Rumor has it that Nissan Motor Co.—purveyors of one of the cheapest cars on America’s roadways, the $10,620 Versa 1.6 sedan—wants something even simpler, smaller, and cheaper to sell in the U.S. According to Automotive News, Nissan is thinking about bringing us a microcar based on its new V platform in order to help make the architecture good for a million units worldwide.
The report says the car will be sold as a four-door sedan, five-door hatch, and an MPV, and will replace the Mini Cooper–sized Micra, which is sold in many markets around the world. The new car allegedly will be powered by a three-cylinder engine and will have a simple-to-assemble interior with about half the dashboard parts of the current Micra. It is also said to achieve a 50-percent improvement in fuel economy over the already efficient Micra. AN evidently wasn’t able to squeeze out any further details, such as the official name of the car nor when it might appear on these shores.
What we’re most curious about, however, is how the new car will fit into Nissan’s brand positioning as a pseudo-performance alternative to the industry leaders like Honda, Toyota, and Hyundai. On one hand, Mini proportions could yield Mini-like handling—a good thing; on the other hand, three-cylinder engines have us thinking Smart-like acceleration—not such a good thing. In any case, the new model will certainly go a long way to help the company meet more-stringent U.S. emissions and fuel-economy standards of the future. Whether it will meet our standards is an entirely separate matter.
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