Nissan recently unveiled a new concept vehicle designed for contemporary lifestyles and it is absolutely packed with doodads.
The design, which is based on the Nissan Skyline, was achieved through what the company is calling a “bricolage approach,” instead of a traditional engineering strategy. Nissan said this allowed the team to more efficiently achieve design goals and come up with a vehicle overflowing with gadgets for “eating, sleeping and playing.”
The concept contains about 30 devices and many of them have the potential to be incredibly useful. There’s a sliding table that pops up and folds out from the center console. There’s a bottle heater built into the cup holder. There are flat-folding seats for naps, all-in-one control buttons strategically placed in the cabin, storage in the headrests, a 100-volt outlet in the sideview mirrors and a portable battery.
But there’s also a lot of weird, potentially useless and borderline dangerous features in the vehicle. Here are five of the least essential.
Side Mirror Dustbin
This is the first feature highlighted in Nissan’s video of the vehicle and it’s possibly the most bizarre. The sideview mirror is an odd place to keep trash and it could end up spreading some unwelcome smells. Not to mention, if that thing flies open while traveling at highway speeds, it could be hazardous for other drivers. Maybe just throw your trash on the passenger side floor like everyone else.
Steering Wheel Phone Holder
This feels like a legal dispute waiting to happen from drivers who don’t understand they shouldn’t watch videos while driving. And if a device was mounted on the steering wheel while driving, an airbag deployment has the potential to create a pretty scary tablet-sized projectile.
Umbrella Storage
This seems like a good way to keep accidentally kicking or tripping over your umbrella. Maybe it’s best to just continue storing your umbrella in the trunk or forgetting it at home like I do.
Sun Visor Table
This device folds down and almost completely obscures a driver’s view of the road. Even if nobody extends this while the vehicle is moving, it’s not hard to imagine a good bump in the road could do it for you.
Theater Screen/Projector
OK, this one is pretty cool and it makes interesting use of two connecting points created when the trunk is open. But it also seems like a big drain on the battery to run a projector off the car and, ultimately, it looks like a feature that just wouldn’t get used very much.
Most or possibly none of the gadgets in Nissan’s new concept are likely to make it to production. Some of them hold tremendous potential while others not so much. But it makes sense that when an automaker throws a lot of ideas at the wall, not all of them are going to stick.
