SoCal Cube with Cues from VW Bus

It’s green and creme and low. Oh, and it has a sliding rag top, crank-out style windshield (power-operated on my concept) to mimic the old VW busses… rear door has additional swing-out glass panel, all to complement the open-air approach. The sliding rag could even be replaced by a full glass roof (with water drop-look pattern etched in!) for more exposure to the paparazzi. As it sits, the sliding rag would be power-operated, and close when the key is moved over 20 feet away.

The remaining custom touches are pretty minimal, but include a grill filler panel to smooth the lines out, louvers in the front fender (right-side only to play-up the asymmetrical design of the Cube in general), and small “nerf-ettes” (small nerf bar-inspired trim pieces) at the fascia corners to give a slight “retro” touch and visually extend the new chrome grille bar in the lower opening. This also assists in making the car look a bit lower and wider yet!

Slammed stance over classic 5-spoke wheels sets the laid-back cruiser tone. The theme here is California sun and fun, and opens up a world of aftermarket accessory possibilities, like bamboo roof racks, the sliding rag top, window kits, lowering kits, interior seating options (waterproof and beach-ready seat covers, etc), grille inserts, trim add-ons and more. My hope is to inspire hot rod-minded folks to grasp just how big of a blank slate these are for customizing, and that you can think well outside of the “tuner” look on the Cube.

Get this cube and the crazy “Surfite” concept at Problem Child Kustoms

Ed “Big Daddy” Roth Inspired Nissan Cube

This past Saturday, our good friend Pikesan had organized a pre-release cruise featuring 10 (yes, ten) of the new Nissan Cube’s, and it was a blast. We hit a couple of area dealerships, then hit the road to the Pavilions in Scottsdale (great Saturday cruise spot for those of you planning to hit Goodguys Southwest Nationals in November).

The impressive lineup of geometric people movers grabbed a ton of attention on the freeways then, suffice to say, the lineup was a smash at the cruise. Nissan even brought along a GT-R (more on Godzilla later… words fail me yet) and the unreleased Infiniti G37 convertible just to round out the playing field.

My first reaction when seeing a Cube a couple of years back (don’t forget, these have been around overseas since ‘98) was “not too sure about that”. Don’t get me wrong, I was impressed as all get-out that anyone could pack that much room into such a small-looking package, but the look was odd to me.

Fast-forward ten years, and my how things have changed. My first moment sitting in the Cube was a wild time… Headroom galore, great sight lines, and enough legroom for even my lanky appendages. The dash is minimalist, but laid out in a tremendously intuitive way, and all controls are easily understandable and useful. Too cool indeed.

The ride was incredibly comfortable, stable, responsive and above all, QUIET. It was that last fact that kept me stunned. The Cube is damn quiet on both highway and city pavement, and just felt “right” somehow. Aside from the constant stares from other drivers (which, as a hot rodder is alright by me any day), I have to say, I’m giving this little machine SERIOUS thought from both the modification potential as well as daily-driver mule standpoint.

Design-wise, I have to say the Cube has me hooked. If you know me, then you know my love for asymmetrical design, and that rear window treatment NAILS it. A wrap-around side glass on the passenger side meets a thick pillar on the left, and it (again) just feels “right”. Couple this with tall slab-like side panels, rounded corners all over, and a very trick windshield shape (oh, you’ll be seeing this on a few designs of mine to come), and we’re getting someplace.

But oh that tail light… It was an instant love-fest for me. I have about thirty cars I want to use that in, and it’s not coincidental that I like it so much when it shares a similarity to a certain Thunderbird production run. It just says “custom car” all over (hell, even the headliner is sculpted already!)… and I dig the Cube for that immensely. It’s light years beyond my first thoughts on the Scion xB, and flat-out makes me WANT it. Where the xB looked initially like some ice cream truck’s genetically-deprived third cousin on its first trek into the big city, the Cube looks tremendously comfortable and confident in its skin, and the seating position keeps it all looking like a personal vehicle, and not the aforementioned treat delivery vessel.

Naturally, I began sketching ideas for these Cube’s as soon as I laid eyes on them, and one idea kept knocking on my brain…

The “Surfite” of one, Ed Roth has always ranked as a top ten custom car in my book, not only because it’s so damn original, but it’s also surf-oriented, and as you know, I love me some surf ANYTHING. And man… the little Cube not only calls out for a “lifestyle vehicle” treatment, but as a surf wagon??! Oh YES!

Taking cues from Mr. Roth’s Lilliputian land rover, I plugged in classic hot rod and So-Cal VW styling cues, and attempted to honor the master “hisself” (as he’d say) with a modern take on the little Surfite. Pop-out side glass? Check. Asymmetrical tail light treatment? Check. Aggressive stance? Checkity-check. Custom trim and mild re-work all over? Double checkity-check. Take a very unusual car and make it even more personal/unique? Check, check, checkity-check check!

It’s useful, like the swing-out rear glass and flip-up side windows, to the small step built into the rear fascia, and, well… it just looks COOL. I dig it, and hope you do, too… And if so, holler at me, and I’ll continue finishing what I’ve started in the sketch book, and show off an entire series, perhaps. (editor note, please feed the animal – leave a comment)

As an Alexander Brothers fan, I’ve always enjoyed a certain “quirky/futuristic” aesthetic when it comes to a kustom, and that taste is finding it’s way into the artwork in a huge way. Think “Deora meets the modern day”, and you’re getting warm. Throw in some healthy Ed Roth influence, and by golly, we’re getting there. Top it with some Winfield and Cushenbury asymmetrical appeal, and man, it just gets wilder by the second!

It’s been literally years since any new car has trapped my attention like this, and I’m stoked about it… Hope you are, too.  Stay tuned as I play with a bunch of combinations and styles on this cool ride from Nissan… You know, maybe that Rubik guy was on to something after all…

10 Nissan Cube(s) Stack into Scottsdale Car Show

Someone asked me, “How’d you get 10 Nissan Cubes?” I said, “Well I broke the first Cube 9 times.” Figuring I didn’t answer his question, I continued… “I asked and they said yes!”

They is Nissan and they’ve got 10 Nissan Cubes being prepped for release to the media for evaluation, write-ups and sometimes criticism. That’s what the consumers read in print and online magazines like MyRideisMe.com.

For those of you lucky enough to live in Arizona, you’ll get a sneak peak of the new Nissan Cube. And.. if you haven’t seen one in person, check out the Nissan GT-R.

Except for inside national super-shows like the Los Angeles Auto Show where the Cube first occupied equal space on all side 6 sides last year in November, this is the first time the geometric, love-hate styled Econo-box (couldn’t resist) has been seen in the wild with other shapes.

Where: Scottsdale Pavilion at Indian Bend and 101
When: 4:30 to 9 PM on May 2nd, 2009 (This is a one-time only deal!)
What: 10 Pre-release, totally new Nissan Cubes, plus 1 rockin, bad-to-the-bone Nissan GT-R!

Since I haven’t driven it yet, I’ll have to let you know what I think, but I can tell you there’s a handful of creative features in the Cube not found in other Nissan. I especially dig the kooky, ripple-waved head liner. The mood lighting and accents are covered at length by everyone already, so I won’t go there.

Let me have my drive of the Moss Green 1.8L SL with all the “Sport” goodies and tell you what I think, what others, customers and non-customers think about and then you can love it or hate it for yourself. For my review, I’ll give you nothing but the oppisite over the adjacent side for this Cube and not go on a tangent.

Fine, criticize my writing… do you know Thesaurus.com has no words with similar meaning to geometric?

Customize your own Cube