With the entire automotive industry at a tailspin and the recession making everything really tough on everyone; small and compact cars have been what people are talking about. Meanwhile, stretching your hard-earned dollar may be quite a chore these days, which is why you should opt for a vehicle that’s built to do just that. In the recent LA Autoshow, Nisssan unveiled what could be next year’s car of the masses, the 2008 Nissan Cube.

The Cube may sound too square and bland initially, but its smooth design gives you that relaxed and calm feeling when you see it. According to its designer, the Cube’s windows are built to evoke a feeling of looking at a picture, instead of typical car windows. Aside from that, the interior is unlike any other, because of the sheer space and size that it offers.

Additionally, the Cube’s headlights and taillights have been transferred above the bumpers. That’s because these lighting devices suffer the most serious damage during front-end collisions. That small tweak is enough to make sure that you won’t have to spend for new headlights every so often. The Cube also has an asymmetrical rear window in its right, which you won’t find when you look to the left.

Basically, the Nissan Cube gives you that exalted feeling when you see it, because it’s so small, but it’s still built to carry some serious cargo. It makes everyone interested, although not in a freaky way that a Smart forTwo or any other mini car would.

On the other hand, the specifications of the Nissan Cube is quite average, although you might find a few surprises. It has a 1.4-liter, four-cylinder that is capable of generating at least 95-horsepower. However, this small all-purpose vehicle is just a tad above 2000 lbs., which makes it really a lightweight in its class.

Despite of that limitation, the Nissan Cube is capable of carrying four adults all at once and has plenty of legroom to spare. Aside from that, you can put several hundred pounds of extra cargo and you’ll still be fine even if you’re driving on tough terrain. Also, its extremely fuel-efficient engine has still enough bounce for it to surge to 65 mph in the highway.

With its size, the Nissan Cube can fit in even small parking spaces and that means you won’t have to worry about Sunday afternoons when parking space is a luxury. The best side of the Nissan Cube is not its design but its MPG rating, which is pegged at 30 miles per gallon. For sure, you’ll save your precious money for something more important other than fuel.

You don’t have to deal with tiny spaces, miniature horsepower, and mediocre speed when you talk about green cars. Recently, Nissan launched what seems to be a topnotch hot rod that you can ever get and that’s the Nissan Altima Hot Rod Hybrid. As the name implies, this car doesn’t look like your typical hybrid car. In fact, it looks like it’s ready to just move through the speedway in full throttle and turn the road into dust. The fact is, it’s as fast as most sport cars out there and the catch is: it’s not going to ruin the atmosphere with its emissions.

Basically, the Nissan Altima Hot Rod Hybrid has the standard 2.5-liter engine and an electric supercharger that you can count on once you decide to go green. That’s not all, because it also has solar panels on the roof that can help you recharge the batteries anytime. The great thing about the Nissan Altima Hot Rod Hybrid is that it can compete with some faster rivals on the road. In fact, it’s scheduled to compete in the prestigious One Lap of America Race Series. Though far from being a Tesla Roadster, the Nissan Altima Hot Rod Hybrid can generate a whopping 440-horsepower and go as fast as 110 mph. If that’s not enough to convince you, it can go from 0-60 miles in only 12.9 seconds. With that being said, the Nissan Altima Hot Rod Hybrid is a solid choice if you want to go green without having to compromise power, speed, and space.

Nissan hasn’t yet released any information on how much the Nissan Altima Hot Rod Hybrid would cost, but it doesn’t seem to be significantly more expensive than non-hybrid cars out there.