Nissan’s new Z has shown what it can do on the race track, making big strides against the previously uncompetitive GT-R.
According to Motorsport.com, the number 23 NISMO racing team Z clocked over 300 km/h (186 mph) in the speed traps at Fuji Speedway during a testing session for the Japanese Super GT race series.
The new Z features a low and sleek design, similar to the GR Supra from competitor Toyota. Nissan’s flagship NISMO race team of Ronnie Quintarelli and Tsugio Matsuda were encouraged by the performance.
“We had a tailwind, but we reached 300 km/h,” Quintarelli said. “I was watching the speedometer before braking… but the tailwind made it really hard to stop the car, I had to brake earlier.
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The top speed is a massive improvement from the team’s previous race car, the R35 GT-R, which had a problem reaching the same speeds as other vehicles at the track due to due to high downforce and high drag.
“With the GT-R, usually we were around 291, 292… with these conditions, maybe 293. So we’ve definitely made an improvement.”
With Quintarelli behind the wheel, the Z put in a lap time of 1m28.139s around the track, second only to the TOM’S Toyota Supra driven by Sho Tsuboi.
“I was watching Tsugio when he was driving, he was doing 297, 298, and I saw two Toyotas were doing 300 and some others were at around 295, so obviously they are running with different set-ups.”
Nissan has raced a GT-R in Super GT since 2008, but regulation changes in 2020 to full Class One specification meant that no team has been able to place higher than 5th. Quintarelli had hoped that the new Z would end the competitive “nightmare” at Fuji, and it seems like the team might have gotten their wish.
While the results are encouraging, it hasn’t stopped the team from being cautious.
“I’m not sure we can say we are in front. But it’s not like the last two years, where we had no chance. To be close is a step forward,” said Quintarelli.
