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Nissan Patrol modified for backseat drivers

The McLaren F1 is most famous for holding the production-car top-speed record for over a decade, but it also made a name for itself by being one of the only production cars with a central driving position, a feature that's extremely rare. But in the world of custom cars, anything can happen. We're not sure if Dubai-based shop King of Customs was inspired by McLaren or is poking fun at backseat drivers (perhaps the builder or the commissioner just has quite the imagination), but its custom fifth-generation Nissan Patrol (the foundation of the Infiniti QX80 in the US) sports utility vehicle takes the term "central-driving position" to the next level. In the Patrol's case, "central" means that the driver's seat and controls are located in the second-row seating area.
It's a pretty clean conversion - if pointless - and we have to wonder how safe it is to drive such a vehicle. The front seats are now passenger seats, and the front airbags have been taken out and replaced with screens, according to King of Customs' Facebook page. So if the driver's view outside is impaired and the SUV is involved in a crash, you'd better hope nobody is up front. The screens on the backs of the front-seat headrests at least provide views from the side-view mirrors via cameras, the shop claims.
Watch the video below, marvel at the extreme impracticality of it all and see the thing drive.

Nissan to build no more than 17 examples of Juke-R 2.0

Nissan is planning to put the new Juke-R 2.0 into low-volume production, a report says. It was revealed at the Goodwood Festival of Speed about a month ago, and it packs greasy bits from a Nissan GT-R into the modified chassis and bodywork of a Juke crossover. Version 2.0 packs 600 horsepower, a leap from the 545 hp produced by the first rendition. Production plans were not clear at Goodwood, but the Italian website OmniAuto.it says that Nismo will produce as many as 17 examples of the Juke-R 2.0. We say "as many as" because production will likely depend on demand, and as small as that number may be, the price of entry is sure to be steep. The previous version was limited to 21 examples, each priced at over $650,000. At the time that we drove it more than two years ago, Nissan had only made (and found homes for) four examples. Of course the Juke-R isn't the only performance crossover out there. Following Porsche's lead, Lamborghini, Maserati, Lotus, and Aston Martin (to name just a few) are all gearing up to launch their own, while the likes of Mercedes-AMG, BMW M, Audi Quattro, and Jaguar Land Rover's Special Vehicle Operations division continue to churn out faster and more powerful sport utes. The Juke-R may be the most bonkers to date, but it'll soon find itself in good (and very fast) company. Related Video: Featured Gallery Nissan Juke-R 2.0 View 22 Photos News Source: OmniAuto.itImage Credit: Nissan Nissan Crossover Performance Supercars nissan juke-r

2016 Nissan Titan endures more torture testing

The burly, next-gen 2016 Nissan Titan XD made its big debut at the 2015 Detroit Auto Show and promised to launch later in the year with multiple bed lengths, several cab configurations and the choice of a Cummins 5.0-liter diesel V8 pumping out 310 horsepower and 555 pound-feet of torque. While we wait for the truck to arrive at dealerships, the brand is continuing to tell the pickup's development story through the Titan Truckumentary series of shorts videos. Nissan has already used the clips to look back at its pickup history, but the latest entry puts the focus directly on the new Titan, specifically, its torture testing during development. One trial bounced the truck around for months on a durability machine to simulate 370,000 miles of rough driving. Although, the true fun comes from watching the real-life evaluations where engineers slam the model into curbs and drive it off ledges to see what it can take.