Years ago, Nissan had intended to bring to various markets a compact and sporty RWD car to compete in many ways with the incredibly successful Mazda MX-5. The plan got dumped a few years ago given the uncertain direction of the market at the time.
How things have changed!
In an effort to regain some lost momentum, Nissan has every intention to launch 52 new cars and trucks between now and 2016. But rather than develop new platforms, which is time consuming and very costly, they've secured a deal with Daimler for a supply of midsize chassis.
This means many things. First, these platforms will be able to accommodate 4, 6 and 8-cylinder engines and should allow Nissan to offer RWD and AWD variants of the products.
Given that, the next Z and GT-R will probably end up sporting some “Made in Germany” stampings in the future. It's all good.
About the MX-5 fighter (We think the Scion FR-S may have something to do with this renewed interest also), instead of using a turbocharged Juke powertrain as initially expected, it will most likely get a tuned version of the Leaf’s drivetrain. As well, a hybrid version is being considered.
Styling-wise, the car could look something like the ESFLOW concept we saw in Geneva, earlier this year. Other good news involves Lotus Engineering working on the chassis setup and lightweight construction.
The only date we have now is 2013.
Source: AutoExpress
How things have changed!
In an effort to regain some lost momentum, Nissan has every intention to launch 52 new cars and trucks between now and 2016. But rather than develop new platforms, which is time consuming and very costly, they've secured a deal with Daimler for a supply of midsize chassis.
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| Nissan ESFLOW Concept (Photo: Nissan) |
This means many things. First, these platforms will be able to accommodate 4, 6 and 8-cylinder engines and should allow Nissan to offer RWD and AWD variants of the products.
Given that, the next Z and GT-R will probably end up sporting some “Made in Germany” stampings in the future. It's all good.
About the MX-5 fighter (We think the Scion FR-S may have something to do with this renewed interest also), instead of using a turbocharged Juke powertrain as initially expected, it will most likely get a tuned version of the Leaf’s drivetrain. As well, a hybrid version is being considered.
Styling-wise, the car could look something like the ESFLOW concept we saw in Geneva, earlier this year. Other good news involves Lotus Engineering working on the chassis setup and lightweight construction.
The only date we have now is 2013.
Source: AutoExpress