No Nissan, Infiniti Models at Detroit, Chicago Auto Shows

Nissan recently announced that it will not attend this year’s Detroit or Chicago auto shows. The news wouldn’t come as a shock if it were just Nissan canning the usual media conferences and presentations, like GM and Chrysler did at the L.A. auto show, especially given Nissan doesn’t have any new products to reveal. However, an Infiniti spokesman confirmed with us that Nissan and Infiniti will be completely missing from the shows’ public days as well; no Nissan or Infiniti products will be on the show floor.

So to those Nissan fans who plan to attend the Chicago and Detroit shows during public days this January and February: You’re out of luck. If you want to see Nissan’s newest offerings, like the 2009 Nissan 370Z sports car, Nissan Cube subcompact and Infiniti G37 convertible, you better head to a dealership. Those cars are expected to go on sale soon enough (370Z by January; Cube and G37 convertible by spring) but the major advantage of car shows is poking around without the pressure of a salesperson in your buffer zone.

2009 Nissan Cube: Video

The 2009 Nissan Cube has Kelsey Mays impressed, and not just because of its expected, relatively low starting price and fairly decent gas mileage. The Cube melds a unique, some might say "hip," look to everyday functionality.

Suburban Dad and the Econobox Invasion

As a dad of two teens, I'm always interested in new cars that may appeal to them. Here in L.A., Nissan and Kia rolled out two new versions of what we used to call, not so charitably, econoboxes. With all the safety advances now required, very few cars are true econoboxes today (just look at their MSRPs), but Nissan's Cube and Kia's Soul are built to take on Scion's xB, already in its second generation.

Of the two, I think I like the Kia better for my kids. (Full disclosure, I own a Kia Sedona). That doesn't mean I think it's necessarily the better of the two, but I think that, given the likely costs of each car, what they offer, and a comparison of features and interiors, the nod goes to the Kia.

Up Close: 2010 Nissan Cube

Nissan just unveiled the Cube, which is as direct a competitor as the Scion xB will probably ever see. Our first impressions are good. Like the xB, the Cube comes through with the requisite benefits of its box-on-wheels design: tons of headroom and legroom in both rows, a large cargo area and excellent visibility — albeit not through the wraparound rear window, which still carries a hidden D-pillar on the inside. There go our hopes of a hatchback without any sort of blind spot.

Cabin materials in the show car were a step above the xB’s, with attractive plastics and a clever two-tone color scheme. The backlit blue-and-white gauges sit in front of the steering wheel — more conventional than Scion’s red center-mounted ones — while various features, from keyless access and push-button start to automatic climate control, feel more upscale.

2008 L.A. Auto Show: 2009 Nissan Cube

• Competes with: Scion xB, Pontiac Vibe, Kia Soul
• Looks like: Nissan is getting on the boxy bandwagon
• Drivetrain: 122-hp four-cylinder with continuously variable automatic transmission
• Hits dealerships: Spring 2009

Scion busted down the preconception of exactly how boxy an econobox could be with the original Scion xB a few years ago. Now Nissan — as well as Kia, with its new Soul — is unleashing its own boxy economy car, the aptly named Cube. Long a hit in Japan, the Cube will make its American debut next year.

Powered by the same 122-hp four-cylinder found in the Nissan Versa, the company says we can expect the Cube to get more than 30 mpg. The Versa gets up to 27/33 mpg city/highway.

Like most Nissans, the Cube will come in three trim levels: Cube 1.8, Cube 1.8 S and Cube 1.8 SL. All Cubes will come with standard stability control, active head restraints for the front seats, seat-mounted side airbags up front and side curtain airbags for both rows. Power windows and air conditioning are also standard.