Right sized is the term used as the 2017 Nissan Rogue Sport made its debut at the Detroit Auto Show, entering Nissan into the hot new sub-compact crossover class.

To compete against the likes of the Honda HR-V, the Toyota CH-R, Mazda CX-3 and a growing list of smaller and more agile crossovers, the new 2017 Nissan Rogue Sport carves out its place just below the top selling Rogue in size and footprint.

What it looks like is exactly that, a Nissan Rogue scaled down slightly. And that’s because that’s more or less what it is. Sharing the same platform architecture, the Rogue Sport is shorter in both height and length, but carries style and character almost perfectly shrunken down.

The front gets a more subdued version of Nissan’s V-Motion grille than the larger Rogue, framed by headlights that feature signature LED daytime running lights. Available will be LED headlights. At the rear, it has a more sporting stance courtesy of it’s short bob-tailed rear overhang.

It’s wheelbase is 2.3-inches shorter, and overall length is about a foot less. Most of this space comes from the rear cargo area where Nissan says the buyers of Rogue Sport are less focused. They can fold the rear seat down however and get a healthy 61.1 cubic feet of space.

With the same width as the larger Rogue, it shares much of the interior design which brings with it a solidly built dash with premium materials and many of the same technologies Rogue buyers have enjoyed in the new 2017 model.

Rated for up to five passengers, the interior gets a standard 6-way adjustable driver’s seat and a 4-way adjustable front passenger seat. The rear seat has a 60/40 split fold-down and center armrest. Notable in this class is the inclusion of rear HVAC vents. Nice.

You can also option the Rogue Sport up just as with its big brother to include power seats, heated leather seats and a full-function touchscreen audio and navigation system.

Powering the Rogue Sport is also a right-sized engine for its class, a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder with 141 horsepower. Mated exclusively to Nissan’s Xtronic continuously variable transmissions you can choose either front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive.

Handling should back up the sporty theme with lighter weight and lower center of gravity over the Rogue. Standard wheels are 16-inch steelies with wheel covers and range up to 19-inch alloys with wide 225 section rubber.

Trim grades will range from S, to SV and SL and the Nissan Rogue Sport will be built in Kyushu, Japan where the Rogue Select has been built for some time.

The 2017 Nissan Rogue Sport arrives at dealerships here in North America later this spring. We’ll bring you a full review and test drive very soon.