When Jay Leno was asked by Nissan to feature the new IDx Nismo at his garage, he arranged so one of his friends could bring his original Nissan, or Datsun, 510 along. The 510 has been the inspiration for the IDx project, and it’s remarkable how similar the new boy looks to its grandfather.

Nissan IDx Nismo is obviously bigger and more muscular than the old car, and the Nismo treatment means it’s got lots of racing paraphernalia fitted to it. But the three-box design philosophy remains intact.

Nissan IDx Nismo also boasts a very functional design. It can seat four people in relative comfort, and its panels are easily modifiable. As Nissan’s creative design manager, Giovanni Arroba explains a number of times, the IDx is a pure design study for the time being. But the chances of Nissan greenlighting the production are actually quite good. Granted, with the recent reports about Toyota GT86’s struggling sales they may have got cold feet, but then the GT86 was an overly-hyped car. The IDx is a simple idea that might just work.