Nissan Resonance Concept Wins EyesOn Design Award for Best Concept Vehicle at North American International Auto Show

- Prestigious award elevates Nissan's role as leader in innovative design

- Resonance signals future direction for Nissan crossover SUVs with smart, edgy design and advanced HEV powertrain

DETROIT--Jan. 16, 2013:  Hours after unveiling the Nissan Resonance, a design concept previewing the direction of future Nissan crossovers, the vehicle was selected as winner of the EyesOn Design Award for Best Concept Vehicle. The announcement was made at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) 2013 EyesOn Design Awards ceremony held Tuesday evening, January 15.

One of the premier awards in transportation design, the EyesOn Design Awards honors the best production and concept cars making their North American or worldwide debut at NAIAS. In their seventh year, the awards recognize the skill and creativity of today's most gifted designers in the areas of aesthetics and innovation; concept implementation; and functionality and spirit of industrial design. Winners are selected by a panel of active and retired design heads of automotive companies, transportation design chairs from top art schools, and designers from other fields.

The Resonance concept was created under the guidance of Shiro Nakamura, senior vice president and chief creative officer of Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., and features an open, airy architecture highlighted by a unique "floating" roof created through the use of the thin, steeply raked A-pillars, large full-length glass panel and flowing D-pillar design. Inside, the designers imagined what the future of first-class space travel might be: Welcoming yet exclusive and high-tech yet premium. The resulting "VIP lounge," with its light, buttery leather and premium-stitched seats, exudes genuine sophistication.

The all-wheel drive Resonance concept also features an efficient, hybrid-electric drivetrain that includes Nissan's proprietary "one-motor, two-clutch" system, which combines a smaller displacement internal combustion gasoline engine with an electric motor, lithium-ion battery and advanced management system.