The Nissan Xterra was designed in one hour
- The popular Nissan Xterra was designed in an hour
- Usually, cars take many months to design
- But that wasn’t the case with the Xterra
Published on Mar 28, 2025 at 4:50 AM (UTC+4)
by Claire Reid
Last updated on Mar 28, 2025 at 6:41 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
Automotive designer Alfonso Albaisa says the Nissan Xterra was designed in just one hour – a stark contrast to how things are done today.
Nissan launched its truck-based Xterra SUV back in 1999, with production drawing to a close in 2015.
The Xterra was designed to be a rough and ready vehicle, equipped to tackle whatever was thrown at it.
But, interestingly, its original design concept was drawn up in just an hour.
DISCOVER SBX CARS – The global premium auction platform powered by Supercar Blondie
The Nissan Xterra was a rough and tough SUV
The Xterra was the first Nissan vehicle to be completely conceived, developed, and manufactured in the United States.
The SUV was sold with the tagline: ‘Everything You Need, Nothing You Don’t’ – and the car was designed to live up to just that – a functional and reliable vehicle that opted for practicality over luxury.
The late Jerry Hirshberg, former president of Nissan Design International, said the design brief for the vehicle was ‘to create an affordable, rugged, quality piece of equipment’.
Hirshberg also said it was ‘designed to look better dirty than clean’.
In a recent interview with Car Buzz, senior vice president for Global Design for Nissan Alfonso Albaisa revealed exactly how the design for the Xterra came about – and it was refreshingly brief.
The Xterra took just an hour to design
These days it’s not unusual for a car to take many months, or even years, to switch from a vague idea to a solid design.
However, Albaisa told Car Buzz that when it came to tackling the Nissan Xterra things moved a lot more quickly.
Back then, Albaisa was on a team that had been tasked with creating a ladder-frame SUV based on the Nissan Frontier.
But he and the rest of the team struggled to make any of their ideas work.
That was until Tom Semple, the director of the project stepped in, and wasted absolutely no time.
Albaisa told Car Buzz that Semple was less than impressed after he walked into the design studio where he and around 30 others were working away.
“I can’t believe I hired all of you,” Semple reportedly shouted as he grabbed a marker and began sketching out a design on the spot.
“And he drew the very first Xterra right in front of our faces,” Albaisa said. “The Xterra was done in an hour! We wasted about a year!”
With the design in the bag, the Nissan Xterra was created and – as we all know – went on to become a success for the automaker, which just goes to show slow and steady isn’t always the best route.
DISCOVER SBX CARS: The global premium car auction platform powered by Supercar Blondie
Claire Reid is a journalist who hails from the UK but is now living in New Zealand. She began her career after graduating with a degree in Journalism from Liverpool John Moore’s University and has more than a decade of experience, writing for both local newspapers and national news sites. Claire covers a wide variety of topics, with a special focus on cars, technology, planes, cryptocurrency, and luxury.
