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Citroën designers: Design students have 'golden opportunity'

Today's car design students "have got a fantastic opportunity in a very different world," say Citroën designers. Though the automotive industry has been suffering in many regions in the current economic climate, the next generation of car designers "have got a fantastic opportunity," says Andrew Cowell, Senior Design Manager at Citroën, in conversation with Car Design News at the Royal College of Art, London. "The industry will evolve quite a lot, and these guys (the students on the postgraduate Vehicle Design course) will come out into a very different world." "They'll start in a very interesting period", says Alexandre Malval, Citroën Design Director and himself a graduate from the RCA course.

Nissan Sunny

Nissan is reviving its famous Sunny nameplate for a new entrant to the burgeoning Chinese C-segment sedan market. The car will then go on sale globally across 170 countries, under different names dependant of territory. At 4426mm long and 1695mm wide with a 2600mm wheelbase, the Sunny is thoroughly conventional in its dimensions, yet there has obviously been a conscious effort to imbue this three-box sedan with a more monobox aesthetic, following on from the Nissan Ellure concept.

Fiat Americanizes its 500, complete with cupholders

The Fiat 500 subcompact might be Italian through and through, but the U.S. version that arrives in dealerships late this year will cater to American tastes. The American car will have a more powerful engine than the European version, a slightly softer ride and--most important--more substantial, American-style cupholders.