We Drove the 2026 Nissan Rogue Plug-In Hybrid. It’s a Worse Mitsubishi Outlander

Quicker doesn’t mean better

During my drive of the 2026 Nissan Rogue Plug-in Hybrid in Franklin, Tennessee, I didn’t get to drive on electricity — at least, not at first. Previous drivers had sapped the SUV’s electric range, so hit the EV button on the center console, then chose the Charge mode from the driving menu. I then tapped the e-Step button that allowed me to shift into B (for Brake) instead of Drive and used the left steering wheel paddle to ramp up the regenerative braking to its top, which comes close to one-pedal driving. 

Charge mode not only starts the engine but also overruns it to add more energy to the battery. The engine drones while it runs, a sure sign of too little sound deadening between the engine bay and cabin. It may be loud, but this is a pretty powerful powertrain, cutting the Rogue’s 0-to-60-mph time by about a second, bringing it down to the low-7-second range. The engine mostly drives only the front wheels, but the rear motor fires up when more traction or power is needed. 

About 30 miles of driving in Charge mode put 7 miles of range back into the battery. That allowed me to drive in EV mode. While shutting off the engine quieted the cabin, the front motor made itself known with a constant whine. The engine mostly stayed off, but it came on without much rattle or shake when climbing a steep hill or when I got deep into the throttle. It’s not easy to drive exclusively on electricity, so buyers will likely find themselves driving on a blend of gas and electricity more often than not.