Altima

Make
Nissan
Segment
Sedan

An easy way for an automaker to make cash is to offer appearance packages. Jeep does this a lot, rolling out a new "special edition" every couple of months. Nissan and Jeep are two very different companies, but the Japanese automaker knows a good idea when it sees it (see the Star Wars Rogue). The day before the 2017 Chicago Auto Show Nissan has revealed five new Midnight Edition models. The package was first seen on the 2016 Maxima SR and is now available on the Sentra SR, Altima SR, Rogue, Murano and Pathfinder.

The package differs slightly for each car in both pricing and features. Commonalities across all six Midnight Edition models include: black mirror caps, black wheels, black spoilers and available special floor mats. Despite starting out only offering black paint, the package can now be optioned with four different exterior colors (black, white, grey and red). It's cheapest to option on the Sentra SR with a cost of $490. This gets you the basic setup, with the only frill being those optional floor mats. The Altima SR can be optioned with the package for $990, with the extra $500 buying bigger wheels (18 inchers), low-profile all-season tires, remote engine start and LED headlights.

The Rogue is the cheapest Midnight Package SUV. Its price and options match the Altima's, save for the fact that the floor mats are thrown in. Also added on are black roof rails, black cross bars, black splash guards, a rear bumper protector and illuminated kick plates. The Murano gets the same options as the Rogue, although its wheels are 20 inches. Maybe that's why it costs $1,195. Pathfinder owners who want a midnight edition will also have to shell out $1,195. They get bits similar to the Murano's, although the roof rails are dropped in favor of a spoiler and a chrome bumper protector is thrown in. Overall the six Midnight Edition Nissans look menacing and, dare we say it, just a bit cool. That's normally a hard thing to say about a Sentra…

Offering six Midnight Edition models may seem like a stretch, but Nissan says the take rate for the first one (the 2016 Maxima SR) was 85 percent. If that success can be repeated across six different models, including those hot-selling SUVs, this move will be a stroke of genius.