Photo: Nissan
Hiroshi Tamura is the chief product specialist of the Z Proto and 400Z, and his job is to be the voice of the customer. Nicknamed Mr. GT-R for his role with the Product Planning department as CPS of the R35, the 58-year-old Nissan veteran has opened up on what makes the new model special.
“Many cars possess good dynamic performance, but the Z makes it easy to enjoy this performance because it creates an emotional relationship with the driver,” said Tamura-san. “Like a perfectly suited dance partner, the Z responds to the driver’s impulses as a deeply-felt unspoken connection.”
Reading between the lines, the Japanese automaker has taken a page from someone else’s book of gibberish. More to the point, Mazda used the Jinba Ittai philosophy across four generations of the MX-5 Miata soft-top roadster. Loosely translating to rider and horse as one body, this credo can be summarized as a well-sorted chassis and drivetrain, so perfectly sorted that the car responds to inputs as if it’s an extension of the driver.
Currently the owner of an R32 Skyline GT-R with 600 horsepower, Tamura-san previously had a 240Z and 300ZX. As to what he’s looking forward to from the upcoming sports car, the Nissan official expects future customers “to smile and enjoy the 400Z while continuing to spread the Z dream.”
Pictured next to the Z Proto concept car, the chief product specialist has also promised “a balance between style, power, and technology, all of which can be easily accessed by the customer. The Z must move right, look right, and be something that produces a smile on the customer’s face.”
Just like the 300ZX that he used to own, the 400Z will be a twin-turbo affair. A six-speed manual transmission will be offered, and this puts Nissan at a clear advantage over Toyota because the GR Supra with the six-cylinder mill comes exclusively with a torque-converter automatic transmission.
The engine in the 400Z is expected to be an evolution of the VR30DDTT that Nissan uses in the Skyline for the Japanese market and various Infiniti models. In its most potent specification at the present moment, the 3.0-liter V6 develops 400 horsepower (406 PS) and 350 pound-feet (475 Nm) of torque.
Reading between the lines, the Japanese automaker has taken a page from someone else’s book of gibberish. More to the point, Mazda used the Jinba Ittai philosophy across four generations of the MX-5 Miata soft-top roadster. Loosely translating to rider and horse as one body, this credo can be summarized as a well-sorted chassis and drivetrain, so perfectly sorted that the car responds to inputs as if it’s an extension of the driver.
Currently the owner of an R32 Skyline GT-R with 600 horsepower, Tamura-san previously had a 240Z and 300ZX. As to what he’s looking forward to from the upcoming sports car, the Nissan official expects future customers “to smile and enjoy the 400Z while continuing to spread the Z dream.”
Pictured next to the Z Proto concept car, the chief product specialist has also promised “a balance between style, power, and technology, all of which can be easily accessed by the customer. The Z must move right, look right, and be something that produces a smile on the customer’s face.”
Just like the 300ZX that he used to own, the 400Z will be a twin-turbo affair. A six-speed manual transmission will be offered, and this puts Nissan at a clear advantage over Toyota because the GR Supra with the six-cylinder mill comes exclusively with a torque-converter automatic transmission.
The engine in the 400Z is expected to be an evolution of the VR30DDTT that Nissan uses in the Skyline for the Japanese market and various Infiniti models. In its most potent specification at the present moment, the 3.0-liter V6 develops 400 horsepower (406 PS) and 350 pound-feet (475 Nm) of torque.
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