dfw_alan
06-17-2000, 09:11 PM
250Z? (6/12/2000)
Nissan's 2003 Z Car will have Skyline GT-R-like performance, says retiring Nissan Design International president Jerry Hirshberg. While the Skyline GT-R's 2.5-liter twin-cam straight-six is rated at 276-hp and 289 lb-ft, others say the next Z will break the 300-hp barrier. That should be easy, since the GT-R's horsepower rating is conservative to meet Japanese regulations.
Hirshberg says Nissan's decision is imminent on which of two designs for a new Z car will be produced in 2002. NDI is competing with Nissan's European design studio for the job.
When we asked Norio Matsumura, executive vice president for global sales at Nissan whether the U.S. design might be favored because this is its biggest potential market, he just smiled.
"As they say at NASA, `We are confident,' " Hirshberg says. The chosen design will debut at January's Detroit auto show.
While not retro, NDI's new entry evokes both the first Z and the last Z.
"If you're a 240 person, this will feel more sophisticated," Hirshberg says. "If you're a 300 person, it's a little bit more masculine and less luxury-liner looking." He adds, "The car communicates to a large, growing portion of the market for whom the letter `Z' is just a letter of the alphabet."
Nissan's 2003 Z Car will have Skyline GT-R-like performance, says retiring Nissan Design International president Jerry Hirshberg. While the Skyline GT-R's 2.5-liter twin-cam straight-six is rated at 276-hp and 289 lb-ft, others say the next Z will break the 300-hp barrier. That should be easy, since the GT-R's horsepower rating is conservative to meet Japanese regulations.
Hirshberg says Nissan's decision is imminent on which of two designs for a new Z car will be produced in 2002. NDI is competing with Nissan's European design studio for the job.
When we asked Norio Matsumura, executive vice president for global sales at Nissan whether the U.S. design might be favored because this is its biggest potential market, he just smiled.
"As they say at NASA, `We are confident,' " Hirshberg says. The chosen design will debut at January's Detroit auto show.
While not retro, NDI's new entry evokes both the first Z and the last Z.
"If you're a 240 person, this will feel more sophisticated," Hirshberg says. "If you're a 300 person, it's a little bit more masculine and less luxury-liner looking." He adds, "The car communicates to a large, growing portion of the market for whom the letter `Z' is just a letter of the alphabet."