We now come to the drive of the 2008 Nissan Rogue, and yet another reason for my Artful Dodger comparisons. Why? Well, how many of us out there could honestly say that they didn't fall under the Dodger's charm when he started singing and prancing about the stage, and that is exactly what happened to me when I first drove the new Rogue from Nissan.

With it's DOHC 2.5 4 Cylinder engine which produces 170hp / 175 lbs/ft of torque, it has plenty of get up and go, especially when coupled to Nissan's Xtronic Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT). This combination allows for ample power, whist returning exceptional fuel economy (9.5 L/100 City 7.7L/100 Hwy). It is also worth mentioning that the Rogue operates on regular gas, which is something to take into consideration nowadays what with gas prices the way they are.

On the road, the Rogue is a bundle of joy to drive. It is a vehicle that is amazingly easy to become acclimatized to. The driver position is very good, and so is the all-round visibility. The vehicle rides on a platform of High-Caster front independent-strut suspension, with large diameter stabilizer bar and high-performance shock absorbers with rebound action. On the rear, it carries a multi-link independent suspension system, with a similar stabilizer bar and shocks. All this makes for an incredibly well handling vehicle, and will appeal to even the sportiest of drivers.

Obviously, Nissan has packed a number of safety features into their new vehicle, including duel-stage front air bags, seat-mounted side-impact supplemental air bags, and roof-mounted curtain supplemental air bags for front and rear outboard occupants with rollover detection. It also boasts active head restraints, a tire pressure monitoring system, an anti-theft system, and several other safety related features.

One thing which truly impressed me was Nissans Intuitive All-Wheel Drive system. The week that I had this vehicle on test, we had one of the worst snow storms of the season. To add to this, I live on a farm property with over 1300 ft of driveway and a farm tractor that had decided to take a mid-winter break (or rather breakdown!). As my wife blasted her way through the snow in her Range Rover which is fitted with snow tires, I looked at my loveable Rogue and thought... (actually, they wouldn't let me print what I really thought!). Having no choice, I crossed my fingers and headed out into the drifting snow. Absolutely amazing! With snow up to its bumper, my loveable Rogue did me proud. In fact, I swear that it had less trouble than that expensive Range Rover (although I won't tell her that!).

However, all was not exactly music to my ears with the Nissan Rogue. In fact, upon hard acceleration, the sound emitting from the engine bay sounded more like the dastardly Bill Sykes after a bad night out on the booze. To call it a roar would be an understatement. Of course, it's hard to blame Nissan for this as most ext transmission vehicles tend to sound like this nowadays. I guess there is a certain price to pay for the fuel efficiency that they offer. However, I couldn't help thinking that perhaps a little more sound-deadening here and there might help a bit.

That was really my only negative on the vehicle. On the whole, I found it extremely pleasant to drive, very easy to become acclimatized to, and I can see Nissan doing rather well with their "loveable Rogue".