Nissan announced the 2012 Geneva Motor Show lineup, and the most important part of it is a near production concept car called the INVITATION.

That’s a silly name, yes, but the car itself isn’t. It’s a classy little hatchback that will soon join Nissan’ lineup of compact cars including the Micra and the Juke. The car is due to hit the market in early 2013.

The invitation has a very interesting design with elegant sweeping lines everywhere. We particularity like the rear-end and those fancy tail lights. The side of the car is dominated by a distinctive character line, known internally as the ‘Squash Line’, which adds a powerful dynamism to its profile.

All in all, it’s a great design for a B-segment car. Not as mad as the Juke, but not as boring as the Micra either. The interior is nice too, although looking a bit conceptual here, and showcases some of the technologies that will be featured in the production car.

The car’s powertrain options are yet to be decided, but Nissan is aiming for an ultra-low CO₂ emission target of under 100g/km for the most frugal model. The car will also be packed with advanced safety features.

Among the features is Nissan’s advanced Around View Monitor (AVM) safety technology – seen for the first time on a B-segment car – which makes reversing and parallel parking as stress-free as possible. In addition, INVITATION also incorporates the Nissan Safety Shield Technologies, which interacts with the driving environment keeping the driver aware of what is happening around the car.

The INVITATION seems to have all the right ingredients for a successful premium hatchback.