"We want URGE to replicate the raw motorcycle experience as much as possible, with the exposed engine, door panel cutouts and
open top. Motorcycles are exhilarating to drive and we want this car to feel the same way," added Campbell. "At the same time, we want parents to think of this car as safe, which, for example, led us to include the integrated cage structure and visible passenger's side airbag. URGE, like its target buyers, has a foot in each world, adventure and reality."
And that sequential manual shifter, also motorbike-like, is a "quick, high-revving, small-displacement engine", or so says Nissan. While no additional information was provided it won't take much power to motivate the 1,089 kilo (2,400 lb) URGE, aided in the corners by 19-inch front and 20-inch rear 9-spoke spun aluminum-alloy rims wrapped up inside 195/45 R19 front and 225/35 R20 Michelin performance tires.
Through
the spokes powerful 350Z-style Brembo four-wheel disc brakes will without doubt bring forward momentum to an attentive halt.
From a performance perspective, the URGE is a modern-day Lotus 7, the perfect partner for all three of its occupants. Three? Yes, while some might find this number too much of a crowd for their sporting objectives, the option of driving someone's best friend home before dropping off a certain significant other may have its real-world benefits. The URGE positions the second passenger in an innovative hidden seat tucked out of sight behind the two front seats.
"One of our other goals in the URGE design was to show off the cool material used in concept form - the aluminum foam in the doors, the perforated metal mesh interior panels, the lightweight exposed seat frames and the "Mirror Crystal" aluminum colored body panels," continued Campbell. "We're also proud of our solution to the limitations of a typical two-seat sports car with the hidden alpha seat."
Nissan didn't just make up the URGE's innovative features out of thin air, but actually went so far to survey 2,000 young car and gaming enthusiasts via the net.
"Not surprisingly, most of the young, primarily male, respondents to our survey said that they want a small, fun-to-drive sports car that can incorporate the technology products that they use on a daily basis, such as cell phones, mp3 players and game consoles," commented Campbell. "We also learned that these young adults are highly social - they're looking
for vehicles with the flexibility to take along a couple of friends. They also don't want a car to dominate their social lives or budgets, so affordability is a definite issue."
Dimensionally, the URGE features a wheelbase that's 406 mm (16 inches) shorter than the 350Z's at 2,650 mm (104.3 inches), while its overall length stretches 3,979 mm (156.6 inches), its width spans 1,824 mm (71.8 inches) and height reaches 1,260 mm (49.6 inches), and much of that exposed silver is actually its alloy exoskeleton which also reaches beneath the surface to form its centre structure - again, just like a Japanese sport bike. Much of its construction is made up of carbon fibre, for the ultimate combination of rigidity and light weight. If rain should come, the T-top and exposed rear window can be quickly covered with a manual operated canvas top. And those doors, they open up scissor-like; similar to the way Lamborghini does it.
 |
| It shouldn't take much power to motivate the 1,089 kilo (2,400 lb) URGE, aided in the corners by 19-inch front and 20-inch rear 9-spoke spun aluminum-alloy rims. (Photo: Nissan North America) |
And that sequential manual shifter, also motorbike-like, is a "quick, high-revving, small-displacement engine", or so says Nissan. While no additional information was provided it won't take much power to motivate the 1,089 kilo (2,400 lb) URGE, aided in the corners by 19-inch front and 20-inch rear 9-spoke spun aluminum-alloy rims wrapped up inside 195/45 R19 front and 225/35 R20 Michelin performance tires.
Through
 |
| From a performance perspective, the URGE is a modern-day Lotus 7, the perfect partner for all three of its occupants. (Photo: Nissan North America) |
From a performance perspective, the URGE is a modern-day Lotus 7, the perfect partner for all three of its occupants. Three? Yes, while some might find this number too much of a crowd for their sporting objectives, the option of driving someone's best friend home before dropping off a certain significant other may have its real-world benefits. The URGE positions the second passenger in an innovative hidden seat tucked out of sight behind the two front seats.
"One of our other goals in the URGE design was to show off the cool material used in concept form - the aluminum foam in the doors, the perforated metal mesh interior panels, the lightweight exposed seat frames and the "Mirror Crystal" aluminum colored body panels," continued Campbell. "We're also proud of our solution to the limitations of a typical two-seat sports car with the hidden alpha seat."
Nissan didn't just make up the URGE's innovative features out of thin air, but actually went so far to survey 2,000 young car and gaming enthusiasts via the net.
"Not surprisingly, most of the young, primarily male, respondents to our survey said that they want a small, fun-to-drive sports car that can incorporate the technology products that they use on a daily basis, such as cell phones, mp3 players and game consoles," commented Campbell. "We also learned that these young adults are highly social - they're looking
 |
| "Not surprisingly, most of the young, primarily male, respondents to our survey said that they want a small, fun-to-drive sports car that can incorporate the technology products that they use on a daily basis," commented Nissan's Bruce Campbell. (Photo: Nissan North America) |
Dimensionally, the URGE features a wheelbase that's 406 mm (16 inches) shorter than the 350Z's at 2,650 mm (104.3 inches), while its overall length stretches 3,979 mm (156.6 inches), its width spans 1,824 mm (71.8 inches) and height reaches 1,260 mm (49.6 inches), and much of that exposed silver is actually its alloy exoskeleton which also reaches beneath the surface to form its centre structure - again, just like a Japanese sport bike. Much of its construction is made up of carbon fibre, for the ultimate combination of rigidity and light weight. If rain should come, the T-top and exposed rear window can be quickly covered with a manual operated canvas top. And those doors, they open up scissor-like; similar to the way Lamborghini does it.