We've been waiting for Nissan to pull the trigger on a US-model Cube for long about two years now, and according to AutoWeek it'll happen by 2008 at the earliest. Of course the model that shows up here won't likely be of the same generation as the current, Japan-only five-door model (shown). One product planner with the company says US buyers won't accept the performance of the current model, which is powered by an 88-hp 1.5-liter four — not enough to propel it through a New Jersey headwind at more than a slow walk. The weak engine will stay, he says, which means the US model will need serious lightening and aerodynamic tweaks, which may render the Cube more of a rhomboid by the time it hits these shores.
Quirky, Not Quick [AutoWeek]
Related:
More on the Nissan Cube [internal]