high-end vehicle. It was very Altima like in its appearance, not Maxima or Murano like. I wish this one would have had the Leather Package, for that should have increased the richness level , I hope.

Nice review!

I'm still so interested in hearing about the CVT and the "manual shifting".

Western PA is quite hilly, but not mountainous. So even casual driving can be of a hilly nature. Previously I stated that when doing some curves while climbing, it began to labor and I downshifted with the paddles. But lack of familiarity caused confusion. Only later when I tried again did I notice a key element in this type of driving maneuver: the "gear" is listed on the center display. I only looked there after I tried a change a second time. My Max allows manual mode and it will show the gear selection on the dash, so after my second paddle change I looked there to see if it too did that.

As far as the actual "feel" is concerned: it did not seem like a rear gear change. It was more subtle. The car did not respond with any lurching. To be honest with all of you, I thougt I had done something wrong for I was expecting more.

But the second time I tried, I was not in curves and traffic. Now I could give more attention to what was happening. I did feel more this time, visually read the new "gear speed" and then after revving it through shifted out to a higher gear. It is something that I believe will not dominate my driving for but used judiciously can be worth while.

Were you able to find out what it's towing capacity is ?

The SL is rated @ 1500 but there are a lot of *'s involved. Read towing specs here.http://www.nissannews.com/niss...s.pdf

In my personal opinion, this car is not for towing anything but a U-Haul with some furniture from one part of the city to another. There is a lot of stress on a vehicle while towing (I used to tow different size trailers and even 5th wheels with trucks. It can get hot and ugly.)

originalstarlite wrote:The SL is rated @ 1500 but there are a lot of *'s involved. Read towing specs here.http://www.nissannews.com/niss...s.pdf

In my personal opinion, this car is not for towing anything but a U-Haul with some furniture from one part of the city to another. There is a lot of stress on a vehicle while towing (I used to tow different size trailers and even 5th wheels with trucks. It can get hot and ugly.)

Many thanks for the reply, I am dissapointed in this low capacity.Is this due to the CVT ?I was hoping for at least 2000-2500 lbs !

1500 lbs is exactly what I expected. It's the norm for small chassis unibody SUV's.

There are many factors that go into the towing capacity. Engine is one of them. Chassis and wheelbase is another. Cooling capacity is a big one that most people don't think about. You've got to have heavier duty radiator, fan coupler, and alternator.. and those items are costly and would put the Rogue out of it's desired price range.

But your question about the CVT is one that i'm curious about as well. How much power can it handle? How long would it last in a high stress environment. The fact that they have it mated to the VQ35 in the Maxima, Murano, etc.. makes me feel pretty good about it. Obviously they feel comfortable with it handling 275+ hp.

Edmunds talks about problems with rear visibility due to the high beltline. How bad is it? I won't buy a car that has a rear window that I cannot see from. Please advise.

I'm moderating at another site and will not be posting here.

Took a test drive in San Diego. probably the first one done in the county. I waited for the car to come off the inspection line in service and took a White SL AWD on the road. I didn't take it on the freeway... as I knew I wouldn't have questions about a cruising speed of 70.... I took it up a hill and accelerated with and without paddle shifters. paddle shifting takes some getting used to. fun in that it gives you some control. but no comparison to driving a stick.

I felt the ride was smooth. a small punch for a 4-banger. The cars i've driven in its size class haven't really been in its size class... but bigger (and more expensive)... namely bmw x3 and mercedes 500 series. I like the rogue's size. it doesn't really feel like you're looking down on everyone. it's compact enough to feel like you're actually driving a smaller vehicle, yet large enough to really pack in some gear. Love the soft touch of the interior. I felt plenty of space, but i'm relatively small (5'7+). I took the seats all the way back and then sat in the back. comfy enough for a day trip... cross country would be a little tougher with 4 or 5 unless you're talking children or people my height-ish. 6'0"+ people would probably feel a little cramped in the back for longer trips. Acceleration seems decent. cockpit was less impressive than pictures. probably much "sexier" at night. Rearview isn't as bad as I had thought it would be. I really commend the prior post about how to properly adjust side view mirrors. you WILL need to trust them a little more in this car.

once they get my ideal color patterns, i'm in. but I really want to not pay full msrp.... so if anyone gets a deal..... tell us what you got it for! I hear it's going to be tough considering the newness of the auto and the apparent demand.

btw... I thought I would probably get the black interior with red. but it might be a little to clashy for me. the black on black is not boring at all.... looks pretty good!

enjoy the ride....

-t

Today I got a call from a dealer that they received a 1st model of the rogue. I decided to test drive. Everybody were saying about the tiny small rear window and they're right. You can not see much throw it also I found that CVT trany does not really respond the way like new ALTIMA respond. Otherwise the car looks really good and very comfortable to drive. The paddle shifters are useless since they're not working responsibly enough. The audio is very good but it goes in premium package. That really dissapoints me that you can not order the car with the options you want but you can order the whole pakage of useless toys

Drove the first and only rogue in denver. Seemed all right just cruising but when you punch the accelerator the engine gets a little loud and the response was weird. Not much acceleration.Curious how a hill climb and paddle shifters affect things. waiting for one in a more pleasing color than black and hopefully a hill test.

After a long wait, I finally got to drive the Rogue yesterday. I absolutely loved it! It was honestly the first car I have looked at that I didn't walk away from disliking something. With the RAV4 I disliked the interior driver space (felt cramped), in the Edge the brakes are awful, in the Highlander the steering is so loose you cannot feel the road and the CRV didn't seem to have enough power. I unfortunately have to wait until next month to purchase as I am waiting on a sale commission check, but I am definately going to buy a Rogue. I was temped to impulse buy, but it wasn't a color I want and it didn't help the dealer inflated the price to about $2000 over MSRP as it is the only Rogue that will be in my state until next month. I didn't even try to negotiate because I need to wait on that check!

My test drive was great! The Rogue has more power than I expected from a 2.5L and it handled curves very well. I was also impressed by the brakes and the steering! The seats are comfortable and there is plenty of interior room. The back seat will fit two adults comfortably, even more so than in my husband's 06 Pathfinder. My husband, who thinks I should buy at least a V6, even thought it has adequate power. He really liked the paddle shifters, but I probably will never use them. The Bose stereo sounded great and I liked the layout of the console. I also agree with other posters that the Rogue looked much better in person than in the numerous pictures I have seen.

I just test drove a new Rogue SL awd today and the power inpressed me much more zip then i thought it would have,the dealer here did not inflate the price it was $27500 fully loaded,i'm probably going back tomorrow to take another test drive when its dry outside.

PLEASE PLEASE let us know how it goes....

I also test drove the Rogue in Lexington KY (blue SL AWD with grey cloth interior) on Saturday and loved it. Everything about the drive felt just right - and I am really impressed at everything they put into it for the price. I put a deposit down, so I have second pick when the rest of them come in (although I am sure the person who beat me to it will also want the black SL AWD with leather, so I may have to wait a while).

They kept trying to get me to buy the one they had, telling me they could change it to leather and put in a sunroof. I didnt go over pricing with them, so I cant say if they jacked it up or not - but I wont be paying over MSRP for it - I will wait them out if they try it.

This will be my first car purchase ever - I just finished professional school in May and still driving what my parents gave me to get through college (99 Sable). Think the Rogue will be a good pick for a first car???

I think it is an excellent pick for a first car. I have had mine for a week now and I love it more and more every time I drive it. The interior feels like a luxury vehicle. Fully loaded, the car is still over $1000 cheaper than the CRV and so much better. The CRV interior seems cheap, it has far less power, and it looks more like a mini van than an suv. The rogue is sharp inside and out, drives, well, and is fuel-efficient.

Also, Heroes on NBC premieres tonight and I heard they are starting their marketing push for the rogue tonight. I heard every character has their own Rogue that matches their personality and they will have offers to win them on the show. Check it out.

Harvey, this will also be my first new car! I am excited, but I don't wan't to pay over MSRP. I am finishing up school right now...Ph.D. here I come!!!

My husband actually bought his Pathfinder in Richmond because they offered a better deal. I might just wait until they get one in and give them the business!!!

They tried to get me to put a deposit down, but they couldn't guarentee me what would be coming in, so I decided to take my chances and find one later! I decided I did not want the blue though. It is nice, but I am afraid I would get tired of it. My current car from the early college years is silver and it is the one thing I like about it! I think I want the silver or the dark silver!

I'm going from a 4WD V6 to an AWD Rogue and it's the only "mini suv / crossover" that I've driven that has enough power to satisfy me. I go snowboarding every winter, so AWD is a MUST.

I loved everything about the test drive and the CVT is heaven. Such a smooth ride. The interior is very 'user friendly' and the heated leather seats are awesome. I ordered one last week. Should be here in another week or three and I'm going crazy resenting my car waiting for it.

I test drove the 4cyl Rav4 and it did not have ANY power. I felt very vulnerable getting on the freeway with it. The CRV seemed slow to me as well. The grand vitara did OK but I didn't take it on the freeway.