Nissan Z Proto revealed with stunning old school looks
Nissan has just recently revealed the Z Proto, a successor to the 370Z. While this is a prototype, Nissan has been clear that the Z Proto is not a concept, the new Z is coming which means what we see now is likely what we will see on offer soon. It’s currently speculated that the Nissan Proto Z will become the 400Z and be released in 2021. However, Nissan has yet to say anything about that.
The Nissan Z Proto is a mix of new and old.
“Ultimately, we decided the Z Proto should travel between the decades, including the future.” – Alfonso Albaisa, head of design at Nissan
This Nissan Z Proto is all kinds of old school cool, paying homage to many of the previous generations of the Z car while remaining keeping everything that makes the current cars great. Starting at the front end, our attention was immediately drawn to the rectangle grille and LED headlights. The grille references the current Z car while the headlights go all the way back to the original Z car. With added daytime running LEDs that create two half circles.
The body of the Z Proto was finished in a two-tone paint of bright yellow and black roof, separated by what looks to be an aluminium strip. This creates that fastback look that leads us to the very classic rear end. Rectangular taillights set on a black screen, it harkens back to the late 80s and early 90s. Nissan Z badging makes its way onto the C-pillar and tyres which surround new 19-inch alloy wheels.
Inside is a continuation of the same theme.
Inside the cabin is a continuation of the retro-modern style that the exterior set. Black dominates the interior with bright yellow contrast stitching and highlights. Two large screens make up for the Z Proto’s instrument cluster and infotainment. While as large as they are, Nissan didn’t do away with all things analogue to stay on theme. Integrated into the dashboard are three cowled gauges for boost pressure, turbo rpm and battery charge.
What we know about the Z Proto’s performance.
Nissan has kept their mouths shut for the finer details about the performance of the Z Proto. It’s fair since this won’t be the final production version. What we do know is that Nissan is equipping it with a twin-turbo V6 that powers the rear wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox. We will likely see an automatic version of the upcoming Z car, but the manual transmission is perfect for this model since it is going for a pure old sportscar feel. Staying on that feel, there was no EV or hybrid tech announced either.
While everything is still in the air for changes, we will likely see something very similar to the Nissan Z Proto. The new Z car is in development right now which means we might have it land on our South African shores within the next 2 years.
For combining the bast with the design elements that are currently defining the future, we have high hopes for the new Z car.
Source & images: Cars | Jalopnik | Nissan
