• by Karl Greenberg , May 6, 2009

Volkswagen used to tout its mini-bus by arguing that the perfect vehicle is a shoebox on wheels with lots of windows, lots of room, and a few skylights.

After a long side-trip through minivans, the boxes are back, comprising a segment with cubist cars like Scion xB, Honda Element, the new Kia Soul, and now the appropriately named Nissan Cube, which went on sale Wednesday. But rather than -- or besides -- extolling such vehicles' Bauhaus aesthetics, automakers are also talking up the vehicles to younger consumers by focusing on their potential as social platforms. Nissan says the new $13,990 Cube is a car with a "socially oriented, lounge-style interior."

The company is extending the social metaphor with a pre-launch campaign for mobile digital devices called "Cube Mobile Hub."

Consumers can get to the mobile site starting mid-May via a short code or "text to" number that will be spotlighted in television, print, direct mail and interactive ads. Once at the Mobile Hub, users can download wallpapers, videos, music and ringtones and link to the nissanusa.com mobile site for a deep dive on the car, read product reviews, locate local Nissan dealers and order Cube t-shirts.

Nissan is also launching an iPhone app, "Cube Party Roundup," that goes live on June 15 and will be available for play in single-player and multi-player modes with up to eight people. The driving app sends the player around a city, picking up friends, ice, music and other items before a party.

Additional levels allow the player to pick up dates and go to concerts while navigating various obstacles to complete the mission. A Facebook version lets users share their progress with friends; it will go live in early July.

Robert Brown, senior manager, Nissan Marketing Communications, says the Cube Mobile Hub aligns with the campaign's positioning of the car as its own mobile hub. "It's a mobile destination for all things Cube. It really is part of our consumer insight that social media and mobile devices are a big part of [younger consumers'] culture. The Cube takes you places but also brings what you like to you, in a sense, so we thought that it was quite appropriate to message on those lines."

Brown says the launch campaign, which debuts in a few weeks, will be preceded with other digital pre-launch elements. "There's a heavy emphasis [on social media] and that not only makes smart media sense, but that's also where the target lives." Brown says pre-launch activity includes cross-promotional activity with the TV show "Heroes" and "lots of online messaging."

While Nissan is not roving the country with a fleet of Cubes, Nissan has been running a program called Cube Collegiate Challenge at 10 universities, which puts the vehicle on campus so students can kick the tires.