Nissan has just unveiled the new engine with which it will compete this year at Le Mans. This small 1.5 liter unit develops more power per kilogram than an F1 engine.
Lightness, simplicity and efficiency are values that have been inscribed in the DNA of Japanese engineering, perhaps since the time of the samurai. Time when, through advanced casting techniques and steel molding, the Japanese manufactured swords that, despite their lightness, were more resistant and deadly than their counterparts made in the West.
Hundreds of years later, Nissan repeats the traditional Japanese recipe, applying the principles of lightness, simplicity and efficiency to the engine with which it will equip the Nissan ZEOD RC. Car that will participate in the 2014 edition of Le Mans 24h.
According to Nissan, the ZEOD RC will be the first car in the history of Le Mans 24hrs to be able to complete a complete lap of the circuit in fully electric mode. Every 1-hour stint, the Nissan ZEOD RC will complete one lap in fully electric mode, then passing the lead to the 400hp “mini-engine” that will ensure the remaining laps.
In order to make it easier to understand the size of this engine, it would be hypothetically possible to put it in an airplane's hold suitcase and travel with it. See all the details of this engine in a 360º animation here.
