By Damon Lowney
Daily Titan Asst. News Editor

Truly a car for either the next generation or for those obsessed with Japanese culture, Nissan’s aptly-named Cube, which has been out in Japan for years, has finally made it stateside and is being marketed at the nation’s youth. That means high school and college students, me and hopefully nobody over thirty. Mom, please don’t buy this car!

When I walked up to the gray base model I would be driving, I was slightly surprised that it looks more like a real car than in photos. It looks less cartoonish.

Still, its love-it or hate-it styling will be the main reason people buy this car. The rear hatch window is made to look like it wraps around and connects with the left-rear side window, but doesn’t do the same on the other side. The front end looks like a robotic face. The ceiling fabric ripples outward from a central light; the speakers get the same treatment. Step up to the next model and you can get floor lights and an upgraded sound system. This car simply oozes style.

I tried a car with a six-speed manual transmission, the transmission of choice if you want to use every bit of the 122 horsepower provided by the 1.8 liter four cylinder. Choosing the automatic will get you two fewer gears and slower acceleration.

The $14,000 base Cube has a good sound system, which includes a CD player and radio with an iPod jack. The speakers are clear and the volume can be turned loud, but I noticed that the bass wasn’t as clear or pronounced as I would have liked.

The interior, including the back seats, is spacious for a car of it’s size and all seats in the car lean back almost flat, making it the perfect secondary dorm room when your roommate just won’t give you 15 minutes. It would also be good for road trips.

As for the drive, the car is quick enough (again, with the manual transmission), but it won’t be winning any races. With six gears to row through, acceleration to freeway speeds is acceptable, but not mind-blowing. According to Car and Driver’s testing, a manual transmission Cube did get to 60 mph in 9.1 seconds, but a 2008 Scion xB sprinted there in 7.2 seconds. If you want to go fast, don’t buy the Cube.

Clutch engagement is light and progressive, which makes for easy driving around town and in stop-and-go traffic. The gear lever shifts positively and felt natural. I never had to search for any of the six gears.

Suspension on the car is almost too soft which makes the car respond hesitantly to lane changes, but it is well damped for soaking up bumps and railroad tracks with aplomb.

The car has a tight turning circle, great for parking and U-turns, but the steering is too light at those speeds. Thankfully the steering wheel picks up the slack once the car is up to speed.

Personally, I would buy a first generation Scion xB over a Cube, but I would buy the Cube over the current xB, purely on terms of style. The Cube is a bit too vibrant and abnormally styled to make it an instant buy for me, but I prefer it over the bigger, tamer second-generation xB.