Nissan’s Next-Generation Z Car Will Be Almost Identical To The Z Proto

Nissan unveiled the Z Proto last month and it looked virtually production ready.

There’s a good reason for that as the production model will reportedly be almost identical to the concept.

According to Japan’s Best Car, Nissan showed the Z Proto at a car meet last weekend and event was attended by several officials including Hiroshi Tamura is affectively known as Mr. GT-R. During the event, the chief product specialist reportedly said the production Z will “come out in this form.”

Also Read: Nissan Z Proto Combines Retro Styling With Twin-Turbo V6 And Six-Speed Manual

That suggests road-going model will be identical to the Z Proto or only lightly changed. This seems logical, but a Nissan spokesperson was more cautious as they told The Drive “it’s too hasty to say the design is settled at this point.”

While some things could change, the Z Proto was well received thanks to its retro-inspired design which incorporated cues from the original Z as well as the 300ZX. The most controversial element was the rectangular air intake and hopefully that gives way to something more attractive.

Nissan hasn’t said when the production model will be launched, but the Z Proto featured a twin-turbo V6 engine and a six-speed manual transmission. The engine is expected to be borrowed from the Infiniti Q60 Red Sport 400 so it should have an output of approximately 400 hp (298 kW / 406 PS) and 350 lb-ft (474 Nm) of torque.

That would be a sizable improvement over the 370Z – which has a 332 hp (248 kW / 337 PS) and 270 lb-ft (366 Nm) of torque – but it sounds like the model will still be affordable as Tamura reportedly said the next-generation Z will have a “buyable price.”