Call it a publicity stunt if you must, but it's tough to deny that Nissan's Denki Cube E.V. concept is exceptionally cool. It's intended to stir up some excitement in advance of the American debut of the company's gasoline-powered Cube small car (to rival such small fries as the Scion xB, the Honda Fit, and even Nissan's own Versa), but the plug-in electric Denki Cube brings some well-considered technology of its own.
The standard car's 1.3-liter four-cylinder engine is gone, replaced by an electric motor and a pack of laminated lithium-ion batteries under the floor and seats, charged through a port behind the Nissan emblem in the grille. Nissan claims the batteries' laminated structure allows them to produce more power with greater stability, and offer significantly better packaging flexibility than conventional cylindrical li-ion batteries.
To make room for the battery pack, the wheelbase is stretched a significant 9.4 inches, giving four occupants plenty of legroom to go along with all that headroom. Will the Denki Cube hum into Nissan showrooms? We can only hope.
More photos after the break, courtesy of Nissan.
