Nissan explores the boundaries

Then here's the chariot for you. It's dubbed the Nissan Terranaut and billed as a cross-terrainer that's "intended for explorers and those customers with a spirit of adventure who want to travel to the extreme corners of the globe".

Nissan will unveil the design study at the imminent Geneva motor show and has, for now, issued these sketches of the chunky off-roader concept.

Curiously, Nissan says the Terranaut was conceived "to serve as a mobile working environment for scientists, geologists, archaeologists or other adventurers who travel to the most challenging environments on the planet…" (surely that's not a huge market segment to target)

However, the reality is that the concept is more a pointer to a future Nissan SUV than a completely accurate representation -- just as the 2003 Dunehawk concept was a precursor to the current Pathfinder.

So the fact that the Terranaut has accommodation for only three occupants -- a driver, passenger and "scientist with computer console and analysis equipment" -- means little in real terms. Expect the final product to have seating for five or seven.

Inside, the spherical science laboratory dominates the cabin area behind the two front seats. A single revolving seat with an integrated computer keyboard is situated beneath the glass roof dome and gives the scientist complete 360-degree access to the various workstations found in Terranaut.

To accommodate the 'laboratory' area within the cabin, the passenger side of the Terranaut has just one door, while the opposite flank has a pair of swing doors and no central B-pillar. Nissan says ingress/egress is made easier by hinging the doors at the front and rear respectively (a la Mazda RX-8).

Terranaut rides on 19-inch wheels shod with innovative puncture-proof Goodyear tyres that are claimed to function as conventional road tyres when the vehicle is being driven on  tarmac, yet transform into chunky off-road tyres by changing the air pressure.

The concept was conceived by London-based Nissan Design Europe and project leader Felipe Roo Clefas says: "Terranaut has been designed for observation and communication in all four corners of the world." (surely the CIA is a prospective client, then?)