Now, it seems we have an idea as to why Nissan Philippines’s been delaying the launch of its all-new compact SUV and it’s down to the powertrain.

Big news coming out of North America is that Nissan’s ditching the Rogue / X-Trail’s 2.5-liter normally aspirated 4-cylinder for 2022 in favor of a boosted 1.5-liter 3-cylinder across the line-up. The new engine, also found in the Chinese market X-Trail, produces 201 horsepower (204 PS) and 305 Nm of torque.

Beyond the 11 percent and 24 percent increase in power and torque, respectively, Nissan says the all-new engine is capable of delivering a combined urban/highway fuel economy figure of 14 km/L—a 1.27 km/L improvement over the 2.5-liter.

The secret is down to the 1.5-liter’s Variable Compression or VC technology. The engine has two different compression ratios, and the engine switches between them depending on the particular circumstance. Other than that, the 1.5-liter VC Turbo comes with a new high pressure direct injection system and a mirror-bore cylinder wall coating just like the Almera and GT-R.

Together with the 1.5-liter VC Turbo engine, the Xtronic CVT’s been tweaked too with a 17 percent wider ratio and 32 percent lower friction. The new gearbox also has a twin oil pump system and newly developed control valve system. The twin oil pump system combines a small mechanical pump (with small oil flow) for slow shifting between low and high ratios, while the second electric oil pump (with larger oil flow) provides quicker shifting for hard driving situations.

If Nissan Philippines is indeed going with a small displacement turbo for their compact SUV, they’re no stranger to this kind of arrangement. The all-new Almera uses a boosted 1.0-liter 3-cylinder instead of a traditional 1.5-liter 4-cylinder.