The 2021 Nissan Rogue made news last week for its underperformance in a specific crash test. The crossover has now been updated to be safer, according to the automaker.
Although the Rogue scored four out of five stars overall in a safety test by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), it performed conspicuously poorly in the front right overlap crash test. It earned itself just two out of a possible five stars in that test, which is unusual for a car in its class.
But Nissan believes it has found a solution. The Japanese automaker is replacing the passenger-side airbag module and front passenger seatbelt, per Car and Driver. Related software will be updated as well, all in an effort to make the vehicle safer.
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Since January 28, new Rogues are getting the update from the factory. Indeed, only Rogues built at Nissan’s Kyushu plant in Japan before that date will need to be retrofitted. All Rogues built at the brand’s Smyrna, Tennessee plant already had the update.
Owners with Rogues built before January 28 at the Kyushu plant will be notified and asked to return their vehicles to the dealer for updates. It’s unclear how many vehicles are affected.
The fix does appear to work. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), a separate non-governmental crash test rating organization, rated the 2021 Rogue as a “Top Safety Pick+”, the highest rating it hands out.
Whether Nissan has a chance to improve its NHTSA score before the 2022 model year remains to be seen.
