The Nissan 370Z Thread

Nissan Z Nismo review: better, but it’ll cost ya

 
Nissan Z Safari Rally Tribute Concept

With the seventh-generation Nissan Z winning fans on both road and race track, the Safari Rally Z Tribute imagines how the sports car could translate that exhilaration to adventures beyond the pavement. The styling of the car also pays homage to the Datsun 240Z rally car that won the 1971 East African Safari Rally.

Leaning into the trend for rugged, go-anywhere "safari" builds, Tommy Pike and his South Carolina-based team raised and toughened the car's suspension, adding commensurate lighting, durability and performance enhancements to ready the asphalt-oriented Z for the dusty world of rallying.

Custom KW Safari suspension and NISMO suspension parts raise the coupe's ride height by 2 inches, helping accommodate 17 x 7.5-inch prototype NISMO Safari wheels shod in dirt-ready Yokohama GEOLANDAR M/T G003 tires.


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To Hell With The 911 Dakar, Nissan Built A Rally Z

Nissan, I'm begging you, make a production version

All the sports car top dogs are being made into rally cars. Lamborghini has the Huracan Sterrato, Porsche has the 911 Dakar — all the cool kids are doing it. So why shouldn’t Nissan, with its rally heritage and shiny new sports car, do the same?

The company tried this last year, incomprehensibly using a Juke as the base car rather than a Z, but now that wrong has finally been righted. The SEMA special Safari Rally Z Tribute is here, and I would like to purchase one right now immediately.

The modern rally Z is lifted two inches on KW suspension, making room for NISMO Safari wheels and dirt-ready tires. It’s got front bumper protection, a skid plate, rally lights, a roll bar, and the seats have been swapped out for harness-capable Recaros.

Mechanically, the Z seems largely stock, though it’s got the standard bolt-ons-and-a-tune treatment familiar to anyone who’s received a signing bonus in their life. A NISMO catback here, a cold air intake there, a fancy clutch and new maps from AMS — it may not sound like much, but there’s only so much power you can put into dirt.

 
Nissan has built a 400bhp+ Safari Rally Z Tribute for SEMA

Well, Nissan has commissioned Tommy Pike Customs to build this fantastic 240Z Safari rally replica

Last year Nissan built the one-off Juke Hybrid Rally Tribute to pay homage to Edgar Herrmann and Hans Schüller’s 1971 East African Safari Rally winning 240Z. In all honesty, it wasn’t a great tribute.

This is though. Nissan has now teamed up with Tommy Pike Customs to build this Safari Rally Z Tribute for this year’s SEMA show. Excellent stuff.

Of course it’s based on the current seventh-generation Nissan Z, but it’s now been lifted by two inches and fitted with custom KW Safari suspension. There’s new 17-inch Nismo wheels and chunky off-road tyres too, as well as extra underbody protection and Nismo spotlights. We love spotlights.

There’s been some engine work too. We’re told that the 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 is now putting out more than the standard 400bhp thanks to a Nismo track exhaust system and a cold air intake. There’s also a carbon fibre engine cover and a new clutch and flywheel. Oh, and it’s a manual too. This thing should be excellent fun.

 
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