2011 Nissan Quest Photos Released Ahead of 2010 LA Auto Show

uglier than the new Odyssey. Inside is OK but you have to get past the exterior first. Terrible looking.

aside from that fake wood trim, I like it.

Exterior = Nissan Flex
Interior is pretty nice. One of the better looking minivans out there. Only thing I don't really like is the grille.

I also see some Flex in the rear profile, but squaring off the back adds head and cargo room.

+1 1487.

I'd have expected something A LOT more visually appealing than this "shoebox" design....:-/

It's better than the melted-down-minivan look of the current generation, at least. I guess we had to expect some quirkiness from the makers of the Cube and Juke, but it's still pretty utilitarian.

Personally, I'm REALLY excited about the new Quest! (I know, such enthusiasm sounds weird for a minivan. But, it's true.) I was a little worried that it was going to be ugly like the Juke and Cube, but I am SO pleasantly surprised. This is a GREAT looking minivan! It's MUCH better looking than I thought it was going to be, and MUCH better looking than the ugly Sienna AND upcoming Odyssey. It's, dare I say, masculine-looking (and way better looking than Nissan's own new Infiniti QX56). The side profile reminds me of a Flex, and the rear end like a mix of a Flex and a CX-9 (the taillights are taken straight off of it), but all in a GOOD way. And, the interior looks almost like an INFINITI'S! Go Nissan!

While I can't necessarily say if I love it or hate it, I like the fact that Nissan embraced the reality that the Quest is in fact a van, and unabashedly so. There are echoes of the new QX56 at the back end.

Nevertheless, has anybody noticed how massive those D-pillars are? Rear visibility must be horrendous even though this thing is a massive box. I realize it's probably a question of safety, but should a vehicle need a backup camera so you can make it out of the driveway?

First Nissan Patrol, now the Nissan Quest, it seems Nissan`s interiors are climbing up the ladder indeed.

Overall not bad, but that side profile is just too boxy and square, the sienna did better.

nissan interiors are improving but they use the same design in almost every product. This interior looks like the Murano, 2010 Altima, G37, Pathfinder, Armada, etc.

Nice exterior styling. What I don't get is why Nissan (and now Honda even on the PILOT SUV) are putting the gearshift so high up, no longer on the center console but ON the dashboard. I haven't sat in one, but I cannot imagine HOW the driver can see, let alone maniuplate the heat/air and radio controls located to the right of the chunky gearshift. Talk about distracted driving! Why not just go back to the stalk coming off the stearing wheel? - a very logical and ergonomically simple position that has been universally disregarded in favor of the more stylish modern shifter knob (or even worse, buttons and joysticks like on the Prius). I also wonder how many moms have accidently shifted their minivans into Neutral or Low while they are driving down the road and trying to mess w/other dash controls... the stupid shifter is right in the way!!!!

You people make me laugh.

It looks somewhat like a Flex, because Ford copied the design of the Nissan Elgrand which came out in 1997, way before the Flex.

This new Quest is the based off of the third generation Elgrand.

These boxy minivans have been around for ages, long before the Flex.

Personally, I think it looks great. Much better than the disaster zig-zag Odyssey and melted butter Sienna. The interior is very good looking too.

i dont care for minivans at all,but i think honda odyssey is still the best minivan.this new nissan and new toyota cant even compete with the current odeyssey,how they will compete with all new odyssey?honda is still and will be the king in this class

Attractive interior. Somewhat nondescript exterior, the overall design is cohesive with elements that reflect the Infiniti and Nissan design theme.
Will do better than the current Quest, yet will still be in fourth place behind Chrysler, Honda and Toyota entries.

Based on the pictures you can at least say that Nissan has hit the mark where Toyota and Honda missed. The styling is fresh and different without being overly styled (hello Honda). And the interior looks quite a few notches above the cost cutting hard plastics of much of the competition. Very good start...

Now the rest depends on the utility inside and the quality of construction. The last Quest failed miserably on both counts and since we can't see anything more from the pictures one can only speculate. However, you would assume Nissan learned from its mistakes of the past regarding the need to provide more utility (storage, split seats, etc.). Additionally, since this version was developed on the existing Japan based minivan platform already being sold there, you have to believe quality will be much improved.

If they addressed the above, then Nissan may have a big winner. Good job Nissan.

Looks good, but still....why the sliding door tracks in the fenders???? Looks more elegant than a Sienna, 100 times better than the new Odyssey. Interior looks nicer than both.

bmwm1 -
Puff, puff, then PASS..
Where would you get the idea that the flex looks like the Elgrand? It's absolutely nothing like it.

Should anyone disagree, here's the link to a 1997 Elgrand:
http://www.cars-directory.net/gallery/nissan/elgrand/1997/nissan_elgrand_1292450_p.html

Looks to me like the Elgrand copied the Chevy Astro...which was around long before your Elgrand.

And to me, this Quest looks much better than the new Elgrand. Square corners do not a copy make.

You my friend, make me laugh.

1919diesel, if you haven't driven one yet, go for a test drive. and if you still think you still think it's a distraction, then complain.

I like the looks so far. Nissan muffed the previous generation Quest trying to be too different; Honda (styling) and Toyota (fit and finish) both failed their newest generation minis so much that if I were in the market I would be willing to pay premium for a gently used previous generation over the new generation. Thankfully we have one only a couple years old and should be able to skip this generation.

If Nissan executes the rest of the design as well as what is revealed here, then we could have a new king of the minivans.

@ahsanman99

How can you say this "new" Nissan van can't compete with the current Honda Odyssey? This Nissan isn't even out yet, and no details have been announced.

The front end is UGLY the rear end is very Japanese style more like what you see in japan,

I only like the front end the rear makes it seem too japanese and foreign hopefully they change the rear end before production

Styling is truly in the eye of the beholder, so one man's attractive is another man's ugly. However, for those believing the new Nissan will fare worse than the Odyssey due to styling I would have to argue that you are likely incorrect relative to the likely buyers. Look at the posts for the new Odyssey. Literally 3 out of every 4 posters have a negative opinion of the style, many very strongly. Whereas the majority of comments for the new Quest are positive. That is not foolproof, but it is generally a decent indicator of which model might stand the best chance of being accepted style wise. If anything, the Quest's biggest challenger based on style alone would be the Sienna.

That is not to say Honda won't still rule the minivan landscape for 2011. They have a very strong reputation for value, utilization and dependability (and a strong following in general of repeat buyers as a result). These are the exact knocks on the current Quest and will take time to overcome if Nissan is to be successful. However if Nissan can deliver a solid product (which this appears to on target), then there is room for success as in my opinion Honda has given the competition an opening.

FAIL: Those climate controls aren't even in reasonable reach of the driver. The shift lever should've been placed where the start button and hazard button are.

Also, the exterior design looks like a Cube and a QX56 mated. The end result isn't pleasing to the eye.

why why why???????????? Why cant car designs make it out of the concept stage??????

The Nissan's concept was awesome! and this is what comes to the mass audience out of that!!!!!

Someone please do something!!!!!!!! This thing is ugly....and I am a Nissan fan (on my 6th Nissan). So the media dubs 2011 as the "Year of the Minivan" and it turns out to be a dud year like tonights bs lebron show.

Toyota got the exterior right. but man do I dislike toyotas.(so boring and numb to drive). Honda has another great concept for the masses but fails with the reveal and now Nissan was poised to clean house with this incredible concept and BOMBS for the masses.

Why hire the talent and money to create a concept and then punish all that hard work at the end?? Get rid of the suits that dont understand and bring in people that LOVE cars!

You are killing the love for people like me that wants PROGRESS in automotive design and features. I had swore to never own one but these concepts showed so much promise...I also have kids now and sliding doors would really make things easy.

How hard is it to give us a more masculine minivan? I could understand if you didnt get it on the concept side but why take out all the manliness? Come on, lots of women purchased a Hummer product over the last 10 years and they didnt smooth out the lines.

NO EXCUSE. Quit screwing around and give something Dads can drive, have fun in and still feel like a man!

"NO EXCUSE. Quit screwing around and give something Dads can drive, have fun in and still feel like a man!"

I drove an Odyssey for a week. Everytime I got in or out of it, I still had cojones firmly attached. I'm sorry you seem to struggle accomplishing the same thing.

Why does everyone insist on being defined by what they drive?

Who thought a face shaped like a trapezoid was a good idea?

I like it more than the new Odyssey and about the same as the Sienna. My big hope is that someone has a minivan that can tow about 5000 lbs--I race a Miata and would love a minivan that could tow it without having to buy a high-dollar aluminum trailer for it to try and scrape under the 3500 lb rating most of the minivans have.

@ mchspd1:

For real? You need a masculine-looking minivan to make you feel more like a man? Being a man depends on YOU, not in what you drive.

On a side not, barring the old Chevy Astros and Ford Aerostars, I personally think this IS the most masculine-looking minivan there is!

I can't imagine this will hit the target market any better than the last one did. The rear especially looks like some odd mash-up of Japanese and '60's Chrysler product. Though I can't say it's any worse than the new Odyssey. Someone said it looks like someone tack-welded an R-Class to the rear.

As for still being in fourth place, hardly. The declining sales (vs. '09) of the Sedona and Routan in the first half of '10 are still handily better than what the Quest did in the first half of '09. Not sure what VW has planned, but the Sedona gets a new engine, front-end, and transmission for '11. Unless the Sienna's newly-cheapened interior and the Odyssey's weird new styling work heavily against those two, I'm thinking the Quest has a good chance of holding on to the bottom slot in this market.

I can't imagine this will hit the target market any better than the last one did. The rear especially looks like some odd mash-up of Japanese and '60's Chrysler product. Though I can't say it's any worse than the new Odyssey. Someone said it looks like someone tack-welded an R-Class to the rear.

As for still being in fourth place, hardly. The declining sales (vs. '09) of the Sedona and Routan in the first half of '10 are still handily better than what the Quest did in the first half of '09. Not sure what VW has planned, but the Sedona gets a new engine, front-end, and transmission for '11. Unless the Sienna's newly-cheapened interior and the Odyssey's weird new styling work heavily against those two, I'm thinking the Quest has a good chance of holding on to the bottom slot in this market.