New Nissan Z Kaze concept is a bold tribute to 1990s car tuning culture
Z car fans rejoice… a new concept celebrates the history of Japanese brand’s iconic sports car
We recently found out that Nissan still has aspirations to bring its Z sports car to the UK market and now, to excite fans even more, the firm has revealed its Z Kaze concept.
According to the company, the concept is “designed around nostalgia, heritage and driving enjoyment for Nissan’s seven generations of Z sports cars”. If you’re not clued up on your sporty Nissan history, the lineage encompasses the 1969 and 1972 Fairlady, the 1980 280Z, the 1984 and 1989 300ZX, the 350Z from 2002 and finally the current Z, which arrived in 2020.
The Z Kaze was unveiled at ZCON, the annual convention of the Z Car Club Association, in Phoenix, Arizona, and its most notable feature comes in the shape of a T-top roof, paying homage to the 300ZX launched in 1989.
Ponz Pandikuthira, Senior Vice President of Nissan Americas said: “The Z Kaze concept celebrates some of Nissan’s most iconic open top sports cars, while recognizing the ’90s tuning culture that helped put Nissan and [performance arm] Nismo on the map.”
The Z Kaze (which is named after the Japanese word for wind) gets two carbon fibre bonnet vents, wheelarch extensions and a carbon fibre body kit consisting of a front splitter, side skirts, a reshaped rear bumper and a larger lip spoiler. Nissan says the “subtle modifications” are a “nod to the import-tuner car scene”.
The concept sits on forged, multi-piece 18-inch Nismo LMGT2 race wheels, emphasising its lowered stance, with various chassis and suspension upgrades from Nismo. There’s also a Pacific Teal paint finish and decals inspired by the early nineties.
The interior gains custom white leather upholstery with additional carbon fibre accents, plus an uprated Bose sound system, including speakers incorporated into the headrests.
As standard, the Nissan Z comes with a twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre V6 putting out 400bhp and 475Nm of torque to the rear wheels. The Z Kaze gets various tuning upgrades including a new exhaust system, intercooler kit and upgraded air filter, though the firm hasn’t divulged what difference this has made to the power output.
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