Nissan teases with huge topless Murano CrossConvertible

Nissan has been at the crazy pills. The Japanese company has decided to lop the roof off its full-sized, premium SUV to create the Murano CrossCabriolet -- a car it believes is the world's first all-wheel-drive, convertible crossover. Does that make it a crossover crossover?

Nissan has released a single, shadowy picture of the Murano CrossCabriolet to whet our appetites. From that shot, the car appears to be an enormous 4x4 with the roof gone. It's not a concept that's hugely appealing on paper, but we'll give credit to Nissan's design team because from this angle at least, it appears to work quite well. 

It's clearly the sort of car that'll appeal to people who want the comfort and ruggedness of an off-roader with the wind-in-the-hair thrills of a convertible.

Crucially, the Murano CrossCabriolet offers tonnes of storage. Most convertibles barely offer enough room in the boot for a half-eaten kebab, but this thing, according to Nissan, has space for golf bags or luggage, even with the top down.

The Murano CrossCabriolet should also have plenty of technology to play with. If it's anything like the standard Murano, it'll have a big touchscreen to control all its AV functions, nine speakers plus a pair of subwoofers on the SL model, and a 9.3GB Music Box hard drive on which to rip audio CDs.

That's about all the information we have on the Murano CrossCabriolet for the moment, but it'll be unveiled in all its enormous, topless glory at the Los Angeles Auto Show later this week, so expect further coverage soon. Watch for more information and pics shortly, along with a release sometime in early 2011.