Nissan has revealed the Z it will use to contest a 24-hour endurance race at Fuji Speedway in June. This isn’t the Super GT Z silhouette racer, which we’ve already seen — this is more or less a production car with some modifications for long-distance racing, including a roll cage and adjustable rear wing. And it might just tease what a future track-focused Z available to the public could look like, whenever that happens.
This Z will compete in Super Taikyu’s ST-Q class. If you don’t know, Super Taikyu is Japan’s grassroots pro-am touring car series, though it’s a bit unique in that it involves GT3-homologated cars as well as TCR-spec ones.
The ST-Q category is reserved for one-off experimental cars that would otherwise not comply with existing regulations, kind of like Le Mans’ Garage 56. Toyota and Rookie Racing entered a hydrogen-powered Corolla in this class in 2021, and have also campaigned a GR 86 that runs on synthetic fuel. Similarly, Nissan will use ST-Q as a means to validate a track-ready Z.
Two of these ST-Q cars will run in the race — one operated by Nismo itself, and another by Max Racing, per a translated press release. Both will benefit from teams of five drivers each.
Besides that big wing, other changes have clearly been made that separate this Z from its road-legal brethren. We see eight-spoke Rays CE28Ns, new vents in the hood, a front tow hook and slight alterations to the fenders. The interior has seemingly been stripped down as well, if we try to peer through the windows in these decidedly low-resolution shots. If there are any other tweaks — like those concerning the powertrain — Nissan’s keeping quiet on them.
This surely isn’t the hotted-up Z so many enthusiasts are looking forward to, but it will inspire visions as to how such a version might look — not to mention hope that Nissan might use the development of a Nismo model as an opportunity to trim a few pounds from the two-seater.