REFRESHING OR REVOLTING: NISSAN KICKS VS. NISSAN JUKE

Which quirky small crossover has the right look?

Since its debut in 2010, the Nissan Juke has become one of the oddest looking crossovers on the market. Last month, Nissan debuted a tamer, but still flavorful, subcompact crossover called the Kicks. Nissan has finally found a small SUV that fits in with the rest of its lineup. But did the automaker take the right approach with the Kicks’ styling, or should it be more eye-catching like the Juke? Let’s examine the differences between the two cars below.

The Nissan Kicks features a tall V-Motion grille with boomerang headlights on either side. Much more unusual are the Juke’s vertical-oriented lamps (which are actually daytime running lights) that sit high up on the hood. Its smaller grille represents an older design, and the round headlights below add to the Juke’s odd front proportions. There are bold character lines on the hood of the Kicks, but not on the hood of the Juke. Still, the Kicks looks a bit cleaner and less cluttered overall.

While the Kicks offers a more conventional roofline, the Juke’s roof slopes down at a sharp angle toward the rear window. The Juke features exaggerated wheel arches, and notably, window-mounted handles for the rear doors. From the side profile, the Juke’s nose looks much more rounded, while the Kicks appears more upright and postured. The Kicks stands out with its floating roof design and sharp creases on the bottom of the side doors. It will be available in two-tone color schemes, where the roof is one color and the rest of the body is another. With a black roof, the Kicks can have a white, orange, or red body. There are also other available schemes: an orange roof/gray body and white roof/blue body.

The Kicks and Juke look similar in size, but there are key differences. The Kicks measures 6.7 inches longer and 0.6 inch taller than the Juke. Its wheelbase is 3.5 inches longer than the Juke’s, although the new model is 0.2 inch narrower in width.

Out back, the Juke’s taillights adopt the same vertical-oriented shape as the headlights. The Kicks has much more traditional taillights, as well as a squarer shape and taller stature. The Kicks also plays with color contrasting below the rear license plate.

Both crossovers feature few extraneous buttons inside the cabin. The Juke’s interior adopts a circular theme, from a circular gear shift area to circular door handles, HVAC controls, and instrument gauges. The Kicks has a less intrusive center console area that sits between the driver and passenger. On the Kicks, also look for upgraded features including a 7-inch full color display with Apple CarPlay and Andorid Auto smartphone connectivity. The 2017 Juke is available with 5-inch or 5.8-inch screens.

Which crossover would you crown the style winner: the Nissan Kicks or Nissan Juke?