My Jetta wagon was like that, where a motor would release the latch but there was no cinch feature.
Here are some interesting things:
I looked at a 2011 manual to see if it cinches and it says: "To close, lower and gently push the lift gate down. The power latch will engage to securely latch the lift gate." It says the same thing in the 2008 manual. Not sure if this is just an oversight. Here's a link:
http://www.vadennissanservicecontracts. ... finder.pdf
Another difference between the 2008 and 2011 manuals is that the 2008 shows how to open the hatch from inside (through that little cover I was talking about) and the 2011 does not. Not sure why they deleted that in the car.
I do know the hatch latch assembly has different model numbers for 2011-2012.
Anyone else reading this have a 2010-2012 with the rear hatch cinch feature?