The japanese car maker said the X-Trail Bobsleigh was inspired by the design of the X-Trail and had its first run at the historic Olympic track in Igls, piloted by British Olympic medallist Sean Olsson.
Nissan worked with bobsleigh experts to transform a traditional four-man sled into an X-Trail inspired seven-seater capable of reaching speeds of over 100kph pulling a G-force of 4.5G.
The bobsleigh mimics theX-Trail’s design, with distinctive front aspect, headlamps and seven-seater option. It gives passengers a 360-degree, bird’s-eye view to capture all of the action - identical to the Nissan X-Trail’s Around View Monitor system.
Like the bobsleigh, the X-Trail’s 4x4-i system helps the driver keep control even in ice and snow.
Nissan Design Europe design manager Darryl Scriven teamed up with expert bobsled manufacturer Diego Menardi and sport expert Ian Richardson to fuse car design with Olympic aerodynamics.
Richardson and Menardi have over 50 years of combined experience in the industry, delivering Olympic track experiences and sleighs to teams around the world.
The X-Trail Bobsleigh was handcrafted by Menardi at his workshop in Cortina. The seven-seater was developed using sketches and computer-aided design (CAD). The detail on the bobsleigh nose was crafted to express the X-Trail’s V-motion grille and capture the sculpture of the hood lines.
The work was complemented by Menardi’s structural lengthening of the cabin to accommodate seven passengers.
