Nissan rethinks the compact hatchback – introducing the SWAY

• Bold design theme showcases new design language
• Edgy exterior matched by elegantly simple interior
• Created to bring fresh, high-end thinking to compact hatchback segment

Innovative design and product planning gave birth to the Qashqai and Juke, two of the biggest automotive success stories in recent years. Now the company has applied the same radical thinking to one of the most important sectors of the market: the compact hatchback.

Unveiled at the Geneva Show, the Sway is a glimpse at how a future generation of compact Nissan models might look if the company’s striking new design language was applied to a European hatchback. It is a concept car designed especially to appeal to European tastes: it is seen as emotional, edgy and exciting.

Sway has been designed to shake up the compact hatchback segment, traditionally a conservative sector of the market. With its swooping lines, striking nose, elegantly simple interior and bold use of sophisticated colours, the concept is a daring and emotional design.

There is an overall sense of unity and harmony… but with edginess unexpected in this market segment. The interior, for example, applies techniques more usually seen in industrial architecture such as structural aluminium elements to signify both simplicity and strength, but also the attention to detail and use of colour and materials associated with premium goods.