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US-built Infiniti Q50 engines to go into Euro-only cars

Back in March, Infiniti announced that it would be adding a 2.0-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder to its Q50 line for European and Chinese buyers. Now, we know where that engine will be built.
Nissan's Decherd, TN facility will receive the $319-million investment, which will see a separate, dedicated line for the Infiniti engines. According to Automotive News, this is more than a line running alongside the Nissan operations - the Infiniti facility will sport its own unique architecture and interior lighting, in a bid to distinguish the premium line from its mass-market parent company.
The logistics of all this do seem, on the surface, quite screwy. Building a new engine on one continent for a car built on another that will eventually go on sale on a third doesn't seem too bright, although there is a catch here. The new engine will also find its way into the Mercedes-Benz C-Class, which will kick off production in Vance, AL later this year.

2014 Nissan Dayz Roox is the littlest high-roof van you ever did see

Even average production cars from Japan often seem very conceptual to US eyes. Throw in typical, nonsensical-quasi-English-words name like "Dayz Roox" and you'd be forgiven for thinking this Nissan box on wheels was still a designer's dream. But the fact is that the Nissan Dayz is a model currently on sale, and this Roox version is the latest take on the micro-van, which is a popular segment in Japan.
In fact, this generation of Dayz is the first minicar that Nissan has developed completely in-house, and the thing has been selling astoundingly well in its first stint on the market (30k units in month one month, says Nissan). So it's unsurprising that the company is looking to expand the range with a model that is more fully featured.
The Roox (we have no clue as to where that name came from, or what it means) would appear to be a high-roof version of the three-cylinder Dayz minicar - in fact Nissan goes so far as to call it an "Impressive Super Height Wagon." Features like automatic sliding doors, Around View Monitor and UV-insulated glass are all luxuries in kei-class car. The press release also specifies that the Roox is tall enough to swallow a 27-inch bicycle.

Nissan presents NV200 is the brave new face of London taxis [w/video]

In most cities, just about any vehicle can serve as a taxi - so long as it meets the owner/operator's requirements for reliability, comfort and utility. But certain cities have their own unique taxis, and Nissan has been working hard to corner those markets. It has already designed specific taxis for such locations as New York, Barcelona and Tokyo, but its latest effort will bring a new Hackney Carriage to the streets of London.
A year and a half ago, Nissan displayed its NV200 on the streets of London in traditional black livery. But this new design takes the customization for the British capital one step further. Working closely with the mayor's office and with cab drivers across the city, Nissan's European design center in the Paddington district has reskinned the NV200 specifically to serve as the new black cab in London. The new face features round headlights, a new grille, LED lighting and a restyled front bumper. The steering has also been reconfigured to meet the 25-foot turning circle requirements for Hackney Carriages, as the black cabs are known on the streets of London.
The result is a distinctly British take on the NV200 taxi - one that we're guessing won't go without its fair share of controversy. Nissan will begin offering the black cab at the end of the year with a 1.6-liter gasoline engine mated to an automatic transmission, a powertrain said to be cleaner than the diesels used in existing taxis. And Nissan should know, having supplied many of those 2.7-liter turbodiesels in the '80s and '90s. But if that's not clean enough, the Japanese automaker will also begin selling an electric version, the e-NV200, starting next year. Watch the video clip and read the full details in the press release below.