A week ago, we looked at what could very well end up the most modular Toyota truck of all time. Now, we have a vehicle that could prove Nissan's most versatile van ever. Nissan may not be quite as well known for vans as Toyota is trucks, but it has long offered a few commercial van staples. And in markets not named "USA," it's also developed some very intriguing factory camper vans and concepts. The all-new Primastar Flexvan is both, and it's designed to get things – all the things – done.
In this month's announcement, Nissan immediately defined the Primastar Flexvan as a combination cargo van, family-size passenger vehicle and business-class shuttle. What it left out in that three-way definition was light camper van, but the Flexvan is in fact ready to camp at a moment's notice.
Nissan turned to German aftermarket seating specialist Hermann Schnierle GmbH in transforming its boxy, highly configurable midsize commercial van into a properly modular MPV with four+ distinct purposes. The build centers around three pairs of floor rails extending from the tailgate up to the front row and a series of individual seats that easily mount to and dismount from those rails.
The flexible system allows the van to quickly transform from a two-seat cargo van with empty rear cab to an eight-seat passenger van loaded with the extended family. It also allows owners to set it up in every numerical seat configuration in between to precisely manage cargo and passenger space – three, four, five, six and seven-passenger layouts are all welcome and available with a few seat maneuvers.
More specifically, the Flexvan can carry up to three individual seats in both the second and third rows, and buyers can choose from Schnierle's reclining "Relax" seats with footrest and fixed-back "Flexus 2" seats, based on their planned uses. If it's a family car designed for the utmost comfort on long trips, for instance, buyers will likely want the Relax seats. However, for a commercial passenger shuttle or small school bus, the fixed Flexus seats will streamline operations.
Whichever seats the buyer chooses, they're designed to be faced forward or rearward, allowing for vis-a-vis business van configurations that promote meetings and discussion on the move. Nissan also mentions that the driver and front passenger seats can be installed atop an RV-style swivel base so that the two frontmost occupants can swing around to face one or two rows of rear occupants when parked. An available folding split-wing table similar to the one VW offers in its Multivan works as a conference or dining table and mounts flexibly around the floor rails.
As for camping, the Relax seats are designed to keep on folding until they're flat. When installed in the second row, three seats combine to create a double bed-size lying surface of 190 x 132 cm (75 x 52 in). Schnierle also mentions the option of a soft topper for laying on the folded seats for a more comfortable night's sleep.
There's no kitchen, so the Primastar Flexvan isn't technically classified an RV, but it can serve as a sleeper van, just like the aforementioned VW Multivan, the base-level California Beach and many similar bed-only vans already on the market.
The Nissan Primastar Flexvan will be available for a base price of €54,121 (approx. US$63,550) in Germany, including VAT. It will carry the same five-year European-wide 160,000-km warranty as other Nissan commercial vehicles, and Schnierle will offer a matching five-year warranty on its conversion components for an annual fee of €240, including VAT.
Those looking for a more complete Primastar camper van available directly from Nissan should check out the Primastar Seaside launched a few years ago in collaboration with Dethleffs. A full-time camper van, the Seaside adds such features as a pop-up sleeper roof and driver-side kitchen block to a similarly modular floor plan with rails and adjustable/removable seating.
Source: Nissan Germany
