Mitsubishi Nessie
Encyclopedia
The Mitsubishi Nessie is a concept automobile co-developed by Italdesign Giugiaro
, The Linde Group
and Mitsubishi Motors
, and exhibited at the 2005 Geneva Auto Show. It is the latest in a line of SUVs, space-wagons and alternative architectures designed by Giugiaro dating back to 1978 and the Lancia Megagamma
, with more recent examples including the Giugaro Touareg (2002), Maserati Kubang (2003) and Volkswagen Tarek (2003).
It uses the platform of the Dakar Rally
-winning Mitsubishi Pajero
and a hydrogen
-powered V8 engine
developed by German
industrial gases company The Linde Group
, mated to an automatic transmission. Styling features include 22 inch front and 23 inch rear wheels, glass panels in the lower half of the doors to enhance visibility in town or off-road, and an arrow-shaped roll bar
/roof-rack which extends from the C-pillars over the glass roof, without being affixed to it.
Although it was rumoured that the second generation Airtrek/Outlander
might have incorporated styling elements from the Nessie, this never materialised, as the overall shape and design details proved too complex for practical mass production.
Italdesign Giugiaro
Italdesign-Giugiaro S.p.A is an automobile design and engineering company based in Moncalieri, Italy founded in 1968 by Giorgetto Giugiaro and Aldo Mantovani as Studi Italiani Realizzazione Prototipi S.p.A...
, The Linde Group
The Linde Group
The Linde Group, registered as Linde AG is an international industrial gases and engineering company founded in Germany in 1879. Linde shares are traded on all the German stock exchanges and also in Zürich, and the Linde share price is included in the DAX 30 index...
and Mitsubishi Motors
Mitsubishi Motors
is a multinational automaker headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. In 2009 it was the fifth-largest Japan-based automaker and the 17th-largest in the world measured by production...
, and exhibited at the 2005 Geneva Auto Show. It is the latest in a line of SUVs, space-wagons and alternative architectures designed by Giugiaro dating back to 1978 and the Lancia Megagamma
Lancia Megagamma
The Lancia Megagamma minivan is a concept car designed by Italdesign in 1978 and introduced the same year at the Turin Motor Show. It can be seen as the forerunner of modern MPVs...
, with more recent examples including the Giugaro Touareg (2002), Maserati Kubang (2003) and Volkswagen Tarek (2003).
It uses the platform of the Dakar Rally
Dakar Rally
The Dakar Rally is an annual rally raid type of off-road automobile race, organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation...
-winning Mitsubishi Pajero
Mitsubishi Pajero
The Mitsubishi Pajero is a sport utility vehicle manufactured by Mitsubishi Motors. It was named after Leopardus pajeros, the Pampas Cat which is native to the Patagonia plateau region of southern Argentina. However, since pajero is an offensive term for "wanker" in Spanish, alternative names have...
and a hydrogen
Hydrogen
Hydrogen is the chemical element with atomic number 1. It is represented by the symbol H. With an average atomic weight of , hydrogen is the lightest and most abundant chemical element, constituting roughly 75% of the Universe's chemical elemental mass. Stars in the main sequence are mainly...
-powered V8 engine
V8 engine
A V8 engine is a V engine with eight cylinders mounted on the crankcase in two banks of four cylinders, in most cases set at a right angle to each other but sometimes at a narrower angle, with all eight pistons driving a common crankshaft....
developed by German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
industrial gases company The Linde Group
The Linde Group
The Linde Group, registered as Linde AG is an international industrial gases and engineering company founded in Germany in 1879. Linde shares are traded on all the German stock exchanges and also in Zürich, and the Linde share price is included in the DAX 30 index...
, mated to an automatic transmission. Styling features include 22 inch front and 23 inch rear wheels, glass panels in the lower half of the doors to enhance visibility in town or off-road, and an arrow-shaped roll bar
Roll bar
Roll bar or rollbar may refer to:* Roll bar, also known as anti-roll bar or sway bar, a torsion spring bar that reduces vehicle roll* Roll cage, a vehicle frame designed to protect occupants in the event of a crash...
/roof-rack which extends from the C-pillars over the glass roof, without being affixed to it.
Although it was rumoured that the second generation Airtrek/Outlander
Mitsubishi Outlander
The Airtrek was first introduced to the Japanese market on June 20, 2001, priced from ¥1.7–2.3 million. It offered a choice of either a 4G63 2.0 L or a 4G64 2.4 L GDI, mated to a standard INVECS-II 4-speed semi-automatic transmission. Both front- and four-wheel drive were available...
might have incorporated styling elements from the Nessie, this never materialised, as the overall shape and design details proved too complex for practical mass production.
External links
- "The Mitsubishi Nessie", Italdesign press release, February 16, 2005
- "Mitsubishi Nessie Concept", AutomobileMag.com