There’s a certain amount of respect that needs to be given to a model that has outlived its expectations. In the case of the Nissan Juke, it deserves a medal for lasting as long as it has. But now, after seven years in production, Nissan’s quirky little crossover is reportedly nearing the end of its run, at least that’s the sentiment shared by sources who spoke to The Truth About Cars about the Juke’s fate. Apparently, Nissan plans to slowly phase out the crossover either after the 2017 model year or the year after that.

North America is reportedly one of the first markets to be rid of the Juke as Nissan already has a replacement – the Kicks – lined up to take its place. It’s not all that surprising when you consider that sales of the Juke have fallen precipitously here in the in the last few years. In fact, sales of the Juke from 2016 added up to just 19,577 units for the whole year, a massive drop from the 38,184 units that were sold in 2014, as per GoodCarBadCar. Things haven’t gotten any better in 2017 as Nissan only sold 986 units of the crossover in May here in the U.S. The departure of the Juke will leave a subcompact crossover-sized hole for Nissan in the American market and while signs do point to the more traditionally designed Kicks to take its place, the automaker has yet to confirm on that possible scenario. For all of its accomplishments, it is time for the Juke to call it a day because its novelty wore out a long time ago.

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Every model has its end

Let’s be clear about one thing pertaining to the Nissan Juke. As long a run as it has had, it made the most of it in every imaginable way. Think about it. Did anybody foresee the crossover to last as long as it did? I certainly didn’t. The fact that it was relevant for seven years is a testament to its appeal at one time in time.

But like everything else, that appeal has an expiration date and if it hasn’t happened yet, it’s going to happen real soon. Nissan already sees the writing on the wall, which is probably why they’re deciding this early to slowly phase out production of the crossover by either the 2017 or 2018 model year. It had a good run; now it’s time for something new.

That “new,” according to The Truth About Cars, could be the Kicks – another one of Nissan’s subcompact crossovers that was introduced in South America back in 2014. Unlike the Juke, the Kicks comes with a more traditional design. Gone are the quirky headlight configurations that made the Juke stand out. Instead, the Kicks comes with a proper set of headlights and a more prominent V-grille. In other words, the Kicks looks more like a Nissan.

Whether it comes to the U.S. or not is far from a done deal though. Nissan North America’s VP of Product Planning Michael Bunce has mentioned it in the part when discussing the possibility of the Kicks going Stateside, but until there’s something concrete on the table, better take it easy on getting excited about the possibility to see the Kicks. For what it's worth tough, it would be nice to see the Kicks take up the space that the Juke will leave behind. The small crossover market is as competitive as it’s ever been here in the U.S. Nissan needs to have a slice of that pie if it hopes to remain relevant amid a growing number of competing models like the Chevrolet Trax, Honda HR-V, and Ford EcoSport.

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