NISMO may build a bespoke supercar one day, says chief product specialist Hiroshi Tamura. While it may not happen in the immediate future, the statement is an indication of where Nissan would like to take the brand.
In an interview with Top Gear, Tamura reveals his thoughts about Nissan’s performance subsidiary. It has only been two short years since NISMO (NISsan MOtorsports) was moved to its new headquarters building in Yokohama and launched as a unified, worldwide brand.
“NISMO is still a baby brand,” said Tamura, “And the baby needs protection. So not yet. But some day… yes.” That yes is a reference to a standalone supercar not based on an existing Nissan product, like the AMG SLS is for Mercedes.
Why go that route when Nissan already has the supercar-smoking GT-R, which itself has a 600-horse NISMO version? Because both Tamura and program director Bob Laishley belive that NISMO can create something that doesn’t rely a “Nissan ‘asset””.
“There’s too much motorsport and performance orientation, which means [some customers] cannot enjoy this very narrow scope,” Tamura noted. NISMO currently oversees all of Nissan’s racing activities, including its Le Mans, Super GT, GT3, WEC and GT Academy programs. They also provide tuning for existing Nissan vehicles, from the Juke to the 370Z to the mighty GT-R.
Another possibility is that the next GT-R will be a branded NISMO. Speaking on the NISMO supercar, Laishley admitted, “I would like to aspire to that… whether we can, or whether that’s what the next GT-R should be… it’s a question of where we take it.”
Images by Ben Hsu.
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