Auto Express – August 20, 2019

“The Jukesitsonafresh

platform that forms the

basis of the latestRenault

Clio and the new Captur”

JamesBrodie

[email protected]

@jimmybrods

8 SpecialIssue

TOPSTORY

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THEnextJukehasbeenalongtime

coming,butifNissancanrepeat

thepopularityofitsmould-breaking

predecessor,thesecond-generationmodel

willbeacommonsightondrivewaysupand

downthelandinthenot-too-distantfuture.

Mostcarstendtoremainonsalefor

somesevenoreightyears,buttheMk1Juke

hasnowtickedpastnine.Itslongevityisnot

justdowntoitssuccessinwhathasbecome

anenormousmarketsegment–morethan

onemillionJukeshavebeensoldaround

theworldsince2010–butalsobecause

itscreatorshavetakentheirtimewith

this,thetrickysecondalbum.

ThefirstJukearguablykick-startedthe

supermini-sizedSUVrevolution.We’retold

thegoalthistimeistototallymodernise

thecar–makeitmoreupmarket,betterto

drive,easiertolivewithandmorepractical,

withoutsacrificingtheprovocative,almost

Marmite-likereceptionoftheoriginal.

It’sclearthattheJukewillremaina

bulbouscrossoverwithexaggerated

wheelarches,splitheadlights,atapering

rooflineandhiddenreardoorhandles.

Inprofileitlookslongerthanbefore,

butcarriesforwardthedesignprinciplesof

itspredecessor.However,NissanEurope

designdirectorMatthewWeaversayshis

teamhasworkedonmakingthedesign

morepracticalandeasytolivewith.That’s

whythetail-lightsarenowattachedtothe

tailgateandnotthebody,allowingfarwider

accesstothelarger,422-litreboot.

TheJukesitsonafreshplatformcalled

CMF-B.It’stheRenault-Nissan-Mitsubishi

AlliancetoolkitusedonthelatestClioand

Captur–thesecondofwhichwillrivalthe

JukewhenitarrivesinNovember.

Nissanclaimsthattheadvantagesofthe

newplatformarefoundmainlyinpackaging

andrigidity.Thenewcar’swheelbasegrows

by105mm,whileit’salso35mmwiderand

●Mk2 small crossover is better to drive,getsMicra’s1.0 Tengine

●Larger bodyyields morespacefor passengersand luggage

Nissan broadens

Our early test reveals that the all-new small crossover

75mmtaller.It’sstifferthankstotheuseof

morehigh-tensionsteel,yetNissanclaims

theJukeis23kglighter,too.Improvedcrash

performanceisanotherconsiderationofthe

newplatform;Nissanhasyettoputthenew

modelthroughEuroNCAP’stestprocedure,

butit’sconfidentofafive-starrating.

We’llseeelectrifiedpowertrainsfurther

downtheline,butatlaunchtheJukewill

bepetrolonly.Theprototypeversionwe’re

drivinghasthesameturbocharged1.0-litre

DIG-TengineastheMicraNSport.This

develops115bhpandupto200Nmtorque

onoverboost,andsendsdrivetothefront

wheelsthroughasix-speedmanualbox.

Anautomaticversionwillalsoarriveat

launch,usinganewlydevelopedseven-

speeddual-clutch box,moresuitedtothe

EuropeanmarketthantheCVTtransmission

thatwaspreviouslyoffered.TheJukewillbe

builtatNissan’splantinSunderland.

Alotofthedampertuninghasbeendone

inBritain,too,withNissanmodifyingitstest

facilitiestomimicEuropeanconditions.The

sign-offfortheJuke’sdynamicperformance

thentookplaceinGermany.

It’ssomethingimmediatelyapparentas

wetakethewheelofthisnearlyfinished

prototype;eventhisshort,earlytaste

DRIVEN

NissanJuke

1.0DIG-T117PS

Price: From£16,500(est)

Engine: 1.0-litre3cylturbopetrol

Power/torque: 115bhp/200Nm

Transmission: Six-speedmanual,

front-wheeldrive

0-62mph: 10.2seconds

Topspeed: 120mph(est)

Economy: 45mpg(est)

CO 2 : 136g/km

ONSALE November

Essentials

Much of the new Juke’s

suspension development

hasbeen done in the UK

Millbrook’s Alpine circuit

gives carsathorough

workout,and the Juke

performed well in our test