XTERRA PUTS NISSAN ON TRACK.

Byline: David Goodman Associated Press 

Nissan Motor Co. says the new Xterra economy sport-utility vehicle that goes on sale next week will be the driving force behind a projected 15 percent annual increase in its North American sales.

In an interview Wednesday, top officials of Nissan North America said the Xterra will fill a niche as the most affordable - at a base price of $17,349 - of the ``true'' SUVs built on a truck frame.

``We think it will bring some fresh people into the Nissan showroom,'' said Jed Connelly, vice president of Nissan North America and general manager of its Nissan brand.

The name Xterra (pronounced ehks-TEH'-ruh) is intended to link images of Generation X and rugged terrain.

Cost, as well as design, is a big a part of its coolness, Nissan executives say. The base sticker price announced Wednesday places the 2000-model Xterra well below the $25,000 or so of other truck-based SUVs.

Some compact SUVs do sell for less. But they use cars' unibody design, rather than the sturdier body-on-frame design used for trucks.

Analyst Wesley Brown said the Xterra's ``rugged, muscular'' look and moderate price should make it a hot seller for Nissan.

``It looks like they're getting on track,'' said Brown, of Nextrend in Thousand Oaks.

Worldwide, Nissan is trying to fight its way out of deep financial problems made worse by Japan's continuing recession and North American sales that until recently lagged other Japanese automakers.

Nissan got a big boost in March when French automaker Renault SA agreed to invest $5.4 billion in exchange for a 36.8 percent controlling stake in the company.

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PHOTO (Color) Nissan's 2000 Xterra