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Mysterious Nissan/Renault Mule Is Based on the Note, But What Is It?

The Renault-Nissan partnership strikes again, this time in the form of a mule testing God-knows-what on the streets of Europe.
Renault-Nissan mule spyshots 8 photos
Photo: CarPix
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This is globalization for you: a testing mule that clearly used a Nissan Note as its starting point is wearing French camouflage and French number plates while driving on some roads in an unspecified South European country.

The current Nissan Note was launched in 2012, so technically speaking this could be the first sighting of an early facelift, but we doubt it. And the reason we do that has a lot to do with the mule's rear doors: they are considerably smaller than on the production model, which hints at the fact somebody used an axe on the wheelbase and shortened it.

Or maybe Nissan saw BMW, Audi and Mercedes offering long wheelbase versions of their limousines and decided to do the exact opposite on the other end of the automotive hierarchy.

All kidding aside, getting through those doors would pose a challenge even for the most flexible of us, so it's certainly a makeshift solution that allows the car to get on the road to test something else.

But what is it? It's nothing but a guessing game, but our strongest bet is on the platform underneath that chopped up Nissan Note body. Nissan and (especially) Renault are under no pressure to launch new models in the small segment where Micra and Clio are active, but that doesn't mean they can't begin testing a future common platform. Since they both are very important models for each of the two manufacturers in terms of sales, they would want to prepare the new versions as thoroughly as possible.

But your guess is as good as ours, and if you do suspect there may be something else behind this spotting, please do share. If you happen to work for Nissan or Renault and are in the know, that's even better. Rip off that confidentiality contract and spill the beans.
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About the author: Vlad Mitrache
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"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie)
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