Chicago’s 2020 Nissan Rogue Sport shows off its new face

New face, same Rogue Sport.

The 2020 model year will see Nissan bring its latest styling language to with the Rogue Sport small cross-over. The 2020 Rogue Sport was unveiled at 2019 Chicago Auto Show. It features a new front fascia, reworked taillights and headlights, which are similar to the European Nissan Qashqai . The model looks more attractive and cohesive with the new design.

The Rogue Sport’s new exterior design features include the inclusion of Nissan’s Safety Shield 360 suite, which combines passive and active safety features. Safety Shield 360, which includes front and rear automated braking, a lane departure warning system, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert and automatic high beam headlights, is standard on all 2020 Rogue Sport models. It’s also available in SV, SL, and SL trims.

Chicago's 2020 Nissan Rogue Sport shows off its new face

Unfortunately, the Rogue Sport’s weakest point is its underpowered and dull powertrain. The small crossover uses the updated 2.5-liter, 188-horsepower inline-four from 2019 Altima to power the Rogue Sport’s engine. It instead uses a weak 2.0-liter inline-4 that produces a paltry 140 hp. This is paired exclusively to a continuously variable transmission. (CVT), which can send power to the front or all four wheels. We are impressed by the Rogue Sport’s new looks and safety tech. However, we find the lack of substantial powertrain changes to be a major mistake.

This fall, the 2020 Nissan Rogue Sport will go on sale. Although pricing is not yet known, the entry cost for the 2020 Nissan Rogue Sport will be similar to the current Rogue Sport’s $22,240.