We’re now living in the hybrid age. Part gas-powered, part-electrified, the tech pioneered by the likes of the Toyota Prius and Honda Insight is now so sorted and ubiquitous that the number of offerings across the board is wicked strong. Add in sky-high gas prices, and it should be no surprise that demand is through the roof. After years of inaction, Nissan seems to have picked a fortuitous time to put a hybrid system back in its most popular crossover. This is the new 2027 Nissan Rogue Hybrid, and you can expect it to be everywhere soon.
Under the hood sits a 1.5-liter turbocharged inline-three that’s not the troublesome variable compression ratio unit used in the outgoing Rogue. Officially called the ZR15DDT, this engine features a static 13:1 compression ratio, a relatively low redline of 5,200 RPM, and a modest output of 148 horsepower and 171 lb.-ft. of torque. That might sound underwhelming, but the Rogue Hybrid’s engine isn’t connected to the wheels whatsoever. Instead, it simply acts as a generator to charge up a little 1.67 kWh battery pack and send juice to a much more powerful duo of electric motors. Between the front motor and the rear motor, the Rogue Hybrid actually kicks out 225 combined horsepower while offering all-wheel-drive and the shift-free smoothness you’d normally expect from an electric car. Or a diesel-electric locomotive.
That’s right, there’s no conventional transmission at all, just a single fixed gear ratio at each axle. In one fell swoop, Nissan’s eliminated all known Achilles’ heels that have troubled prior Rogues while boosting fuel economy immensely. The preliminary estimate stands at 38 combined MPG, about four MPG shy of an all-wheel-drive Toyota RAV4 but a seven-MPG improvement over the outgoing all-wheel-drive Rogue. Oh, and this isn’t a plug-in hybrid either, which should make the ownership experience much easier for people who can’t charge at home. Nissan calls this arrangement e-Power and it’s already proven itself for more than a decade overseas.
Using electric motors for propulsion has let Nissan give the new Rogue Hybrid a neat trick. You know how most EVs offer a one-pedal drive mode with strong enough regenerative braking to come to a complete stop simply by letting off the accelerator? This can do it too. Speaking of regenerative braking, because electrified vehicles blend regen with the power of the actual brakes, Nissan’s been able to use already necessary hardware to give the Rogue a chauffeur stop function that eases up on braking pressure at the last moment before a stop, with the goal of minimizing that rocking motion you get in certain Ubers.
So beyond the hybrid system, what’s the new Rogue all about? It seems the answer is toys, starting with big screens. A 12.3-inch touchscreen and size-matched digital gauge cluster are standard, while dual 14.3-inch screens are optional. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto come standard across the range, but the big screens get native Google Maps (nice) and Google Gemini (not-so-nice). The top-spec Platinum model gets a 10-speaker Bose sound system, magnetic Qi2 wireless phone charging joins the party, and that big infotainment screen’s the perfect display for a big camera suite. In addition to your bird’s-eye view and invisible-hood off-road mode, there’s a wide-angle front camera for those tough left turns, and more surround view angles to see curbs and stuff from.
While we’re on the subject of tech, the advanced driver assistance systems in the Rogue Hybrid promise big upgrades with a new forward radar unit and a wider front camera assist, plus new software, offering measurable improvement. There’s an extra option for following distance, a promise of quicker low-speed acceleration reducing the chance of people cutting in front during traffic jams, and a claim of increased detection range resulting in smoother changes in speed. Higher trims also get hands-free traffic jam assistance and automatic lane changes on controlled-access freeways.
However, perhaps more important than the stuff that’s in the screens is the stuff that isn’t. That’s right, as more automakers keep shoving more functions into their screens, Nissan’s decided to go with buttons and switches for pretty much everything you’d want. Buttons for heated and ventilated seats, a button for the heated steering wheel, a button for bringing up the parking cameras, and buttons, switches, and even a scroll wheel for stuff like climate control, drive mode selection, activating one-pedal driving, and changing the volume on the stereo. Sure, the panels these buttons are set into look a little basic, but usability is sexy. This truly is the way, and everyone else ought to take note.
By now, you’re probably wondering what all this costs. The 2027 Nissan Rogue Hybrid starts at $37,065 including freight, or $42,845 in Canada. That’s competitive with all-wheel-drive hybrid offerings from Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai, but this cheapest SV trim won’t be the first one in showrooms. That will be the SR with the Technology Package, which adds most of the toys we’ve talked about and costs $43,065 including freight. Canada gets the SR trim first, which costs $50,845 in loonies, and you can expect the Rogue Hybrid to go on sale this autumn no matter which side of the border you live on. It may have taken ages for Nissan to bring its homegrown hybrid system across the ocean, but given where gas prices are at, it almost feels like it’s on time. Now there’s just one thing left to do: Put tire to tarmac and see what the new Rogue’s like in the real world.
Top graphic image: Nissan
a 1.5-liter turbocharged inline-three
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a static 13:1 compression ratio, a relatively low redline of 5,200 RPM, and a modest output of 148 horsepower and 171 lb.-ft. of torque.
Does this engine use a Miller cycle?
Reading elsewhere that it’s Atkinson
Will someone look outside and check or airborne Sus Scrofa Domesticus?
Cuz Nissan has finally made a car I would actually consider buying in this segment.
What are the pros of going with the series hybrid setup? It seems like the con is 4 MPG worse than the benchmark.
Still excited for this vehicle, I’ve been rooting for Nissan to come out of the CVT-era strong, and this might be the ticket.
It’s an EV that you don’t have to plug in ever and only charges through its gas engine generator. (Relatively) Poor gas mileage likely comes down to giving North America MOAR POWAR in a hefty (two ton!) compact SUV spinning all four wheels.
Nissan could have sent us the Note e-Power it debuted in Japan 10 years ago but was prolly rightfully justified in thinking we wouldn’t buy enough of them to merit the certifications, marketing, and import costs.
Dang, these climate control buttons look so bizarre with how unabashedly square they are! Gotta love the function > style thinking here. And no glossy plastic on the central console! Now just replace push-button drive selector with a Renault-sourced column stalk and you’re golden.
Never got a chance to drive the previous Rogue (or X-Trail as Nissan calls it on this side of the pond) but when I sat in one I couldn’t really find anything to complain about. Seemed like a perfectly agreeable family car, albeit too large for my tastes. No idea about the mechanical bits underneath but I’ve been seeing them on the streets every now and then.
Would be nice to see Nissan rebuild its position in Europe even a little and this seems like a car that might do it. If they price it well and don’t drag their feet bringing it over here like they did with the last generation, that is.
The question on everyone’s mind is… does JATCO make the drivetrain?
This is a really good effort by Nissan. It looks great.
With the engine only producing ~150hp and the motors 225hp, how does that work in high power demand situations?
I’m assuming the battery depletes to give the full 225, but what happens when that runs out?
It’s probably a super low occurring situation (you will usually only need the 225 briefly), but I’m curious how the car responds to flooring it for a long time, or asking for full power out of every bend on a twisty road.
The same way it works on other hybrids, once the battery reaches a min SOC you’ll only have a portion of the ICE’s output as the system will use some of that power to get the SOC back at the target.
If you floor it for a very long time you’ll probably end up hitting the top speed limiter before you run out of power. But lets say you drive up a steep mountain while towing something heavy with a headwind (to keep the speed down): you’ll eventually run out of battery energy and you’ll be left with ~150hp sustained minus transmission losses, assuming the generator motor is rated for 150hp/112kW.
Asking for full power out of every bend on a twisty road won’t really be a problem because you’ll presumably brake before each bend and refill the battery via regenerative braking.
Math says ~1-2 minute of flooring it (assuming it aims for something like 50-90% charge) . Which is definitely way more than enough to get up to highway speeds, and 150HP is plenty for any non-towing sustained needs.
Looks like the past tow capacity’s 1500lbs, so if they keep that there might be some small fiberglass trailers that would be a problem up steep climbs.
High-altitude climbs could be an issue as well, since the gap between electric and ICE will get larger and accelerate the discharge rate during the climb. So, possibly more like 100HP total available at the top. Which is probably still enough as long as the driver’s not planning on doing a lot of passing.
Part of me is really impressed. It sounds cool. Nissan has come a long way.
The more practical side of me sees a company with Nissan’s reputation putting out an AWD hybrid CUV with appreciably worse fuel economy and a higher starting price than a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid AWD ($34,895 for the LE with AWD).
Granted, the higher price of the Nissan gets you more features, but IMO Nissan is in a position where they need to be undercutting Toyota, not giving you more for the same money. That’s a move for the company Nissan hopes to be in a decade.
There really isn’t a way around the fact that a series system is more expensive, heavier and has higher losses than a power-split device, leading to a higher price and lower fuel economy.
Yes, but unlike the Rav4 Hybrid, you will probably have a much easier time finding these on dealer lots. And knowing how Nissan’s dealer model works, there’s probably some discounts to be had as well. It isn’t a bad strategy, and this is being released at precisely the right time.
I’ll admit I hadn’t looked at Rogue pricing ever since they saved the cheerleader back in the day. They’re more expensive than I expected.
Nissan is commended for giving us buttons but they should’ve stopped with the buttons when they reached the center console and given us a shift knob instead.
Bob: Hey! Did they finally fix the CVT problem in the Rouge?
Mike: Yep. Finally.
Bob: Cool! How did they do it?
Mike: They got rid of the transmission completely.
Bob: Wut?
What is a transmission? Wikipedia says it has a gear set to change ratio/direction, which seems wrong as it leaves out some CVTs, hydraulic transmissions, etc. The other uses of the word suggest it refers to the bits conveying motion from engine to wheels, which would suggest the only way to have no transmission is hub motors with no reduction gear. (A series hybrid would also need a generator with no reduction gear.) Is there a mechanical engineer in the house?
I am not and have never been a mechanical engineer, I just teach it, however the EPA fills the Transmission field on every EV, listing most as A1 For Automatic 1-speed.
People seem to not consider series hybrids to be transmissions with the reasoning that the transfer of energy is not happening mechanically. But I would argue that they are still a type of transmission because they transmit power.
Former powertrain design engineer here, including designing the Electric Drive Units for the shiny new Lotus EV sports car that got cancelled.
We call transmissions “gearboxes” in the UK, because it’s a box with gears in it. We call CVTs gearboxes too, not least because there are definitely gears in the differential.
I did an exasperated sigh when I read the title of this piece, because all EVs have gearboxes, and extremely complex ones in some cases (like torque-vectoring epicyclic gearboxes).
Arguing about whether a series hybrid has a transmission is a question for someone qualified in semantics, not an engineer. It’s definitely got a gearbox.
You might want to look at the definition of an “engine”, because my understanding is that any mechanical device that converts energy is an engine, and definitely electric motors are engines. But I am saddled with the twin disadvantages of being both an engineer and English, so words mean slightly different things to me.
“invisible-hood off-road mode”
You can see into the engine bay when off road? I guess there might be some diagnostic benefit to that.
Would make it easy to spot engine bay fires, or blown boots.
If the supply of roached pre 2008 matrixes dries up before the heat death of the universe, this seems like a promising vehicle. Time will tell though I guess.
No transmission? Holy JATCO!
This type of powertrain will very likely be in my next vehicle purchase. Hits that sweet spot of a hybrid that doesn’t require external charging and removes a bunch of unnecessary parts.
All hybrids don’t require external charging, otherwise they would be Plug-In hybrids.
While there are fewer parts than in say a Toyota powersplit system, to make a serial hybrid you have to make the remaining bits larger, heavier and more expensive. With a powersplit device the starter generator only needs to be capable of generating a fraction of the engine’s power thus smaller, lighter and cheaper. Ditto for the traction motor since the ICE can also transmit power to the wheels. Nissan has also found it necessary or at least desirable to have a larger traction battery than most other hybrids, again adding cost and weight, while taking up more space.
The extra cost of a series system shows in the base price of over $2k more than a RAV-4. We’ll have to wait and see the weight impact. The other thing is the inherent losses of a series system which at the numbers given above fall short of the RAV-4’s results.
I’ll take a light, inexpensive and durable planetary gear set over a series system all day everyday and twice on Sundays.
No plug, no care.
Coming soon to a buy here pay here lot near you!
This sounds like a great idea. It also sounds almost exactly like the Malibu Hybrid that GM made in 2016.
I just wish they would bring the Elgrand over. Even just to Canada and Mexico for now would be great if tariffs will keep it out of the US until at least 2029.
I’ll be honest: this looks great. Nissan has REALLY stepped up their game in the last few years. I still feel meh about a series hybrid, especially for the US market. Highway driving will definitely kill the MPG on this, even more so than on something like the Honda series/parallel hybrid… hybrid.
But on the other hand: This is known to work well. And it’s not a CVT.
And the interior is FANTASTIC. Buttons for everything? Yes please. Automakers need to learn from this.
Oh man! The “transmission” tunnel is hollow, like on a bunch of recent EVs, because there is no transmission. That’s awesome!
It sounds incredibly promising.