Nissan ensures the new Z will remain true to its origins

Since they are playing at home, Japanese brands rarely hold back when it comes to bringing prototypes and experimental models to the Tokyo Motor Show. The next edition will keep that tradition, and Nissan has pulled an ace out of its sleeve with the BladeGlider. The controversy will guarantee it additional publicity but, to the relief of its more conservative fans, it still holds other novelties that are less close to science fiction.

Among them is the successor to the 370Z. The Japanese sports car is already due for a renewal that will keep it competitive in its segment and steal a bit of attention from the GT-R for a while. Nissan will show the new generation at the Tokyo Motor Show and, according to the manufacturer’s development director, Andy Palmer, it will represent the opposite of the BladeGlider: a much more traditional concept.

The executive told the British magazine Autocar that there is room in the Nissan lineup for both kinds of sports cars. The BladeGlider, the 370Z and the GT-R will be able to coexist without canceling each other out. The executive did not discuss the design of the new Z, but he did state that its engine will not produce less power than the current one (328 CV in its base version and 344 in the Nismo).

Autocar points to turbocharging and ‘downsizing‘ as features of the next Z’s engine block. It will keep the Nismo signature in its range, only split into two variants, the basic R and the more performance-oriented RS, just as will happen with other Nissan models or even Infiniti models in 2020 at the earliest.

Source | Autocar