I recently saw the new 2010 Nissan cube, and noticed (and liked) the asymetric rear wraparound window. is this the first car to have this sort of styling? Ive never seen this before so im curious to see others
This car has been around for quite a while in Japan. Carlos Ghosn wanted to bring it to the USA years ago but they thought the asymmetric styling wouldn't work here because the blind spot is on the wrong side for left-hand drive (Japan has right-hand drive). This was several years before the Scion brand was created and the xB was brought here. In 2005, we started doing a proposal for the next Cube at Nissan Design America, San Diego. Obviously the asymmetric design was picked up again on the NDA proposal, which was selected and went into production. Personally, I still like the original Cube better than the new one, which really doesn't break any new ground.
as of this week, i'm the owner of a beautiful dark brown cube with dark brown upholstery, one of the first ones in spain. it's my first car ever, and i'm in love with it. now i'll just have to get a driver license to actually drive it. silly me.
aflo, was the nda proposal really the chosen one? i thought its exterior designer was john sahs from the atsugi center (lovely chap).
i think i prefer the old one too, but this one looks more relaxed, more yuru-nachu. it was a surprise to see this model keeping the asymmetry, i was pretty sure they were going to ditch it for a solution akin to the one on the original chappo concept, with the wrap-around glass. i bet it's quite expensive to tool a car like this, with its different left-hand / right-hand drive versions, compared to a symmetric one.
I retired before the final model was finished at NDA. However, the idea that was selected was already bouncing around NDA, I think done by Brian Thompson. Also, A. Albaisa's favorite designs all had that ogee section (to the point of becoming quite irritating). Frankly, when I saw the production release, I was very disappointed because I thought they would use one of the MANY better designs that were also being developed at NDA (and probably NDE and in Japan). The car looks ridiculous on the road here in California. It looks like a Playskool or Little Tykes solution. I happen to have a Scion xB (the first US version) and it is a serious vehicle, not a toylike, self conscious and indulgent piece of design.
It is a question of the context into which a design is introduced. The original Cube was cool, in its era. Now it might be silly looking too. A baby is cute. A ten year old child proportioned like a baby would be frightening.
I saw the New Nissan Cube design,It's really very cool.I think the car makers are starting to realize the importance of great looking rims and how they carry a lot of weight with the consumers.
in response to aflo's comment with no disrespect, since you indeed had retired from Nissan Design even before any cube's sketches or model was selected. "In 2005, we started doing a proposal for the next Cube at Nissan Design America, San Diego. Obviously the asymmetric design was picked up again on the NDA proposal, which was selected and went into production"
In 2005 the cube project was initiated as a global competition by NDA, NDC and NDE. Mr. Alfonso Albaisa was at NDC as a PCD to lead the Japanese team on the Cube project from the beginning to design freeze. In the final round to choose between 2 models, both which were from Japan, Mr. John Sahs model was chosen, which had already adapted the asymmetry design from the 2nd Generation cube from the beginning of the project. Mr. John Sahs and Mr. Alfonso Albaisa worked very closely together to insure the cube project was a success from a design and product standpoint. It is true that Mr. Brian Thompson made proposals but was not the only one working on asymmetry theme which started by the 2nd Generation Cube designer Mr. Kuwahara Hirotada. Mr. Brian Thompson is a very talented designer, but Mr. Thompson's proposals had no influence at all in the development or final production. You can see the whole process in Car Styling issue #162 or read on Automobile Magazine link http://www.automobilemag.com/r...ssan_cube/index.html
All the design team from Nissan worked hard on the cube project and especially the Japanese team, which was a multinational team. We want to make sure the story is set correctly so that the people who had worked their sweat and blood on the cube project from the beginning to the very end will not be mis understood by one person's lack of information. I do believe Nissan tries very hard to reward and give credit where it is due to their employees. I am sure aflo understand this, since aflo have given many years of your design service to Nissan. It is true that the cube design is a polarizing design, but one can say it does make a statement and is indeed a car design from Japan that is appealing to certain people who are searching for a life less ordinary:-)
Originally posted by aflo: This car has been around for quite a while in Japan. Carlos Ghosn wanted to bring it to the USA years ago but they thought the asymmetric styling wouldn't work here because the blind spot is on the wrong side for left-hand drive (Japan has right-hand drive). This was several years before the Scion brand was created and the xB was brought here. In 2005, we started doing a proposal for the next Cube at Nissan Design America, San Diego. Obviously the asymmetric design was picked up again on the NDA proposal, which was selected and went into production. Personally, I still like the original Cube better than the new one, which really doesn't break any new ground.
in response to aflo's comment with no disrespect, since you indeed had retired from Nissan Design even before any cube's sketches or model was selected. "In 2005, we started doing a proposal for the next Cube at Nissan Design America, San Diego. Obviously the asymmetric design was picked up again on the NDA proposal, which was selected and went into production"
In 2005 the cube project was initiated as a global competition by NDA, NDC and NDE. Mr. Alfonso Albaisa was at NDC as a PCD to lead the Japanese team on the Cube project from the beginning to design freeze. In the final round to choose between 2 models, both which were from Japan, Mr. John Sahs model was chosen, which had already adapted the asymmetry design from the 2nd Generation cube from the beginning of the project. Mr. John Sahs and Mr. Alfonso Albaisa worked very closely together to insure the cube project was a success from a design and product standpoint. It is true that Mr. Brian Thompson made proposals but was not the only one working on asymmetry theme which started by the 2nd Generation Cube designer Mr. Kuwahara Hirotada. Mr. Brian Thompson is a very talented designer, but Mr. Thompson's proposals had no influence at all in the development or final production. You can see the whole process in Car Styling issue #162 or read on Automobile Magazine link http://www.automobilemag.com/r...ssan_cube/index.html
All the design team from Nissan worked hard on the cube project and especially the Japanese team, which was a multinational team. We want to make sure the story is set correctly so that the people who had worked their sweat and blood on the cube project from the beginning to the very end will not be mis understood by one person's lack of information. I do believe Nissan tries very hard to reward and give credit where it is due to their employees. I am sure aflo understand this, since aflo have given many years of your design service to Nissan. It is true that the cube design is a polarizing design, but one can say it does make a statement and is indeed a car design from Japan that is appealing to certain people who are searching for a life less ordinary:-)
