From the outside, the new Cefiro borrows heavily from traditional looks.  The way the rear window curves down the door is a Cefiro trademark since the first one in 1988.  However, beyond the curves of the windows is an obvious change of lamp appearance.  Borrowing the new look from Mercedes Benz's S-Class, the headlights of the new Nissan Cefiro looks more elegant, more stylish than before.  Overall, the shape and the details still say that the Cefiro is still a car of class, a car of executives.  The rear however is another story.  Like the Merc E-class, the Cefiro loses steam in the rear where it is given conventional treatment without anything spectacular.  Then again, the hardest part to create a unique design for a modern car is really the rear.  Inside, the cabin is still luxuriously appointed but with addition of a new sporty 4-spoke steering wheel and well, re-designed cabin to assure ergonomics.  However like the old Cefiro, it still looks rather bland.

The biggest change however comes from under the bonnet.  The new Nissan Cefiro boasts of 2 improved power plants still derived from the Best Engine in the World winner, the VQ series.  The new 2.0-liter VQ V6 for example, generates 160 bhp at 6,400 rpm (that's a boost of 5 bhp) and torque of 200 Nm at 4,400 rpm compared to the previous' 190 Nm at 4400 rpm.  The 2.5-liter version gets the biggest change.  First of all, its output is now 210 bhp, compared to the previous' 190 bhp.  Torque jumps from 250 Nm to 270 Nm.  The new 2.5-liter engine is also marked as LEV (low emission vehicle) which makes this new engine environmental friendly. 

And what happens to the old (the current one in the Philippines) one?  Well, both the chassis and the old engine were sold to the Koreans and the Cefiros get branded as Samsung SQ5 and the SE5.  The difference?  Well, buyers can choose the old 2.5-liter V6 engine from the old Cefiro or the 2.0-liter inline-4 from the Altima.

Nissan Sylvia (200 SX) 

The Nissan 200SX or the Sylvia in Japan had the one of the most entertaining rear-wheel drive chassis in the world.  In fact, some people argued that the 200SX is part of the 'nearly icon' cars of the 1990's.  Having a 200 bhp engine from a 2.0-liter turbo-charged inline-4, meant that the modestly lightweight 200SX can accelerate from 0-60 in less than 8 seconds.  It was a serious contender with the likes of the Mercedes Benz CLK, BMW 3-series Coupe and even the Alfa Romeo GTV.  It's only weakness?  Looks.  Any of the 200SX's rivals mentioned above evokes a sort of emotion whether you sit inside the car or admiring the outside.  The 200SX didn't have that sort of shape.  Yes, it did resemble the Skyline GTR in some way, but even the Skyline itself is boring to look at compared to similar sports cars of the same caliber like the Ferrari 355 for example. 

Three center aircon vents say Ferrari!  Center mounted GPS says technology.  A highly efficient cockpit for a sports car of the future.
 
Oh...the 200SX's new interior is all business.  No space is wasted here.  Note the A-pillar mounted tachometer and aluminum inserts everywhere.  This is what the 200SX should be.
 
 
Other car companies go avant garde, Nissan takes a risk and goes the Beetle way: The new retro-look Z-Concept which will be the base of the new 240Z.