Forgotten prototypes: Nissan Chapeau Concept (1989)

It was presented at the Tokyo Motor Show and looked like a telephone box

By: Alberto Carmone

Jan 23, 2024 at 7:13am ET

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Over 30 years ago, some extravagant vehicles from Nissan could be admired at the 1989 Tokyo Motor Show. The Japanese manufacturer presented a whole series of special concepts designed by the stylists of the Pike Factory - the Figaro, the BE-1, the Pao, the Rasheen and the Chapeau. Some of them later became production models, others remained strange design experiments, like the Chapeau.

A telephone on wheels

Unique proportions, a pink-coloured paint job and a gigantic cockpit: the Chapeau certainly doesn't leave you cold. The design is truly bizarre. With an almost vertical windscreen and a boxy body that is somewhere between a kei car, a van and an MPV, it somehow reminds us of an old telephone box.

Nissan Chapeau Concept (1989)

Unfortunately, we don't have the exact dimensions of this concept, but according to the descriptions at the time, the large rear end with large windows makes it comfortable to stand in. The centrepiece of the Chapeau - according to the artists who designed it - is the telephone. Aha! So we're not entirely wrong with our idea.

Practicality is its strength

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Given the strangeness of this Nissan, it is not surprising that the concept was not followed by a production model. Above all, it impresses with its practicality, because the voluminous rear is like a real van designed for the installation of displays or the transport of goods.

In terms of its shape, it is therefore a kind of "hybrid" between several segments. The drive, however, is a different story. Although information is scarce, we know that the Chapeau was powered by a 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine, which probably didn't guarantee maximum efficiency given the aerodynamic shape of the vehicle.