Firstly, it will become...

Firstly, it will become a production car - and secondly, it"s going to be built at the manufacturer"s Sunderland plant.

The newcomer is based on the Micra, which is already made at the Wearside factory, but the flexibility of modern vehicle platforms means the Tone is much bigger than the supermini. Its dimensions will see it pitched head-to-head against the Ford Focus C-MAX when it"s launched in January 2006.

While the new model looks similar to the Modus, from parent firm Renault, designers have been keen to give the Tone an individual style. That"s most apparent at the back, where the lights are inspired by those fitted to the Qashqui concept, which was unveiled at this year"s Geneva Motor Show.

The Tone will provide seating for five and plenty of innovative storage space under the boot floor. To make the cabin seem even bigger, the show model is fitted with a unique roof comprising large glass sections - a feature which is common to many recent Nissan prototypes. Inside, the dashboard has a similar look to that of the sporty 350Z, and the company has said that it has deliberately given the Tone what it considers to be a "masculine" finish.

Nissan"s executive vice-president, Patrick Pelata, has high hopes for the all-new model. "The niche market where the Tone would compete is forecast to expand four-fold from 2002 to 2007," he told Paris showgoers.

Infiniti Brand

It looks as though buyers will have to wait for Nissan"s luxury Infiniti brand to reach the UK. The models won"t arrive here until 2007 at the earliest - that"s a year later than original estimates.

Pelata explained: "We won"t bring Infiniti to Britain without the right cars and powertrains." The absence of suitable diesels is causing the hold-up, but Perata said engineers were working on this.