LONDON: Nissan president and CEO Makoto Uchida unveiled the Nissan Concept 20-23, a sporty urban electric concept car, here to mark the 20th anniversary of Nissan Design Europe (NDE).
The Concept 20-23 was created by a team including some younger members of NDE, with the simple brief to design a car that they would like to drive every day in the city where they work.
The name reflects 20 years of NDE's position in the heart of London, as well as the company's traditional number 2 (ni) 3 (san) and the current year. It also continues a long Nissan tradition of bringing eye-catching playfulness to the world of hatchbacks and city cars.
The Concept 20-23 is a compact hatchback strongly influenced by the online racing world and Nissan's participation in Formula E.
Its basic 3-door hatchback body-style features extreme aerodynamic addenda front and rear, with deep skirts directing airflow away from the front of the car, through apertures to cool the brakes, and out through vents just behind the front wheels.
The nose of the car consists of a flat plane from which angles up to the top of the hood, giving the front an unexpectedly clean surface.
The car's muscularity comes from extended wheel arches which shroud large wheels with low profile tyres. The top side of the wheel arches front and rear feature vented louvres to reduce pressure that can create air resistance in the wheel bay.
At the rear, a large single-piece spoiler emerges harmoniously from the roof rail, with endplates which curve from the near vertical close to the c-pillar over to the angled horizontal element which generates the downforce.
Each of the rear lights consist of a thin upper and lower semi-circle LED, contrasted with the squared off forms of the lower portion defined by fiercely functional shapes to manage airflow and maximize the creation of downforce as the air escapes from under the car.
The exterior grey paint has a textured finish, reflecting the gritty environment it was designed to inhabit.
The interior is a futuristic interpretation of a racing car’s bare functionality, with just a couple of screens displaying vital information with minimal distractions.
Entry is by two scissor doors which hinge upwards from the base of the A-pillar.
Once in position, the driver is greeted by a long extended steering column which culminates in a rectangular sports steering wheel festooned with multiple controls and adjustments.
Paddles to adjust the electric powertrain performance and additional switches are within fingertip reach behind the wheel.
Between the two occupants, two metal beams hold the centre console in position and are bolted to the “spine” of the car that appears from the floor. Beneath the two brace bars, a fire extinguisher is mounted.
