Car Modern 2011

We know what you’re thinking but stop right there. What you are looking at here isn’t the result of some crafty photoshop business - it’s the real deal; an actual factual microcar replica of a 1970 Nissan Skyline GT-R coupe that was created by Japanese tuning firm Liberty Walk Performance. The scaled down, single-seater clone of Nissan’s first-generation Skyline GT-R is based on a quad-bike and it’s perfectly drivable.
This is not the first time we’ve shown you a microcar replica from Liberty Walk Performance as some of you may remember the…Lambormini Murcielago snapped by our own Phil Alex at last year’s Tokyo Auto Salon.
The Japanese company has not yet added pricing info on the Skyline GT-R buggy on its website, but just to get an idea, the Lambormini starts from 1.88 million Yen, which comes to about US$23,250 or €16,750 at today’s exchange rates. Feast your eyes on the photo gallery and a couple of videos after the jump. 

Having been invited out to the seaside town of Del Mar in California for the presentation of the new Murano CrossCabriolet, we were intrigued at the chance to take Nissan's polarizing convertible out for a spin. That's right, the Murano convertible. How did things play out in California? Interesting, to say the least. 
With the Murano CC, Nissan has gone outside the box to create its own niche. Looks aside, the Murano CC has done what it set out to do: garner interest, spur conversation, expand the model range, and change (not necessarily raise) the bar for mid-size crossovers. For all the ups and downs, read on.


Nissan's Murano CC is a two-door convertible crossover that sits at the top of the Murano heap, creating a unique halo vehicle for the brand's crossover segment. While the CC's design is a love-it or hate-it affair, there's no doubt that we can all agree on one aspect: it doesn't come off nearly as badly as those photoshops which alluded to an aftermarket convertible conversion.
This proper execution is thanks to a significant redesign of everything from the windscreen / A-pillar back, while keeping external dimensions similar to that of its hardtop counterpart. Nissan has also found a way to retain the Murano's "J-Motion" belt line that, with the top down, adds a sense of continuity when following the invisible roofline back from the A-pillar.
Revisions to the standard Murano include cutting out the rear doors while infusing the front units with a healthy dose of Enzyte to the tune of 7.9 inches. Surprisingly, ingress and egress weren't too hampered even with more than half a foot of metal added on (although that may have simply been due to this writer’s lankiness). Losing all that rigidity meant that Nissan had to reinforce the body architecture...a lot. Locations deemed essential bracing points were the area formerly known as B-pillar, the floor, and the sills.
The fully automatic top, available in black or beige, drops in approximately 25 seconds; however, unlike many modern drop-tops, it can only be operated when the vehicle is parked. That means no slow-rolling raising/lowering should rain decide to ruin your day while puttering in traffic.


Under all the new fuss is Nissan's familiar 3.5-liter V6 - now rated at 265 horsepower and 248 lb-ft - and an Xtronic CVT, both of which do their part to scuttle the all-wheel drive CC around with relative ease. It's no rocket, but then again it's not supposed to be.
Under normal driving conditions, the CVT works like a dream, still prompting a grin at mankind's technological advances; unless putting the pedal to the proverbial metal, acceleration is smooth and uninterrupted.
Ride quality may have been a tad fluttery when rolling over some of San Diego's not-so-well-paved roads in a convertible crossover on 20-inch alloys, but this is to be expected when lobbing off a vehicle's roof, B-, and C-pillars. On the boulevard, however, the ride was smooth and relaxing as expected.
Top-up motoring is fairly standard for a convertible, meaning there are compromises to be made in sound quality due to the soft top and lack of bulletproof glass. With the top down, all that has to be said is this: turbulence mitigation is lacking. One cohort expressed that she was "swimming in [her] hair", but the most noticeable issue was the lack of rear seat belt retainers, which led to an unsophisticated flapping at highway speeds. Other than a bit of buffeting, though, sky-filled driving was a pleasure.
Steering feedback is a different story. Even in the premium market, where ease of use and lack of effort are lauded incessantly, the electronically assisted steering of the CC was beyond feather-light. TOO beyond feather-light. When maneuvering around a parking lot, it was almost impossible to feel any communication between the driver and the tarmac. Not until reaching cruising speeds did it feel like anything was actually happening. Some would say that's the point, but what's steering without feedback?


As Nissan puts it, the Murano is a car for empty-nesters. With the Murano CrossCabriolet, the brand hopes to appeal to higher income ($125,000+ / year) Murano-esque consumers who are slightly younger, "savvy" and adventurous, but with kids in high school.
The CC is a crossover convertible, meaning this Murano looks to kill two birds with one stone: owning a convertible and maintaining utility, meaning offering a usable convertible as a second household car instead of a third. Whether or not that is truly the case, only time will tell.
Either way, with over 900 pre-orders and significant interest, the response is there. As for whether or not we'll see another generation, well, that depends on if there are enough Beetle convertible owners and middle-age moms out there who want to keep their car, possibly get some sun, and increase utility.
At $46,390 (plus $810 D&H) is it the car for me? No, but it could be for some people. The bottom line is this: nit-pickery and little flubs aside, kudos to Nissan for being brave enough to break the mold and then put the result into production. 


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Nissan’s unveiling the ESFLOW EV concept at the Geneva Auto Show next month. Well, here it is. Click through for the interior shot. God I wish the CE industry had the guts to show-off their forward-thinking concepts — just the Microsoft Courier comes to mind. Anyway, the European auto show is actually expected to feature a fair amount of new production and concept vehicles with this Nissan as one of the stars. No doubt more flattering photos will surface showing off the graceful curves Nissan designers love to use.

Vitally, ESFLOW is not an existing ICE (internal combustion engine) powered vehicle that has been adapted to run on electricity, but a sports car that's been designed from the outset as a Zero Emission vehicle. This means that Nissan's forward thinking designers have had free rein to place the power train and batteries in the optimum positions to benefit the car's handling and performance and enhancing the thrill of driving.



The Nissan ESFLOW Concept is based on existing technology, implemented in innovative ways. An attractive, head turning composite body covers an aluminium chassis, incorporating its own roll cage. The powertrain unit, which employs the same technologies installed in the Nissan
LEAF, is tuned to offer a sporty driving experience.





Nissan ESFLOW Concept is rear-wheel drive and it runs on two motors. The car's graceful proportions allow the twin electric motors to be placed above the axis of the rear wheels, in a mid-ship position,. These motors independently control the left and right wheels, and so the torque is optimized to ensure outstanding vehicle stability and control as well as efficient power regeneration. The motors produce enough torque in an instant for it to reach a 100kph in under 5 seconds.
Power for the motors comes from the same laminated lithium-ion battery packs used in the Nissan LEAF, but in ESFLOW the packs are located along the axis of the front and rear wheels. This centralizes the mass of the car, and thus its rotation point, close to the driver's hips. These cleverly positioned batteries enable the car to travel over 240km on one charge.



An aluminium chassis has been built around the drive train, taking full advantage of the opportunities that Zero Emission electric propulsion provides. Power cells are incorporated in such a way that they benefit ESFLOW's strength and poise, not detract from them. Indeed, unlike a conventional fuel tank, batteries do not get lighter as they provide energy, so the car's weight distribution remains constant throughout a drive.
The high waistline afforded by the Nissan ESFLOW Concept's classic sports car proportions allows strong, yet unobtrusive roll bars incorporated in to the structure behind the seats to safely take the entire load of the car in the event of a roll over, negating the need for obtrusive, thick, reinforced A-pillars and the blind spots they inevitably create.
This almost unobstructed view ahead will not be unfamiliar to fighter pilots, and just as such pilots speak of "strapping their planes on to their backs", we hope ESFLOW owners will also feel the car to be an extension of their bodies, reacting to their slightest whims. The driver must be at the centre of the sports car both physically and metaphorically.


The Nissan ESFLOW Concept is undoubtedly an attractive car. Crisp, clean lines not only convey the purity of its sporting potential, but suggest the clarity of electric power. The colour scheme chosen for the concept car is inspired by glaciers - highly reflective solidified liquid with blue tints in its shadows. Like its ZEV concept forebears and contemporary stable mate the ESFLOW's headlights and Nissan emblem are tinted cool blue. The six spoke wheels contain blue carbon inserts while the same material adorns the side sill, roof mounted lip spoiler and lower rear bumper.
Blue LEDs accentuate the futuristic lights slashed into the bodywork both front and rear. Where the Nissan LEAF's protrusive headlights are used to guide airflow around the door mirrors, this is not needed on Nissan ESFLOW Concept as the mirrors have been replaced with minute rear view cameras at the base of its A-pillars. The ESFLOW's front lights do protect a secret of their own however: flip out charging points built in to the air ducts beneath.


Ecological minimalism need not come at the expense of luxury. The cabin of the Nissan ESFLOW Concept is clean and open and weight saving has been a priority throughout its design, but it is still a comfortable and pleasant place to sit. By far the heaviest components in modern cars' interiors are the steel framed, thickly upholstered and increasingly motorized seats. In ESFLOW the seats are sculpted into the rear bulkhead of the car, negating the need for a heavy frame. This of course means that they are immobile, but this is of no consequence as the fly-by-wire steering and pedals adjust electrically to the best spot to suit each individual driver's size and preferred driving position.
The seats themselves are upholstered in gold leather and perforated gold suede while the doors are trimmed in dark blue leather and suede. The blue and gold motif, the colour of sparks, is continued across the dashboard, which is also adorned with silver carbon trim, and features four multifunction illuminated LCD displays.


Daniel, an ESFLOW owner, works in tech, but lives for the weekend. On Friday night after work, he gets behind the wheels of his ESFLOW which instantly links with his pocket PDA and determines the fastest route to his girlfriend's home. Finding street side parking is a synch as the Nissan ESFLOW Concept's compact dimensions allow it to slip in to the narrowest of spaces. On Saturday he drives to a popular club to exhibit his DJ skills and his friends are impressed by his cool EV sports car.
On Sunday he drives through the mountains for leisure. ESFLOW's superb weight distribution and unobstructed view ahead enables him to effortlessly nail every apex, every time. His descent from the mountains is more relaxed and he allows the ESFLOW to overrun on the long sweeping curves, turning the potential energy he and the car gained climbing up the gradients back in to electrical energy he can use once he hits the roads around Barcelona.
As his ESFLOW sips energy in its garage Daniel prepares himself for the week ahead, batteries fully recharged.

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