Car Moon

Without doubt, one of the highlights of this year’s edition of the famous Goodwood hill climb will be Nissan’s participation. And no, we’re not talking about the Sumo Power GT team’s GT1 race-winning Nissan GT-R, but for the Juke small crossover and the Leaf EV.

You see, the Japanese company has set its sights on claiming two special records at the Goodwood Festival of Speed that takes place in Britain on 1-3 July with the aforementioned models.

It doesn't even come close to being the prettiest model out in the market, but Nissan’s Juke sure ain’t boring. Now, Impul, one of Japan’s lesser-known tuning firms has set their eyes on improving Nissan’s small crossover with the release of a new performance and styling package.

The cosmetic makeover begins with a full aero kit comprising of a new front spoiler, side skirts or optionally side steps, a rear diffuser and a giant rear wing. The company’s aesthetic offerings also include a redesigned front grille, profile decals and exterior mirror trims.

At the upcoming Tokyo Auto Salon 2011 with NAPAC (Japan Car Parts and Aftermarket Promotion Association), to be held from January 14 to 16, Nissan, together with Autech Japan and its in-house NISMO performance division, will premiere a total of nine vehicles.

Remember that Nissan Juke photoshop from a couple of months back (if you don't, no worries, just click here)? You know the one: black paint, lowered ride height, yellow headlights and green Volk Rays VR.G2 alloys? Well, someone has fitted the VR.G2s to an otherwise stock standard Nissan Juke and the result is...underwhelming.

It has taken a while for tuners to warm up to the Nissan Juke, but we're slowly starting to see some new aftermarket products for the Japanese firm's odd-looking small crossover. One of the fist tuners to get their hands on the Juke is Germany's Cobra Technology, which created a styling set designed to give the Japanese crossover a more rugged-ish look.

I've watched this bizarre Nissan Juke ad about four times (that I'll admit to), and I still can't for the life of me get the point. For all intents and purposes, it's about dreaming, energy, and possibly angled at people who are emo/hip or worse; all this while the Juke is on your mind. Then your hair gets frizzy and washing machines blow their loads.

Truth to be said, Nissan's Juke has a controversial design that may not appeal to all taste - though, we'll take "controversial" over "bland" any time. And while we've yet to see any attempts to tune the crossover model, the guys over at Damnjdm commissioned this photoshop of a lowered Juke with deep-dish alloy wheels in a green shade and yellow-finished head lamps. Follow the break for a larger version of the picture and tell us what you think in the comments section.
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At the 2010 Paris Motor Show, which opens on 30 September, Nissan will lift the wraps off a new electric car concept called the Townpod. The Japanese automaker will release full details at the show but for now, all we have about the concept model is this cropped photo of the front headlamp and Nissan's claims that "it combines eye-catching design with a spacious and practical interior," and that " it heralds a new-era of flexible, stylish vehicles that will bring electric-vehicle mobility to the masses."

Nissan's quirky-looking Juke crossover will make its way into U.S. showrooms this October with prices starting at $18,960 plus destination and handling fees for the base front-wheel model and topping out at $24,550 (again, not including destination and handling charges) for the flagship SL version with all-wheel drive.

On Friday, the last Micra to be produced at Nissan's Sunderland plant in the UK, rolled off the assembly line marking the end of an era stretching back to the early Nineties. The very first Sunderland-built Micra came to life on August 10, 1992. The UK plant went on to produce 2,368,704 Micras (two generation models) over the next 18 years, which is more than 40% of all cars built at the plant since production began in 1986.

Nissan's controversially styled Juke compact crossover model will be priced from £12,795 OTR when it goes on sale in the UK in late September, the automaker announced today (see U.S.-market version here).

This means that Nissan is targeting buyers in the supermini segment with the Juke. For example, the new Ford Fiesta starts from £11,645, but that's the price for the entry-level three-door model with a puny 60HP 1.25-liter petrol unit. The basic version of the Juke is powered by a 117-horsepower 1.6-liter petrol engine.

Nissan may have introduced a new generation of the Micra at the Geneva Motor Show today, but make no mistake; the Juke is the model that the Japanese automaker is betting on to win the hearts and minds of European consumers in the extremely competitive small car class.

Featuring a radical (or controversial, it depends on your point of view) styling, an interior inspired by motorbikes and a range-topping 190HP 1.6-liter turbocharged petrol engine with four-wheel drive, the Qashqai's smaller brother is pitched by Nissan as an alternative to the traditional B-segment hatchbacks (a.k.a. superminis).

Nissan today revealed that the it's all-new Juke small crossover will appear in North American guise at the 2010 New York Auto Show in late March, following the world premiere of the European-spec model at the Geneva Salon in the beginning of March.

The compact-sized Juke, which was inspired by the Qazana concept car, is scheduled to join the Nissan lineup in the United States later this fall.

Arousing or polarizing; duke or puke (sorry, we just had to play with the name); refreshing or controversial; whatever the case, one thing is for sure: there's no way the all-new Nissan Juke will go by unnoticed when it hits the road in Europe and North America this fall.

Roughly sized between a Fiesta and a Focus, the production version of the Qazana concept blends design elements from numerous cars including the Murano and Qashqai as well as from the 370Z and even the Cube with a busy face that looks like it evolved from the unforgettable Pontiac Aztec.

Despite the playful color options inside, the Juke's interior is far less provocative from a design standpoint. The dashboard is dominated by a centre console design that is said to have been inspired by a motorcycle fuel tank, while several parts are finished in high gloss colors.