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Nissan Sway displays the future of the compact hatch [w/videos]

Nissan is giving a glimpse at its future compact hatchback design with the Sway Concept at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show. The little, egg-shaped hatchback cribs styling elements from earlier show cars from the brand and mixes them together into an attractive five-door. Though, the company makes no mention of the model's powertrain. The Sway's most eye-arresting feature is its arching hood that leads to a deep, V-shaped grille similar to the Lannia Concept. The design element is flanked on both sides by boomerang-shaped LED headlights, and there's a splash of color from the orange accents under the air intakes. To draw the eye from front to rear, a crease flows over the fenders and then sweeps all the way back to the taillights. Nissan's floating roof motif also makes an appearance here, although it's not quite as obvious as on larger vehicles. As is common on show cars, the Sway has suicide doors with no B-pillar to let attendees in Switzerland have a good look inside. The interior appears to be an airy place to take a drive with a panoramic glass roof, and a windshield that rises up over the front occupants' heads. The driver gets a simple instrument cluster that's dominated by just two gauges, but there's a tablet at the center of the dashboard to provide extra info. According to Nissan, the whole point of the Sway's design is to take compact hatchback styling in a bolder direction. The first video below shows off even more angles, and the second has some of the brand's designers going in depth about the car's shape. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Nissan rethinks the compact hatchback: Introducing the Sway Concept Bold design theme showcases new design language Edgy exterior matched by elegantly simple interior Created to bring fresh, high-end thinking to compact hatchback segment GENEVA – Innovative design and product planning gave birth to the Qashqai and Juke, two of the biggest automotive success stories in recent years. Now the company has applied the same radical thinking to one of the most important sectors of the market: the compact hatchback. Unveiled at the Geneva Show, the Sway is a glimpse at how a future generation of compact Nissan models might look if the company's striking new design language was applied to a European hatchback.

Asking price for Paul Walker's GT-R from Fast & Furious nearly triples [w/video]

The German owner of the only Nissan Skyline GT-R to survive filming Fast & Furious (a.k.a., The Fast and the Furious 4) has put his car up for sale following the death of Paul Walker, Yahoo Autos reports. The original sale price was reportedly an already hefty 300,000 euros ($412,110), but it has since been raised to 1,000,000 euros ($1.37 million).
Despite many well-intentioned efforts, the Skyline GT-R was (and still is) illegal to import for street use in the US, so this R34-generation GT-R and seven others were shipped here without engines and classified as kit cars to sidestep federal law. Once here, the engines were installed, and seven street-legal GT-Rs proceeded to be destroyed during the filming of F&F. But one car, the "hero" car for sale here, was driven by Walker in non-violent scenes and thus is the only GT-R that survived filming.
Then, in July 2009, the federal government cracked down on importers of these cars, seizing almost 50 GT-Rs, including this one, telling owners to export them or risk having them destroyed. The hero GT-R was therefore exported, and its whereabouts have been unknown until recently, when the current German owner allowed it to be featured in a review (watch the German-language video below). You can see the online ad (also German) of the heavily modified GT-R here, where it sits proudly with its sky-high price tag.

2016 Nissan Leaf with 107-mile range will start at $35,050* [UPDATE]

Here we go. Without making any huge leap into a second-gen model, Nissan has upgraded the 2016 Nissan Leaf from the 2015 model with a big range increase and a more durable battery. According to the new EPA numbers, the new Leaf will go 107 miles from a 30-kWh battery pack. That's going to get people's attention, since the current Leaf has an 84-mile range from a 24-kWh pack. You will still be able to get an 84-mile Leaf in the 2016 model year, since Nissan is keeping the S trim level with the lower, 24-kWh pack size. If you opt for the more expensive SV or SL trims, then you'll not only get the 27-percent greater range, but also a battery pack that is slightly heavier (by 46 pounds) and has more modules (eight vs. four) but the same number of cells. The two packs are the same size. In the end, the EPA rates the 30-kWh with 124 city, 101 highway and 112 combined MPGe fuel economy, while the S trim keeps the 126 city, 101 highway and 114 combined MPGe of the 2015 models. All the new 2016 Leafs keep the same 80-kW AC synchronous motor from earlier models. It still offers 107 horsepower and 187 pound-feet of torque. Prices for the new Leaf start at $35,050 for the Leaf SV (up from $32,950 for the 2015), $37,640 for the Leaf SL (up from $35,970) and $28,060 for the Leaf S (no change from 2015). All prices include $850 delivery charge but not the potential federal tax incentive of $7,500. The 2016's exterior is virtually identical to the 2015, aside from some new colors with names like Forged Bronze, Coulis Red and Deep Blue Pearl. Nissan is offering a few upgrades on the inside, though. There's a new graphic interface display on the 7-inch color screen (5-inch on the S trim) and a new "beam forming microphone" that should make the car's voice recognition better. The information that is displayed on the screen has also changed, with the charging screen info being updated every 12 miles. Given that some (but not all) of the rumors of this Leaf range bump turned out to be true, what do you all think of the talk of a 250-mile Leaf in about three years? UPDATE: The original headline quoted the price of the SL model instead of the less expensive SV, and has now been changed to accurately reflect the starting price of the SV. Both SL and SV come standard with the new 30 kWh battery, while the S model comes standard with the smaller 24 kWh pack. Thanks to those who pointed out this discrepancy!