Bold Nissan concept for young friends

Published Apr 22, 2013

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Shanghai Motor Show - It may have a rather cheesy name, but the Nissan Friend-ME concept certainly piques our interest with its daring exterior design.

Revealed at the Shanghai show on Saturday, the concept car - although said to be globally applicable - was designed around the aspirations of the Chinese youth, particularly men, who will soon emerge as the world's largest single market segment.

Nissan reckons that this car's boldly sculpted lines make it "a confident creature of the night, meant to be seen in bright city lights."

Taiji Toyota, who in fact does work for Nissan as its Chinese design vice president added: "We call our solution Distilled Da Qi.

"Da Qi is about casting an aura, about standing out, but at the same time going with the flow, fitting in. It's a question of balance, and we've worked to refine it right down to the essence. The result adds an entirely new and youthful dimension to the sedan category."

ITS OCCUPANTS ARE ‘EQUALS’

Given that its target market grew up without siblings, the car emphasises the importance of friends - hence its name.

Inside the concept all four seats are separate and have the same high-tech style and status, because in this cabin all aboard are peers - equals. In line with that, all share the same information as the driver such as speed, navigation, fuel remaining - basically everything.

Empowering all four adventurers is a unique centre console stretching from the dash to between the rear seats - an iconic monolith in an onyx-black finish.

Screens visible from each seat blend seamlessly with the surface, only becoming apparent as they display whatever contents the buzz of the moment demands. Whoever finds cool content can transfer it from his mobile to the on-board screens so all can share in the fun.

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