Nissan’s Head of Design Alfonso Albaisa discussed the shape of the all-new Z in an interview with the YouTuber Jason Stein. Here’s what he had to say about the problems he and his team were faced with when they had to decide upon the final look of the sports car.
The 2023 Nissan Z has been thought out right from the get-go as a car meant for those who still want to feel a connection with their vehicle. The pulse-raising 400-HP (405-PS) sports car is offered with a manual but also with a nine-speed automatic gearbox. It’s a two-door vehicle that wants to entertain you – the driver. And with an MSRP of $39,990, it’s hard to say no to it.
Now, looking at the exterior design of the car, one could only think about the great deal of work that was put into it. That’s why Nissan’s Head of Design had to ponder for a couple of seconds before answering what element of the vehicle he is most proud of and what element was the most difficult to achieve.
After Jason Stein asked him about these two aspects, Albaisa smiled and said, “it might be the same.” He argues the whole silhouette was challenging but took some time to properly explain what they had to deal with.
The man says he and his team knew from the very beginning they had to design a sports car with a manual gearbox and were ready to tackle the issue. But the rear of the car was the first thing they had to talk extensively about. Albaisa says it was “a bit tricky” to reach the car’s final rear look.
Nissan’s Head of Design also underlines that the Z was an “eye-opener” in the sense that they were able to adjust other areas to compensate for other things.
However, the toughest thing they had to deal with when designing the 2023 Nissan Z was the headlights. He says they didn’t want the car to be cute, but the consensus inside the company was that it had to follow in the steps of the S30 – also known as the Fairlady Z in Japan or the Datsun 240Z. That’s why the current Z looks like a modern interpretation of a vintage recipe.
Watch the full answer in the video down below that also touches on the importance of proper lighting.
Car shows on TV and his father's Fiat Tempra may have been Florin's early influences, but nowadays he favors different things, like the power of an F-150 Raptor. He'll never be able to ignore the shape of a Ferrari though, especially a yellow one. Full profile
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