Nissan concept car to include Xbox360

Nissan and Microsoft have teamed up to create a concept car that will allow you to play the Xbox360 from behind the wheel when you are not driving

29 December 2005 17:33 GMT / By Stuart Miles

Nissan and Microsoft have teamed up to create a concept car that will allow you to play the Xbox360 from behind the wheel when you are not driving.

The Japanese carmaker has said it will unveil a concept roadster at the North American International Auto Show on the 9 Jan with controls for a built-in Xbox360.

Called the Nissan Urge roadster, the car allows a driver to use its steering wheel and pedals to play Microsoft's Project Gotham Racing 3 on a seven-inch LCD screen that folds down from the roof where the rear view mirror is normally positioned.

The three-seat Urge will join a long line of concept vehicles launched over the last couple of years like Ford's translucent dashboard or DaimlerChrysler's motorcycle built around a Dodge Viper's V10.

Bruce Campbell, vice president of design at Nissan Design America, said the idea of turning the Urge into an Xbox controller was spurred by an internet survey of 2000 young people.

The survey found that "technology and gaming are among the most important attributes in their first car", Campbell said.

However, gamers we asked weren't so sure that after an hour stuck in commuter traffic they would be happy to stay in their car for the rest of the evening playing games.