Nissan‘s high-performance Nismo division is set to reveal a new model in less than 24 hours and at this stage it’s unclear just what it could be.
In the lead up to the August 8 reveal at 11:30 AEST the Japanese carmaker has created a premiere video on its YouTube channel which currently displays an extremely shadowy image of the mystery vehicle’s silhouette.
It’s difficult to make out what this new Nismo model could be exactly but it appears to have four doors and has a silhouette reminiscent of a sedan.
One potential option could be a high-performance Nismo version of the ageing four-door Skyline sedan that was once sold in Australia as the Infiniti Q50.
Nissan’s current range Nismo road-going vehicles globally include the Leaf Nismo, Note Aura Nismo, GT-R Nismo, as well as the recently revealed Z Nismo.
The current, thirteenth-generation Nissan Skyline was first revealed in 2014 and was on sale locally as the Infiniti Q50 until 2019. It still remains on sale in Japan.
The entire Skyline range is now powered by the same 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 petrol engine as the Z sports car, with core models producing 224kW/400Nm and the flagship 400R variant producing 298kW/475Nm. The latter is the same as the regular Z.
If this mysterious new model is in fact a Skyline Nismo, the Japanese carmaker could implement the Z Nismo‘s engine tune which boosts outputs to 309kW and 520Nm.
Current Nissan Skyline
Nissan claims to have achieved these higher outputs by improving cooling, revising the electronic wastegate control which provides increased turbocharger boost and turbine speed, as well as incorporating GT-R Nismo-inspired independent ignition spark timing.
It’s unlikely this new Nismo model will be the next GT-R, which will reportedly debut in 2028.
Best Car Web reported the next GT-R will be powered by an electric powertrain and solid-state batteries. It will also reportedly adapt a four-door body style akin to the Porsche Taycan and Audi e-tron GT.
Nissan has made a significant bet on solid-state batteries, and previous comments point to the first vehicle fitted with the potentially game-changing technology for the brand debuting in 2028.
Z Nismo
It earlier this year officially unveiled its prototype solid-state battery production facility at its Research Centre in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
As announced at its Nissan Ambition 2030 event in November 2021, Nissan is aiming to launch an electric vehicle (EV) with its proprietary all-solid-state batteries (ASSBs) in fiscal year 2028.
Nissan plans to establish a pilot production line at its Yokohama production plant in fiscal year 2024 using the materials, design and manufacturing processes from the prototype production facility.
GT-R Nismo
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