IN the mid-1990s the British driver had a definite thirst for six-cylinder petrol motoring.
And there were some impressive choices out there in that management middle ground dominated by cars such as the Ford Scorpio and Vauxhall Vectra.
But there were other options which proved that classy, powerful motoring was not the exclusive preserve of German manufacturers and Jaguar.
With the rise in 'green' motoring, the memories of some these cheeky guzzlers have faded faster than a Victorian sepia print, which is a shame when it comes to cars such as the Nissan QX.
Of course the popular thinking concerning the QX is of a real plain Jane of a car which had no street-cred when compared with other more glamorous badges such as BMW.
The QX was introduced at a time when Britain was, in the main, somewhat guarded against buying powerful cars that did not have a souped-up badge to back up its abilities.
America had no such qualms and Japanese V6 models hit the spot with many delighted drivers.
The problem was that the QX looked like just another Nissan - and it has to be said that the company's styling in those days was not exactly automotive eye-candy.
Its lack of visual punch meant that it would never overtake cars like the Omega in the sales race, and it took a few years for the penny to drop over the fact that the QX was a very accomplished car.
As a used buy it represented a lot of quality for the money and had a reputation for reliability if maintained properly.
The QX came in both 2.0-litre and 3.0 form and both were excellent.
The 3.0 V6 was a cracker of a saloon. It could be bought for the same money that would only get you a basic model from BMW and Audi and was very well equipped.
I remember driving one of these cars and it came over as a comfortable, yet compact premium saloon with a lot of punch and a ride quality that embarrassed any other Japanese saloon short of a Lexus.
The 3.0-litre could use its 190bhp to accelerate to 60mph in just over nine seconds and could achieve 130mph.
Had Nissan dressed up its looks QX could have held its own against the competition with ease.