Nissan Qashqai

Overview

The Qashqai is a small five-seat crossover that Nissan Canada sold from the 2017 to the 2023 model year, slotted between the front-drive Kicks and the larger Rogue. It is the same vehicle Americans bought as the Rogue Sport, but Canada kept the global name and kept selling it for a year after the US version ended. Every Canadian Qashqai used a 2.0 L four-cylinder, with a CVT on most models, a six-speed manual on the early base S, and all-wheel drive available on every trim. Nissan has built the Qashqai for Europe since 2006, but the first generation and the third-generation J12 sold overseas since 2021 never came to Canada. Anyone buying a used one in Calgary should check that the emergency braking and folding key recalls were done and listen for a failing radiator fan.

Body type

Compact crossover SUV

Model years covered

2017–2023

Generations

1

Transport Canada recalls

5 since the 2017 model year

NRCan fuel rating, 2023

8.2–8.6 L/100 km combined, about $2,662–$2,792 a year

Generations

Newest first. Years are model years; “on” means the generation is still in production.

1. Second generation (J11)

   2017–2023

   The only Qashqai generation sold in Canada, built on the same platform as the Rogue and imported from Nissan Motor Kyushu in Japan rather than the UK plant that built European cars. A 2020 refresh brought a new hood, bumper, lights and wheels and made Safety Shield 360 standard; Canada kept the model through 2023 after the US Rogue Sport ended with 2022.[1][6][7][8]

Trims and engines

Trims sold in Canada

Engines

Common issues

Problems a source documents for this model, tagged by what kind of source it is. What each tag means:

Recall

A safety recall. Transport Canada’s list further down has the recall itself, and a dealer can tell you from your VIN whether it applies to your vehicle.

Owner complaint pattern

Owners have reported it in complaints. A pattern in reports is not a recall, and not a finding that every vehicle has the problem.

• Automatic emergency braking activating with nothing ahead

  Recall Model years 2017–2018

  A metal structure such as a railway crossing or an overhead sign could make the emergency braking system warn and then slow or stop the vehicle for no reason. Transport Canada recall 2019-090 gives a free dealer software update; the US petition that led to NHTSA investigation PE 19-010 named the Rogue Sport as well as the Rogue.[10][17]

• Unwanted braking reports on later models

  Owner complaint pattern Model years 2019–2021

  Owners of the US twin, the Rogue Sport, have kept reporting sudden emergency braking with no obstacle ahead on 2019–2021 models, and forward collision avoidance is the most common complaint component for the 2019 and 2021 model years.[14][16]

• Radiator cooling fan failure

  Owner complaint pattern Model years 2017–2020

  Owners have reported the radiator cooling fan failing, often first noticed as air conditioning that stops cooling at idle, then as overheating or coolant loss if it is ignored. Cooling fan failures appear in at least one in ten NHTSA complaints for each of the 2017–2020 Rogue Sport model years; there is no recall, so a temperature gauge that climbs in traffic is worth a prompt check.[12][13][14][15]

• Folding key can collapse and switch the engine off

  Recall Model years 2017–2022

  On S-trim models with a jackknife key, the blade may stop locking fully open, and a bumped key can turn the engine off while driving. Under recall 2023-078, dealers fit a spacer in the key fob; until then, owners should hang nothing heavy from the key.[9][18]

• CVT hesitation and judder

  Owner complaint pattern Model years 2017–2019

  Owners have reported CVT hesitation, judder and jerking on early models, sometimes with transmission fault codes and a dealer reprogram or replacement. The 2021 Canadian Nissan CVT class settlement did not list the Qashqai, so it gives this model no extra coverage.[11][12][13]

Fuel economy and cost

Natural Resources Canada’s combined ratings (55% city, 45% highway driving) for the newest model years it has rated. NRCan rates every drivetrain, transmission and package separately, so each row gives the range across them. The yearly cost assumes 20,000 km a year, the distance NRCan’s own fuel consumption search tool assumes, at Statistics Canada’s average self-serve price in Calgary for August 2026: regular 162.3¢/L, premium 188.4¢/L, diesel 210.6¢/L. Each rating is costed at the fuel NRCan rated it on. How far and how you drive will move it.

Source: Natural Resources Canada, Fuel consumption ratings, read 2026-09-29. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada. Prices: Statistics Canada, Table 18-10-0001-01, Monthly average retail prices for gasoline and fuel oil, by geography (https://doi.org/10.25318/1810000101-eng), used under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.

Canada notes

• The Qashqai name was used in Canada, while the same vehicle was sold in the US as the Rogue Sport; Canada kept it for 2023 after US sales ended with the 2022 model year.[7][8]
• The 2017 Canadian launch model started under $20,000 as a front-drive S with a six-speed manual, with the CVT and Intelligent AWD available.[2][5]
• Heated front seats were standard from the base S up, and a heated steering wheel was available on higher trims.[2][3][4]
• For 2022 the S and SV came with front- or all-wheel drive and the SL with AWD only.[3]
• The redesigned J12 Qashqai sold in Europe and Asia was never brought to Canada; import costs from its UK and Japan plants were given as the reason.[8]