This is, believe it or not, the new Nissan Micra. Well, sort of. Actually, this is the Sway, a small hatchback concept that Nissan will show off at the upcoming Geneva Motor Show, but it's the 2016 Micra replacement in all but name. In fact, the Micra name may actually be dropped, because the current model has failed utterly to set the car market alight, unlike its strong-selling predecessors.
Nissan has decided therefore to give the new Micra a major injection of styling aggression, saying: "Innovative design and product planning gave birth to Nissan Qashqai and Juke, two of the biggest automotive success stories of recent years. What would happen if the company applied the same radical thinking and quality standards to one of the most important sectors in Europe: the small hatchback? Sway is a glimpse at how a future generation of small Nissan models could look if the company's striking new design language was applied to a European hatchback."
The styling is very likely to make it through to production more or less unchanged and will also be a signpost to the look of the second-generation Juke, due in 2017. Check out that sharply styled C-pillar and rising beltline for a good hint of that Juke II will look like.
No more mumsy Micras? Could be...