Small “Fun Car of the Future” to be built in UK

It is described as “sophisticated but fun” and will be based on the futuristic Qazana design concept crossover car that recently made its world debut at the Geneva International Motor Show.

The show car - the star of the Nissan stand in Geneva - is said to provide a good indication of the, as yet unnamed, compact car that will be produced at the marque’s UK production plant in Sunderland, north-east England, at an investment cost of about 57 million pounds.

Trial builds of the newcomer will begin in early 2010 before its introduction on the assembly line currently used to produce Micra and Nissan Note models. This will have spare capacity when production of the Micra ends later in 2010.

Nissan

Nissan describes the new car as a baby brother to the Qashqai and claims it will reinforce the company’s position as a pioneer of crossover vehicles that are so called because they combine the virtues of a family saloon and four-wheel-drive type vehicles.

The Qashqai crossover was the first all-new product to be designed, engineered and built by Nissan in the UK and its success has led to the addition of a seven-seat version known as Qashqai +2.

A company spokesman said: “By introducing an alternative to the traditional family hatchback, the Nissan Qashqai revolutionised one of the most conservative sectors of the market. That success has now inspired Nissan to see how it can reshape the small five-door of the future.”

By introducing an alternative to the traditional family hatchback, the Nissan Qashqai revolutionised one of the most conservative sectors of the market

Spokesman

Nissan

The decision to put the company’s small car future in the hands of the London-based Nissan Design Europe (NDE) studio and the extensive Sunderland car building complex means that more than 1,000 jobs have been safeguarded and the total investment in the Sunderland plant has risen to 2.5 billion pounds since 1984.

Nissan is now the leading car producer and exporter among the UK’s eight volume manufacturers and the markets served from the UK include its home country of Japan.

The UK is also the home of Nissan Technical Centre Europe that is the European headquarters for the firm’s technological activities.

The NDE’s vice-president Alfonso Albaisa said of the Qazana: “It gives a clear direction of how a future small car from Nissan could look.”

And according to Matt Weaver, the project’s leading designer at NDE, Qazana is a “hugely optimistic car” and was designed to be “sophisticated but fun”.

The chief designer at the London studio, Atsushi Maeda, added: “The Qazana concept is an intelligent, all-wheel-drive crossover which is masculine, agile, lean and designed for the tough city streets.”

Its compact overall dimensions mean it is ideally suited to the urban environment. But Nissan says its advanced specification and styling suggest an ability that goes far beyond the city walls.

Qazana is a “hugely optimistic car” and was designed to be “sophisticated but fun

Matt Weaver

Leading Designer of Qazana

Nissan

By mixing sport utility vehicle (SUV) and sports car styling, the NDE designers claim to have created a highly individual crossover quite unlike anything else on the road.

Although it appears at first glance to be a two-door coupe, Qazana has a further pair of rear-hinged half doors to ease access to the rear compartment. All the doors are electrically operated and for safety reasons the rear pair can only be activated once the front doors have been opened.

The roof has a pair of thin glass inserts running its full length to increase the volume of natural light in the cabin. The interior has a number of interesting design features.

Parts of the lightweight carbon-fibre seat structure are on permanent view and the centre portion of the seat backrests involves the use of a mesh material that allows fresh air to circulate around the occupants.

The project is perhaps best summed up in one final comment from the Nissan spokesman: “Cars have been dull for too long. Fortunately, Nissan has the answer: inspired by a simple desire to have fun behind the wheel, Qazana shows that mind-numbing motoring could be a thing of the past.”