Photo: maxshershnev/instagram
Last month marked an important moment for sportscar enthusiasts, as Nissan started testing the successor for the 370Z following a long wait. For now, we can only talk about a test mule concealing the next-gen hardware under the body of the current car. But the hidden details only push the level of anticipation even higher and I've brought along a rendering that proposes a new path for the next Z car.
The pixel work here might seems like it's all about downsizing... because it is. So let's take the time to image that Nissan would come up with a more compact proposal, one that would be a rival for the Toyota 86 and Subaru BRZ or rather the future second iteration of the Toyobaru, which has already been confirmed.
Come to think of it, such a move would bring all sorts of benefits. For one thing, the smaller footprint would help the car lose weight. In turn, this would aid the engineers in their effort to come up with a pure driving experience, a treat that seems to become more difficult to achieve with each new generation, since cars generally become larger and rarely lose weight.
Of course, showing more love for the scale would also improve fuel efficiency, which is simply a must these days. In fact, it's much better to save fuel in this fashion rather than to turn to other solutions, many of which might involve three-cylinder engines.
Yes, we can expect Nissan to remove a few cylinders from the V6 animal that is the 370Z, but, if this happens, here's to hoping the sportscar is animated by a four-cylinder unit rather than a three-pot.
As for the expected electrification, anything is possible at this point - think both a hybrid and an all-electric powertrain. But the smaller nature of the machine might just let this get away without heavy electric hardware.
Regardless of the choices the Japanese carmaker makes, we must thank transportation designer Max Hershnev for the Origami approach shown here.
Come to think of it, such a move would bring all sorts of benefits. For one thing, the smaller footprint would help the car lose weight. In turn, this would aid the engineers in their effort to come up with a pure driving experience, a treat that seems to become more difficult to achieve with each new generation, since cars generally become larger and rarely lose weight.
Of course, showing more love for the scale would also improve fuel efficiency, which is simply a must these days. In fact, it's much better to save fuel in this fashion rather than to turn to other solutions, many of which might involve three-cylinder engines.
Yes, we can expect Nissan to remove a few cylinders from the V6 animal that is the 370Z, but, if this happens, here's to hoping the sportscar is animated by a four-cylinder unit rather than a three-pot.
As for the expected electrification, anything is possible at this point - think both a hybrid and an all-electric powertrain. But the smaller nature of the machine might just let this get away without heavy electric hardware.
Regardless of the choices the Japanese carmaker makes, we must thank transportation designer Max Hershnev for the Origami approach shown here.
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