Episode 2, Day 2: Little Sarah
We Took a CVT Off-Road in the Desert

Three car dealers, three used Nissans, and one very dumb idea: take AWD CVT crossovers into Utah’s Little Sahara and see who taps out first.

Fresh off the Bonneville Salt Flats, we trade white crust for gold dunes: a lifted Murano with a skid plate, another Murano on big knobbies, and a Juke powered by bravado (and spare fuel). No prep. No mercy. Just CVTs clawing through soft sand, radio banter, a surprise “airtime” moment, and an impromptu pit stop when a production car eats a tire and forces us onto a donut at 50 mph. Sand Mountain looks like the boss level… so we stick to the trails and find out if the CVT “boogeyman” is real when traction disappears and temps climb.

Part myth-bust, part road trip, all chaos—and yes, the next leg gets weirder: flood warnings and “road impassable” signs.

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