Nissan Juke coming to India

Nissan has released pictures of its Sportscar/SUV crossover Juke which will be physically unveiled at the upcoming Geneva Motor Show in March. The press release issued by the manufacturer states that the Juke will be initially manufactured at its UK plant in Sunderland with sales slated to begin in October. With the Juke Nissan aims to usher in its crossover philosophy into the small car segment.

From the pictures it is evident that the Juke heavily incorporates design elements from the Qazana concept. The basic design theme of the Qazana including the unique front end design with four different headlamps, high waistline, 370Z inspired rear end, oversized wheel arches, and funky interiors featuring a centre console that resembles a motorcycle fuel tank have been carried over to the Juke.

In the Press Release issued by the manufacturer, Andy Palmer, Senior Vice President, Product Planning, Nissan, states that the Juke is a light, nimble, urban, reactive vehicle designed to grab a younger audience. He also stated that the Juke offers something entirely different to the traditional B-segment vehicles and cements Nissan as a car maker prepared to do something different.

Well, the most interesting aspect of the Juke is that its coming to India. The Juke will be manufactured at Nissan's Chennai plant and is likely to reach showrooms by late 2011. The Chennai plant is expected to be fully set-up by March this year. The Micra which is slated for a July launch is being manufactured at this plant. Both the Micra and the Juke are based on the highly versatile V-platform. It makes immense sense for Nissan to launch the Juke too as the platform will be shrared for both vehicles. Along with the small car Micra, Nissan will also be offering its new age crossover to the Indian car buyers.

Quick Facts:

•Five seater Sportscar/SUV crossover based on the Qazana concept
•Buyers will have three engine options to choose from namely two petrol and one diesel unit
•Petrol engine options include a naturally aspirated 1.6 litre engine producing 116PS and a tubo charged variant developing 190PS
•The car will also be offered to buyers with a 1.5 litre common rail diesel engine with a max power and torque output of 110 PS and 240 NM respectively.
•Transmission options include a 5-speed manual and 6-speed CVT with manual mode

•Front wheel drive will be offered as standard. A 4x4 variant featuring Torque Vectoring Technology for improved cornering will also be sold alongside the standard one
•Length-4000mm, Wheelbase-2500mm, Width-1765mm, Height-1570mm