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Written by Dan Carney
After a run of success with unorthodox SUV styling,especially in the Juke subcompact crossover SUV, Nissan has apparently decidedto mine this vein as the company"s new signature. The result, shown at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show, is the Gripz Concept, a sleek crossover SUV thatseeks to chisel another niche into the Nissan"s already-packed line of SUVs."We want to redefine the crossover segment," explained Giovanny Arroba, Creative Design Manager for Nissan Design Europe, the London studio responsiblefor the concept. Citing the Juke as a prior success in this this effort, hesaid, "This is a very important segment for us, and we wanted to see how far wecould push it." Far enough to ruffle enthusiasts" feathers, who fear thatthe Gripz could be approved for production at a time when the 370Z may bedropped from the line, prompting them to view the Gripz as the Z-car"sreplacement. Arroba insists that the Gripz stands on its own and is unrelatedto other product decisions, but the company made enough attempts to link the Gripzto the Z that suspicions remain that Nissan views it as a next-generation Z. Aside from the "z" at the end of its name, the Gripz Conceptalso wears a matte black hood with orange-red paint as a tribute to the SafariRally Z, an off-road racing version of the early 240Z. Nissan won the SafariRally with the car. Aside from the nod to the off-road sports cars of 40 yearsago, the main inspiration for the Gripz Concept was road bicycles, reportedArroba. The car features a carbon frame, with body panels mounted over it.Exposed carbon elements such as the boomerang-shaped door structure underscoreits construction. "The interior guys brought in the road-bike inspiration, andit spread to the exterior because it struck a chord with us," said Arroba. Theidea was to leave frame materials and vehicle componentry exposed as they areon bicycles, he said. "We"re not padding and insulating and hiding that," hesaid. Beyond the openings for the scissor front and rear-hinged rear doors, sharp anglesabound in the Gripz Concept, from its V-shaped grille to its indented triangularsills. Even the exhaust pipe tips are trapezoidal. It does have exhaust because there is an internal combustionunder the hood, though the concept"s powertrain is a series hybrid, so the gasolineengine"s power spins a generator that powers an electric motor borrowed fromthe Leaf EV. Nissan provided no additional technical details, just saying thatthe electric drive system lends the concept a smooth, refined, and exhilarating drivingexperience with outstanding fuel efficiency.
Date: 22-Sep-2015 11:25 EDT
More of this article on the SAE International website
ID: 1367
After a run of success with unorthodox SUV styling,especially in the Juke subcompact crossover SUV, Nissan has apparently decidedto mine this vein as the company"s new signature. The result, shown at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show, is the Gripz Concept, a sleek crossover SUV thatseeks to chisel another niche into the Nissan"s already-packed line of SUVs."We want to redefine the crossover segment," explained Giovanny Arroba, Creative Design Manager for Nissan Design Europe, the London studio responsiblefor the concept. Citing the Juke as a prior success in this this effort, hesaid, "This is a very important segment for us, and we wanted to see how far wecould push it." Far enough to ruffle enthusiasts" feathers, who fear thatthe Gripz could be approved for production at a time when the 370Z may bedropped from the line, prompting them to view the Gripz as the Z-car"sreplacement. Arroba insists that the Gripz stands on its own and is unrelatedto other product decisions, but the company made enough attempts to link the Gripzto the Z that suspicions remain that Nissan views it as a next-generation Z. Aside from the "z" at the end of its name, the Gripz Conceptalso wears a matte black hood with orange-red paint as a tribute to the SafariRally Z, an off-road racing version of the early 240Z. Nissan won the SafariRally with the car. Aside from the nod to the off-road sports cars of 40 yearsago, the main inspiration for the Gripz Concept was road bicycles, reportedArroba. The car features a carbon frame, with body panels mounted over it.Exposed carbon elements such as the boomerang-shaped door structure underscoreits construction. "The interior guys brought in the road-bike inspiration, andit spread to the exterior because it struck a chord with us," said Arroba. Theidea was to leave frame materials and vehicle componentry exposed as they areon bicycles, he said. "We"re not padding and insulating and hiding that," hesaid. Beyond the openings for the scissor front and rear-hinged rear doors, sharp anglesabound in the Gripz Concept, from its V-shaped grille to its indented triangularsills. Even the exhaust pipe tips are trapezoidal. It does have exhaust because there is an internal combustionunder the hood, though the concept"s powertrain is a series hybrid, so the gasolineengine"s power spins a generator that powers an electric motor borrowed fromthe Leaf EV. Nissan provided no additional technical details, just saying thatthe electric drive system lends the concept a smooth, refined, and exhilarating drivingexperience with outstanding fuel efficiency.
Date: 22-Sep-2015 11:25 EDT
More of this article on the SAE International website
ID: 1367