2013 Mercedes-Benz GLK250.

The compact premium sport utility vehicle segment is a pretty hot one right now. You can buy examples from Acura, Audi, BMW, Cadillac, Infiniti, and Land Rover. GMC recently added up-level Denali trim to its small Terrain crossover, and Lincoln is working on a luxury version of the Ford Escape.

And one of my favorites in the segment is the Mercedes-Benz GLK. Perfect size, great road manners, and a tough, chunky look to it. It was updated last year with a few subtle changes, but this year it gets a new engine choice. In addition to the gasoline powered GLK350, there’s now the diesel-powered GLK250 Bluetec.

It really should be no surprise that Mercedes is expanding its diesel offerings, as they have a long history with them. You can now get their clean-burning Bluetec system in the big GL SUV, the mid-size ML, the S-Class sedan, and next fall, the refreshed E-Class will be updated with a new diesel engine. (The outgoing E350 had a diesel option for several years.)

And that same new diesel engine is the one found under the hood of the GLK250. It’s got only four cylinders displacing 2.1 liters, but boy does it churn out some torque. Three hundred sixty nine lb-ft to be exact, which is in V8 territory.

Ah, torque. That’s what moves vehicles around in everyday driving. Accelerating away from a stoplight or up a freeway onramp, you want lots of torque, especially in a vehicle that has a bit of heft to it. The GLK250 has all wheel drive and weighs just over 4300 lbs, but it feels quite light on its feet thanks to the combination of the torquey engine and 8-speed automatic transmission.

The payoff in the move to diesel is fuel economy. The gasoline-powered GLK350 with 4MATIC (Mercedes-Benz’s all wheel drive system) is rated at 19 city and 24 highway. The GLK250 tromps that with figures of 24 city and 33 highway, and that’s also with the 4MATIC system, the only way the diesel is sold.

By now you should know that there really aren’t the downsides to diesels that they once were famous for. Noise? Barely any. Smell? You won’t even know you’re behind one in traffic. Soot? Nope, they’ve cleaned up the exhaust to the point that there’s no soot whatsoever.

The other thing modern diesel engines do is often exceed their EPA estimates in highway driving. I attended a media drive program for this vehicle, which originated from Santa Monica and included a drive loop through the Westside, over Beverly Glen, along the 101 through the Valley, and back to Santa Monica via Malibu.

During our presentation to the last group of media attendees, a Mercedes-Benz spokesman showed us an image of the on-board computer taken by a journalist who had driven the GLK250 the day before. The mileage figure displayed was 35.6 mpg, though it wasn’t explained how that figure came to be. On my own drive back to Glendale from there in one I had permission to drive away from the event, I got over 34 mpg without trying too hard.

Adding the diesel option to the GLK is a good move for Mercedes-Benz. With the advanced state of clean diesel technology, it’s one way manufacturers like Mercedes can achieve government mandated fuel economy levels in coming years.

Beyond just the new diesel engine option, the GLK has a lot to offer. It’s a great size, and is easy to maneuver. Comfort abounds, and I especially like the tall, upright feel of the cabin. If you find many of today’s vehicles claustrophobic in nature, the GLK is a bright spot, literally. It also starts at a reasonable price as long as you can stay away from the options list.

Base price for a 2013 GLK250 4MATIC is $38,590, which is $500 less than the base price for the GLK350 4MATIC. Throw all the options at it, and the price climbs to well over $50,000. At least it’s an “economy car” at the gas pump.

I’ll see you down the road.

Dave Kunz is the automotive reporter at KABC-TV Channel 7 and can be heard on “The Car Show” Saturdays at 9 a.m. on KPFK, 90.7 FM. E-mail Dave at TVCarz @ pacbell.net Twitter: @dave_kunz, Facebook: ABC7Dave.

This season, both pitchers are in a league of their own. Darvish is 6-1 with a 2.73 ERA, and Harvey 4-0 with a 1.44 ERA.

Darvish came within one out of throwing a perfect game in his first start of the season at Houston on April 2. The Rangers won the game 7-0.

“It’s a win,” Darvish said through a translator after the game. “A win’s a win. I went that far. I’m really satisfied. I think I got lucky today.”

Darvish, 26, leads the major leagues with 80 strikeouts in 52.2 innings pitched. He has allowed 30 hits and walked 18. In his only loss, 3-1 to Seattle on April 12, Darvish felt he didn’t pitch well, despite giving up just three hits with eight strikeouts and a walk in six innings.

“I could have given up many runs in any inning,” Darvish said “I just didn’t have my stuff today.”

With 301 career strikeouts, Darvish joined Dwight Gooden (319) as the only pitchers in major league history to reach at least 300 Ks in his first 37 big league starts. He has struck out 14 batters twice this season, against the Astros in his first outing, and against Boston on May 5.

The 6-foot-5-inch, 216-pound right-hander beat the Astros again on Saturday, allowing three hits and three runs in seven innings, while fanning eight. Matt Dominguez hit two home runs against Darvish.

“I think the only thing he struggled with today was Dominguez,” Rangers manager Ron Washington said. “Other than that, I thought he did a good job. He handled the rest of the lineup. He just threw two pitches to Dominguez that he didn’t miss.”

Harvey has become the Mets’ hope for the future. Going into Sunday’s game, the 24-year-old led the majors with a 1.44 ERA and was second with 62 strikeouts.

He was pitching a perfect game against the Chicago White Sox on May 7 until Alex Rios broke it up with an infield single with two outs in the seventh. Harvey pitched a career-high nine innings and had a career-high 12 strikeouts in the game that the Mets came out on top of, 1-0, in 10 innings.

It was Harvey’s 17th career major league start.

“I was having fun,” Harvey said told the New York Daily News. “Any time you go out there and are able to pitch like that and get outs, it becomes a lot of fun. Everything was obviously working. I can throw a slider for a strike, I can also bounce it when I need to. That’s when it starts getting fun. It’s the best I felt all year.”

It was the second time this season that Harvey flirted with a no-hitter. In a 4-2 win at Minnesota on April 13, Harvey had a no-hitter going with two outs in the seventh when Justin Morneau homered.

In Sunday’s start against Pittsburgh, Harvey had a no-decision in a 3-2 loss, but allowed just five hits and two runs with four strikeouts and two walks in seven innings pitched.

Harvey, a 6-foot-4-inch, 225-pound right-hander, started the season allowing one, three and two hits in his first three starts. With those impressive numbers, and his near perfect game last week, Harvey could get the second no-hitter in club history this season. Johan Santana pitched the franchise’s first no-hitter last year against St. Louis.

StatsWatch: The St. Louis Cardinals threw consecutive shutouts at the Colorado Rockies last Friday and Saturday, allowing two hits or fewer. Here are some interesting facts related to that feat:

• Shelby Miller allowed one hit in Friday’s 3-0 win over the Rockies at Busch Stadium. He retired the last 27 batters.
• Adam Wainwright took a no-hitter into the eighth inning in Saturday’s 3-0 win and finished with a two-hitter.
• It was the first time since September 27-28, 1973 that the Cardinals threw consecutive shutouts allowing two hits or fewer. Reggie Cleveland allowed one hit in a complete game, 2-0 win over the Chicago Cubs, followed by a combined two-hitter by Diego Segui and Mike Thompson in a 3-0 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.
• Colorado had been hitless in 49 straight at-bats against the Cardinals before Nolan Arenado singled with one out in the eighth on Saturday.
• Miller and Wainwright retired 40 consecutive batters with 18 strikeouts until Todd Helton walked with one out in the fifth in Saturday’s game.
• The Rockies were tied for second in the NL in runs scored with 169, and tied for first in the NL in batting with a .266 average going into Sunday’s game.

Bryce Harper has been written and talked about for nearly four years, which is astounding since he’s only 20-years-old, and hasn’t even begun to scratch the surface of his extraordinary talent.

For every Joe Charboneau, who won the American League Rookie of the Year in 1980 after swatting 23 homers with 87 runs batted in for the Cleveland Indians, but was washed up after three seasons and closed out his career with 29 homers and 114 RBIs.

Then there’s Bob Horner, who captured the National League Rookie of the Year trophy in 1978 with the Atlanta Braves after belting 23 homers with 63 RBI, but played 10 seasons and finished with 218 home runs and 685 RBIs.

Who knows how Harper’s career will end, but it doesn’t seem fair to compare him to someone like the New York Yankees’ all-time great Mickey Mantle.

A switch-hitter, Mantle also entered the big leagues at 19, and had the same ability to launch majestic home runs deep into the upper deck.

So it wasn’t too surprising that Harper, an outfielder with amazing foot speed, became the youngest position player to participate in an All-Star Game, and at the pace he’s on should make a second appearance when the New York Mets’ Citi Field hosts the event in July.

Even before Harper signed a big-league contract with the Washington Nationals, the club that drafted him No. 1 overall in 2010, he was well known.

While only 16, and playing for Las Vegas High, Sports Illustrated’s national baseball writer Tom Verducci profiled the left-handed hitting Harper with the splashy headline: “Baseball’s Chosen One.”

Verducci’s lengthy article raved about Harper crushing a baseball 570 feet, and throwing a fastball at 96 miles per hour.

It was other worldly, but these things actually happened, and once they became public every big-league scout was in Harper’s backyard.

Harper spent only 130 games in the minor leagues, socking 18 home runs with 61 RBIs before making his major league debut on April 28, 2012. In time, he became the NL Rookie of the Year after batting .270 with 22 homers, 59 RBIs and 98 runs scored.

So far, the 6-foot-2, 230-pound Harper is off to another splendid season. Though he sat out two of three games this past weekend against the visiting Chicago Cubs, Harper’s second in the Senior Circuit with 10 home runs, third in slugging percentage at .619, has driven in 21 runs, scored 22 runs, and is batting .297.

Beside Harper, the Nationals’ lineup is dotted with young stars like third baseman Ryan Zimmerman, pitchers Gio Gonzalez, Jordan Zimmerman and Stephen Strasburg, along with veteran talent such as outfielder Jayson Werth and pitcher Dan Haren.

The Nationals are 20-17 for second place in the NL East and one game behind the Braves, but were favored by many to claim the division.

In 2012, the Nationals made the playoffs, but were taken out in the Divisional Series by the St. Louis Cardinals in five games. With that you can bet Harper and crew want to exact some revenge.

Rick Assad has been a sportswriter for more than two decades. He has a political science degree from UCLA, a journalism degree from CSUN, is a staff writer for diamondboxing.com, and is a columnist for socalboxing.wordpress.com. You may e-mail him at richsports5@sbcglobal.net.

Mired in an eight-game losing skid, the Blue Crew captured the final two games from Miami including last Sunday’s 5-3 thriller at the Stadium as Scott Van Slyke walloped a solo homer in the second inning, and added a run-scoring hit in the seventh.

The Dodgers, who are in the cellar of the National League West, have been a colossal disappointment given the club’s record-breaking $230 million payroll.

Chris Capuano (1-2) allowed one run (earned), five hits with seven strikeouts and one walk in six and one-third innings.

Carl Crawford had two singles, including a run batted in during the seventh, while Andre Ethier delivered a sacrifice fly. Matt Kemp rapped out two singles and now has 1,000 hits.

On Saturday, Hyun-Jin Ryu (4-2) proved his value as he throttled the Marlins over six and two-third frames, yielding five hits and one run (earned) as the Dodgers won, 7-1.

Skip Schumaker had run-scoring hits in the second and fifth inning, a run-producing fielder’s choice in the third, and he scored on a passed ball in the seventh.

Dee Gordon’s solo homer in the third inning gave the Dodgers a 2-0 lead, Juan Uribe had a scoring fly in the fifth, and added an infield hit in the seventh. Ethier contributed four hits with three runs tallied.

The Marlins edged the Dodgers, 5-4, on Friday as hard-throwing Jose Fernandez (2-2) fanned seven, walked two, gave up eight hits and three runs (earned) over six innings.

Adrian Gonzalez cracked a three-run blast in the first, but Derek Dietrich’s three-run drive in the fourth tied it. One-time Dodger Juan Pierre (two hits) had an RBI in the seventh.

Paul Goldschmidt’s solo smash in the eighth inning was the game-winner as visiting Arizona prevailed, 3-2, on Wednesday.

In the sixth, Goldschmidt’s two-run homer off Clayton Kershaw knotted it at 2-2, erasing run-scoring doubles by Gonzalez and Nick Punto in the fourth inning.

The Diamondbacks clipped the Dodgers, 5-3, on Tuesday behind Goldschmidt’s three RBIs, while Punto (two hits and a run) drove in two, and Kemp (two hits) scored a run.

Goldschmidt (four hits) had three RBIs with a run in Monday’s 9-2 pasting of the Dodgers, and Trevor Cahill (2-3) held the Boys of Summer to six hits and two runs (earned) in seven innings.

2014 Acura RLX.

It was the 1986 model year when Honda launched an upscale division called Acura, a first for a Japanese brand. Premium cars with Honda’s reliability proved to be a good formula, and today the Acura brand is as strong as ever.

Just four years later, two other Japanese brands introduced separate high-end brands, Nissan with Infiniti and Toyota with Lexus. Right out of the box, both of them created large, luxurious sedans with smooth V8 engines and tons of luxury.

For Lexus in particular, that big car at the top of the model line suggested that the brand was serious about offering a car that could compete with the best in the business. To this day, as in 1990, the Lexus LS is seen as a flagship for the Lexus model lineup.

But Honda played it conservative for decades. After the Legend (their large-ish car from the early years), the RL led the charge as the “big Acura.” The problem was, it was never seen as big nor as world-class as the Lexus LS.

Now, Acura has revised and renamed the RL to create the RLX. Bigger, nicer, and much more stylish, the RLX is finally the car that can be called a flagship sedan. It’s not really all that much larger than the RL on the outside, but it carries the look and presence of a larger car.

While its exterior dimensions put it up against mid-size sedans in the luxury arena, its interior measurements (especially rear legroom) move it into the realm of full-size cars. It is truly roomy, in both the front and rear seats. It’s also extremely quiet, and full of high-grade materials.

The ingredients are all in place for (finally) a top-of-the-line car that makes no apologies when cross-shopped with the likes of Lexus, Infiniti, Audi, and BMW. Acura likely had the misfortune of seeing some of their loyal customers trade “up and out” when they were looking for a luxury sedan to replace their TL or RL models in the past. Now, those potential buyers can stay within the brand with the RLX.

Another place the RLX makes no apologies is under the hood. For many years, critics in the automotive press declared that Acura couldn’t have a true flagship car unless it had a V8 engine, like pretty much all the competitors offer. But Acura, under Honda’s umbrella of conservative efficiency, stuck with using a V6 in even its largest models.

Guess who’s getting the last laugh now? Acura was either able to see the future or perhaps just got lucky. Other luxury brands are now scrambling to engineer smaller engines into their sedans to meet increasingly strict consumption and emissions standards. There are even four cylinder engines offered in several of the RLX’s competitors.

The big Acura gets down the road just fine with a new direct-injected 3.5 liter V6 (actually smaller in size than the V6 in the old RL) making just over 300 horsepower in a very smooth fashion. Power gets to the wheels via all wheel drive, which has also been standard in the RL.

Not only are all four of the RLX’s wheels driven, but they’re all steering as well. Four wheel steering isn’t really anything new (you could get a Honda Prelude with it back in the late 1980s), but modern technology has perfected it for use in this big Acura. When driving through curves, the rear wheels steer just slightly to help bring the car through.

Technology abounds in the rest of the RLX too, especially in the upper-trim Advance model. Blind spot monitoring, lane departure warning, collision avoidance, and adaptive cruise control are all part of this new car. Further, the latest version of AcuraLink keeps you connected and informed.

Prices start out at just over $48,000 and top out at just over $60,000 for the Advanced model. Pretty reasonable for a car that can truly be called “flagship.”

I’ll see you down the road.

Dave Kunz is the automotive reporter at KABC-TV Channel 7 and can be heard on “The Car Show” Saturdays at 9 a.m. on KPFK, 90.7 FM. E-mail Dave at TVCarz @ pacbell.net Twitter: @dave_kunz, Facebook: ABC7Dave

At the beginning of the season, the Blue Jays were supposed to be among the elite clubs in the major leagues after acquiring pitchers Dickey, Mark Buehrle and Josh Johnson, along with Jose Reyes and Melky Cabrera, in the off-season.

Toronto figured to be at least a contender in the American League East, if not the favorite.

But the Blue Jays found themselves with a 10-21 record after Saturday’s 8-1 loss to Seattle, which was their fourth straight defeat. They were outscored 25-3 in those four games.

Dickey, who has lost some velocity and hasn’t received much in the way of run support, fell to 2-5. He was booed after allowing six hits, including three home runs, and seven earned runs in six innings.

“I did hear them, it was not hard to,” Dickey said of the fans. “You can’t blame them. We’ve played below our expectation. We’re booing ourselves.”

The bad start hasn’t helped the team’s confidence.

“We’re all pretty beat up mentally right now, but you’ve got to get through that,” Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. “That’s professional baseball. There’s a lot of season left. You get tested and you find out what you’re made of.”

Injuries have played a part in the Blue Jays’ poor start.

Johnson hasn’t pitched since April 21, and was placed on the disabled list last Thursday with inflammation in his right triceps. Shortstop Jose Reyes suffered a severely sprained left ankle on an awkward slide into second base in a game against Kansas City on April 12, and will be out at least until the All-Star break.

Buehrle went 1-2 with a 7.02 ERA in his first seven starts. He has allowed at least seven hits in each of his outings, and at least five runs in five starts. Toronto’s pitching staff ranked 28th overall, with a 4.73 ERA going into Tuesday’s game.

The Jays’ offense hasn’t been much better. Toronto ranked 26th in batting through Monday’s game with a .235 average (Melky Cabrera led the team at .258); 18th in the majors with 125 runs, and 25th with a .301 on-base percentage.

They can still hit home runs though, ranking fourth with 41. Edwin Encarnacion, J.P. Arencibia and Jose Bautista combined for 25 homers.

Trailing Boston by 9 1/2 games, and in last place in the AL East on Tuesday, the Blue Jays were enjoying a modest two-game win streak.

“We’ve got a group of great guys,” Dickey said. “And the chemistry in here, nobody is blaming other people. We’re all trying to own what ours is to own this. But we’re not very good right now and everybody knows it. That’s no secret.”

StatsWatch: Pitchers who have thrown the most strikeouts in the major leagues (through Monday) -

• Yu Darvish, Rangers, 72
• A.J. Burnett, Pirates, 57
• Clay Buchholz, Red Sox, 56
• Max Scherzer, Tigers, 54
• Clayton Kershaw, Dodgers, 52
• Jeff Samardzija, Cubs, 52
• Felix Hernandez, Mariners, 51
• Justin Verlander, Tigers, 50
• Anibal Sanchez, Tigers, 50
• Adam Wainwright, Cardinals, 48

Diamond Notes: Atlanta Braves catcher Brian McCann was ready to come off the disabled list on Monday after having surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder last October. McCann had been on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett. The six-time All-Star has hit at least 20 homers, and has driven in at least 67 runs in each of his past five seasons…Dodgers shortstop Hanley Ramirez has been placed on the 15-day DL due to a strained left hamstring. Ramirez was injured while trying to run from first to third in Friday’s loss to San Francisco…Former major league player Hideki Matsui received the People’s Honor Award at a ceremony at the Tokyo Dome on Sunday. Matsui played seven seasons for the New York Yankees, and a season each for the Los Angeles Angels, Oakland A’s and Tampa Bay Rays. “I played for excellent teams, with excellent teammates, for excellent managers in front of excellent fans,” Matsui said. “I did my best to lift up, even a little bit, the game of baseball that is so beloved by the people of Japan.”

Copyright © 2013 Bob Hurst. All Rights Reserved. Distributed by Hurst Sports Media.

In a virtuoso performance, Mayweather, the pound-for-pound best boxer in the world exhibited no rust after being out of the ring for a year as he retained his World Boxing Council welterweight belt and added the vacant Ring Magazine title with a unanimous decision over Robert Guerrero.

What the 15,880 fans in attendance saw was Mayweather landing right hand leads throughout, and Guerrero scoring in the first and second rounds, but after that was hard-pressed to muster much of an offensive assault.

By the end of the third round, Mayweather had taken over in terms of tempo and solving Guerrero, eventually opening up an ugly cut above the challenger’s eye in the eighth round.

Mayweather’s trademark hand and foot speed were on display, and even when he was backed up against the ropes, quickly evaded trouble.

The final punch stat numbers all favored the 36-year-old Mayweather, who signed a six-fight, $200 million deal with Showtime/CBS.

“Guerrero’s a warrior,’’ said Mayweather, a five-division world champion with eight world titles and is 44-0 with 26 knockouts. “He’s a true champion.”

Afterward Mayweather was asked if he was going for the kayo. “I hurt my right hand midway through the fight,’’ he said. “I’m a little disappointed. I was looking for the knockout, but I couldn’t because I hurt my hand.”

Much of the bout was contested in the middle of the ring with Mayweather getting off clean punches with ease and escaping the majority of Guerrero’s attack.

Mayweather’s domination was apparent whether tossing jabs, power punches or total shots and they swayed Judges Duane Ford, Julie Lederman and Jerry Roth, as all three scored the fight, 117-111.

Guerrero (31-2-1 with 18 KO’s) was game, but couldn’t solve the riddle that is Mayweather, who landed 60 percent of his power punches.

“Floyd’s a great fighter and that’s why he’s undefeated,’’ said Guerrero, who connected on 28 percent of his power tosses. “I hurt him a few times, but he’s so slippery. He’s better than I thought.”

By the eighth round, Mayweather’s accuracy bloodied Guerrero’s face and it looked at one point the champ was on the verge of decking the 30-year-old, landing 23 of 30 power shots.

The next four rounds were more of the same as Mayweather came in and had his way with the over-matched Guerrero.

Over the first two rounds, the pair stood toe-to-toe, and each had their moments, but the tide turned in the third round as Mayweather, who located 41 percent of his total punches to 19 percent for Guerrero, caught his stride and began to pepper him at will.

The instances when Guerrero shined were brief, and he became frustrated as the fight continued because Mayweather stood right in front and dared him to find the target, which he couldn’t.

Rick Assad has been a sportswriter for more than two decades. He has a political science degree from UCLA, a journalism degree from CSUN, is a staff writer for diamondboxing.com, and is a columnist for socalboxing.wordpress.com. You may e-mail him at richsports5@sbcglobal.net.

In Sunday’s 4-3 loss, Matt Cain (1-2) held the Blue Crew to five hits in seven and one-third innings, allowing one run (earned) with four strikeouts and three walks.

Hunter Pence drove in four with a run-scoring fielder’s choice in the first inning, a run-scoring double in the third inning, and a two-run double in the fifth.

The Dodgers rallied for three runs in the eighth inning when Adrian Gonzalez drove in two with a single, and Dee Gordon added a run-scoring infield hit.

In a frustrating setback on Saturday, the Dodgers battled back from a 5-0 deficit only to see the Giants prevail, 10-9, on a 10th inning homer by Guillermo Quiroz.

The Giants tallied three runs in the first inning on Buster Posey’s two-run double and Gregor Blanco’s run-scoring single, and it became 5-0 in the second inning after Marco Scutaro scored on a wild pitch and Blanco’s sacrifice fly.

A.J. Ellis’ homer in the fourth reduced the margin to 5-1, and Blanco’s force out in the bottom of the inning made it 6-1.

Matt Kemp’s two-run single, Skip Schumaker’s run-scoring hit, Juan Uribe’s single for a run batted in, Gordon’s two-run triple and Nick Punto’s RBI double in the fifth gave the Dodgers an 8-6 lead, but Andres Torres got the Giants within one run with a solo blast in the home half of the frame.

Posey tied it at 8-8 in the sixth on a wild pitch, Carl Crawford’s RBI grounder in the seventh gave the Dodgers a 9-8 edge, but Pablo Sandoval’s scoring fly knotted it in the seventh.

Posey’s ninth-inning solo shot pushed San Francisco to a 2-1 victory on Friday, after he drove in the Giants’ initial run with a double in the sixth, while Punto (two hits) had an RBI for the Dodgers’ only run in the fifth inning.

Troy Tulowitzki, Carlos Gonzalez and Michael Cuddyer all had two hits with two RBIs and a run scored as Colorado drilled the host Dodgers 7-2 on Wednesday.

Jerry Hairston Jr. (three hits) tallied two runs and drove in a run for the Dodgers, who ripped the Rockies 6-2 on Tuesday.

Colorado had 19 hits, including three from Wilin Rosario (three runs and three RBIs), led 10-0 after four innings, and cruised to a 12-2 pasting on Monday.

2013 Nissan JUKE NISMO.

“Nothing ventured, nothing gained.” That’s the old saying regarding sticking your neck out and taking a risk, as we all know. Doing something new, or in a new way, can often pay off in the long run.

But sometimes, well, bold moves don’t go over so well. In the car world, the infamous Edsel experiment by Ford Motor Company in the late 1950s comes to mind. And in recent years, Nissan’s bold move in the form of the compact Juke left more than a few people scratching their heads.

On paper, the Juke looked pretty cool. A tall-ish, 5-door hatchback-y vehicle that was a sort of mini-mini-SUV with a certain degree of urban vibe. But when it came to arriving in its sheet metal flesh, it didn’t exactly go over as a huge hit.

Most of the Juke looks pretty nice. The sides have nicely arched wheel openings, and an overall rakish stance. From the rear, a pretty conventional hatch surrounded by interesting taillights. But … that face. Oh dear. The view of the front is like looking at an interpretation of a frog turned into a robot.

The Juke hasn’t been a huge flop, as I do see them on the road quite a bit, and their drivers hardly ever look embarrassed to be seen in them. But Nissan may have overestimated the public’s willingness to accept such a strange design.

Help is now on the way, courtesy of Nissan’s in-house performance tuning division called Nismo. (For Nissan Motorsports.) No, the Nismo package doesn’t change the overall styling, but it does transform the Juke into a sweet little performance car.

The Nismo tuning didn’t need to go too deeply under the hood, as the Juke already comes with a turbocharged engine. But a few more horsepower are always welcome when you’re creating a hot little hatchback, so a tweak here and a tweak there result in a total of 197 horsepower, which is up just 9 from the regular Juke.

Performance enthusiasts should be smitten with the 6-speed manual gearbox as standard. More and more “performance” cars these days are doing away with conventional manuals. And even though the automatics of today are probably better performers overall in most cases, purists still want to operate a clutch pedal and shift their own gears. You can still the CVT automatic with the Nismo Juke, though only combined with all wheel drive.

Add in a more performance-oriented suspension and you’ve got the makings for a rather fun way to get around. The Nismo upgrade also includes heavily bolstered front bucket seats plus a steering wheel covered in a grippy suede-like material. Finishing touches include a revised front spoiler, red body accents, and red mirror covers.

This isn’t quite the little hot rod that the Ford Focus ST or Volkswagen GTI are, but it scoots through urban traffic pretty nicely. The gears in the 6-speed manual are perfectly spaced to make use of the engine’s power, and the suspension is just crisp enough to keep the car planted. You still sit tall in this car (part of the “SUV” type design), but it works nonetheless.

It also works pretty well as an everyday car. Fuel economy is decent (25 city and 31 highway with the manual transmission), the cargo area in back is larger than you might think, and the vehicle has a great turning radius for easing into tight parking spots.

One thing which helped my test car in that regard is an excelling rear-view camera. It’s part of a $1170 Navigation Package that also includes traffic monitoring and a Rockford Fosgate ecoPUNCH (what the heck does that mean?) sound system. All told, the bottom line sticker price was just a pinch over $25,000.

This is actually a competent little package, and fun to drive. And, the best thing about driving this Juke? You can’t see the front of it from the driver’s seat.

I’ll see you down the road.

Dave Kunz is the automotive reporter at KABC-TV Channel 7 and can be heard on “The Car Show” Saturdays at 9 a.m. on KPFK, 90.7 FM. E-mail Dave at TVCarz @ pacbell.net Twitter: @dave_kunz, Facebook: ABC7Dave

Harper had slumps last season with the Washington Nationals, but was still able to hit .270 with 22 home runs, 59 RBIs and 18 stolen bases in 139 games to earn the National League Rookie of the Year award.

Would 2013 become a sophomore jinx?

Not so far.

Going into his one-year anniversary date on Sunday, Harper was batting .373 with nine homers, 18 RBIs and a .453 on-base percentage. He ranked second in the majors in homers and on-base percentage; third in hitting and first in slugging percentage.

There was no doubt that Harper was going to reach the major leagues when he started playing at Triple-A Syracuse last year. But he was batting just .243 in his first 21 games when the Nationals called him up.

In his big league debut, Harper went 1-for-3 in a 4-3 road loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

“I really didn’t have butterflies at all,” Harper said after the game. “I think that’s one of the first times I’ve never gotten butterflies. I was sitting in the dugout before the game and I was thinking to myself: ‘Wow, I’m in the big leagues.’”

After his batting average peaked at .307 following a 3-for-4 game against Toronto on June 12 of last year, Harper’s hitting went south. His average dropped to .245 following a 3-for-32 slump with no homers and two RBIs. He went 0-for-8 in two games against San Francisco.

But Harper rebounded in September to hit .330 for the month, including 11 multi-hit games.

He had 12 multi-hit games in April of this year through 23 games going into Sunday’s contest.

Even when he’s not up to par physically, Harper is still dangerous. In a game on April 17 at Miami, Harper had four hits in five at-bats while recovering from the flu.

“I didn’t feel very good at all,” Harper said. “Getting in the box and swinging made my head spin a little bit. I wanted to play. I thought I could help the team win. I didn’t really care if I was sick or not.”

In Saturday’s game against Cincinnati, on the one-year anniversary of his call-up to the majors, Harper hit a two-run homer in the fourth inning to give the Nationals a 6-1 lead en route to a 6-3 win. He reached base three times, scoring two runs.

Harper has set team records for most home runs and RBIs in April, and leads the Nationals in every major offensive category.

“And if you know him, he probably (thinks) he’s having an off-year right now,” Washington manager Davey Johnson said. “He expects a lot of himself, and that’s a good trait.”

StatsWatch: Here are the top-10 pitching staffs in the major leagues, with the lowest Earned Run Averages (through Monday) —

• Rangers, 3.02 ERA
• Cardinals, 3.24
• Braves, 3.24
• Reds, 3.31
• Royals, 3.36
• Red Sox, 3.39
• Cubs, 3.41
• Diamondbacks, 3.41
• Pirates, 3.57
• White Sox, 3.60

Diamond Notes: Pittsburgh left-hander Jonathan Sanchez has been suspended for six games and fined for hitting the Cardinals’ Allen Craig with a pitch last Friday. Sanchez allowed a pair of home runs and a single to begin the first inning before hitting Craig in the shoulder. Umpire Tim Timmons ejected Sanchez. Sanchez was expected to appeal the suspension…After completing a 25-game suspension, Phillies catcher Carlos Ruiz was activated on Sunday from the restricted list. Ruiz was suspended for testing positive for an amphetamine. He had a career year last season, hitting .325 with 16 homers and 68 RBIs…Toronto right-hander Josh Johnson is expected back in the rotation later this week after being scratched on Friday due to tightness in his right triceps. Johnson is 0-1 with a 6.86 ERA in four starts since being acquired in an offseason trade with the Marlins.

Copyright © 2013 Bob Hurst. All Rights Reserved. Distributed by Hurst Sports Media.