Regrettably the production version of Nissan Z Proto it will not reach the “old continent”. After a moment of rejoicing that there is yet another sports car from the ground up, which we all yearned to drive, the rug is taken away from under our feet right away — blame the complicated accounts on emissions in Europe.
Even so, “kudos” to Nissan for moving forward with this project, that of a true and sporty coupé, when what we see most in the rest of the industry is the announcement of more crossover and “pseudo-coupé” SUVs, as if they were worthy substitutes. .
However, the question remains. Why did Nissan take so long to replace the 370Z, which is on its way to its 12th anniversary? — as a rule, the life cycle of a car is around 6-7 years.
According to Hiroshi Tamura, specialist for Nissan's Z, GT-R and Nismo models, it was a matter, above all, of waiting for the right moment and, also, of making the right scores. In his own words: “if customers say or are saying “no thank you”, then we have to stop. (It was also about) how we can create a story… or a product… using the right business model.”
Of course, the “right time” was decided a few years ago, in 2017, after Tamura presented a proposal for the succession of the 370Z to Nissan executives, who approved the development. Who would have thought that in 2020 the world would be turned inside out due to a pandemic that seems to have no end in sight?
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Well… Going back in time, the 370Z also couldn't have been released at a worse time, in late 2008, in the midst of a global financial meltdown, which for a niche product like the 370Z is never good news. But the model has persevered through the global economic recovery, and we've reached the point where it now even has a successor.
What's more, it remains 100% Nissan:
Hiroshi Tamura, specialist for Nissan Z, GT-R and Nismo modelsOur Z is a Z; a Z is independent.
Tamura reinforces the argument: “it's 50 years of a historic car, so it has to reflect our heritage”. As a note, it was 1969 that the first of the Z lineage, the 240Z or Fairlady, was released.
It seems to us that Hiroshi Tamura's words have someone or a certain model in mind and we've all probably guessed which one it is.
The Toyota GR Supra will be one of the main rivals of the future Nissan Z Proto (the final official designation has not yet been announced). Supra is also a name with a history at Toyota, so it's no wonder the controversy has been generated around the “Japanese” sports car, for sharing practically everything with the BMW Z4, the German roadster. From the platform to the turbo-compressed in-line six-cylinder engine.
We still don't know the final specs for the Nissan Z Proto, but it will almost certainly (still) resort to the 370Z platform — FM in Nissan parlance, whose origins go back to the beginning of the century, having also served the 350Z — but will switch to the atmospheric V6 of 3.7 l by a more modern twin-turbo V6 with 3.0 l, with an estimated power of around 400 hp, inherited from the more powerful versions of the Infiniti Q50 and Q60.
The message is given, but it also remains to be seen which of the two will give a better sport, regardless of the origin of its components.
Source: Cars Guide.