The 2010 Nissan Rogue is the little brother of the Nissan Murano crossover, a vehicle that I used to own. The Rogue's distinguishable look has been around since 2008, and it still looks interesting. However, I happened to be a little lukewarm on the looks, which is odd since it looks similar to the Murano, but these looks don't translate well to the smaller version.

My test car, a Rogue SL with all-wheel drive, had a foufr-cylinder engine that gets you where you need to go. What stood out about the Rogue is its continuously variable automatic transmission. There's no subtle jerk with the change of gears; it's a seamless transition from one gear to the next. But the Rogue's CVT didn't sit well with me because it was loud. It felt like I was riding the clutch

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there is none

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rather than admiring the finesse of a smooth transmission. At certain speeds the transmission couldn't decide where it was most comfortable, and so it follows that I couldn't either. I spent a lot of time in manual-shift mode to circumvent this problem. I wish the CVT's performance wasn't so weird.

The base Rogue starts at $20,460 and the Rogue SL with all-wheel drive trim starts at $23,300. My test car was priced at $27,295.

• EXTERIOR
• SENSE AND STYLE
• INTERIOR
• IT'S THE LITTLE THINGS THAT COUNT
• SAFETY