It’s a brave man who can come out with barrels blazing and say that he thinks buyers of the Scion FR-S or Subaru BRZ are having a ‘midlife crisis’. That’s exactly what Nissan Executive Vice President Andy Palmer said recently when referring to two of the hottest, most affordable sports cars to venture forth from Japan in a decade. So can Nissan do any better? It thinks so. “You’ll see our answer to the midlife crisis at the Tokyo Motor Show. Except it won’t be for a midlife crisis,” added Palmer. “It’ll be aimed at young and middle aged types alike.”
In a marketplace where Generation Z is losing interest in cars and car culture, Nissan is trying to reignite some interest and passion back into motoring with a new two door, rear wheel drive concept car, the IDx.
Nissan designers say that customer paradigms are changing significantly, warranting change. Trying to appeal to digital natives who value IT and social media networks as the new communication tools of the 21st Century is the key, says one designer.
The car has to be stylish, offer the right combination of social networking tools including Bluetooth, internet and navigation connectivity and drive well. But Nissan’s product planners realized that these features were not enough to create a car that catches the eye as well as the heart.
So Nissan decided to delve back into its rich heritage of sports cars and race cars to find inspiration. As chief designer Satoru Tai says, “we are talking about models like the Datsun 1600, Skyline and Laurel from the 1960s and 70s. That is where we sourced our inspiration. We conceived the IDx through direct interaction with Generation Z who seek a compact, minimalistic sedan-shaped coupe.” Boasting a low and wide stance, Tai tells us that the IDx is actually a little shorter in wheelbase than the FR-S and BRZ so colourfully described by Palmer.
A look at the IDx’s silhouette reveals these design slants. As the former owner of a Datsun 1600, this writer can definitely see some 1600 influence in the IDx’s side profile. And while this design is fresh and new but with retro hints for young buyers, the overall design seems all too familiar yet appealing for buyers in their 40s who grew up watching 1600s and Skylines appear on the roads.
Tai went on to say that one other aspect of this concept that we thought important for young and mid-aged buyers alike would be a rear-wheel drive platform. Nissan was being tight-lipped about the powertrain, but one engineer suggested that a naturally aspirated 1.6 liter engine generating around 140-150hp would most probably find its way into the IDx’s engine bay.
To pluck at the heartstrings of all those who long for the “new,” but with a touch of nostalgia, Nissan also unveiled an IDx Nismo version draped in the company’s traditional racing colors and featuring bigger wheels, along with racier body styling and interior appointments.
Read more:
Nissan IDx Freeflow and IDx Nismo Concepts
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