Nissan has stepped up its teaser campaign for the upcoming Z sports car, with a new video previewing its engine note - and confirming it will arrive with a manual transmission.
The 33-second video seemingly confirms the presence of a V6 powertrain, likely a twin-turbocharged unit expected to produce around 400bhp.
The clip also revealed several other small details about the long-awaited successor to the 370Z, including the redesigned 'Z' logo, LED headlights and distinctive alloy wheels, which are shod in 'Nissan Z'-branded rubber.
Little else of the Z Proto, which is set to be officially revealed on the 16th of September, has been made official.
The Japanese firm previously announced on Twitter that the Z Proto will preview the new model that's due in 2021. Autocar understands the production version of the car is set to use the 400Z title.
To date Nissan has revealed few other details of the car, set to become the latest addition to its Z sports car lineage which began with the 1969 Datsun 240Z. The Twitter post confirming the imminent arrival of the Z Proto read: “50 years of passion. Innovation at its core. Modern technology, with a vintage touch.’
The post also featured a short video that highlighted the 50-year lineage of the Z brand and finished with a teaser silhouette of the new car.
That video is the latest official hint at the shape of the future model, following a brief glimpse in a previous Nissan video highlights its future model line-up. That video shows that it could have styling evolved from the current 370Z coupé.
The preview came following Nissan's announcement that it's to embark on a wide-reaching cost-cutting strategy under the Nissan Next banner. As well as closing its commercial vehicles plant in Barcelona, Spain, the company will reduce production capacity by 20% over the next three years and streamline its ageing product portfolio.
The 370Z is the oldest car in Nissan's current line-up, having been launched in 2008. The company's product planning boss, Ivan Espinosa, told Autocar at last year's Tokyo motor show that the sports car - along with the GT-R flagship - was "at the heart of Nissan" and that the company was "actively looking at and working on" a successor.
Autocar understands that the new Z car will be called the 400Z and take its power from a twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre V6 with more power than the current car. It's unlikely to sit on a bespoke platform, given its relatively low sales volumes, and could instead make use of the rear-driven underpinnings from Nissan sibling brand Infiniti's Q50 and Q60 models.
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Peter Cavellini
Looks..?
From what we saw, it doesn't look that bad, I hope whatever powers it is at least up to Supra levels of performance.
martin_66
Looks
Let's hope it looks as good as that Autocar redering - a fabulous looking thing, so much better than the 370Z, and much nicer than the Supra, which looks just like a GT86 on steroids.
jason_recliner
Looks great so far.
Looks great so far.
I hope they maintain a retro feel at the rear by keeping wide tailgate glass with pillars that blend into the quarter panels, not taper the glass like so many modern cars (and the Autocar rendering). While not unattractive, the tapered glass doesn't capture the Z look.
sbagnall
looks grate! id have one
looks grate! id have one luved the 350 and 370 reel fast cars sound good with big boar exsawsts
martin_66
Why?
Why do the looks grate? I think it looks fantastic. What is it about this rendering's looks that you find so grating?
sbagnall
I mean it looks great! Me
martin_66
sbagnall wrote:
Please forgive me. Your response was a hell of a lot more mature than my comment. I was being a comdescending pillock. I apologise for being rude.
martin_66
martin_66 wrote:
Make that a 'condescending' pillock. I thoroughly deserve to get the p*ss taken out of me for that!
Just Saying
Looking forward design wise
After all, there are only so many tweaks you can make to a saloon, estate or hatch back, (or so it seems if the last six or seven years of the model types are anything to go by).
All the underlying performance already exists in the before mentioned models so just maybe one for the masses looking forward, and not just the privileged.
Peter Cavellini
Funny cars.
Yep, I hope we get cars like this, but, for most of us , it'll be an SUV of various sizes, that seems to be the trend just now.
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