Nissan has wound back the clock unveiling a new Z Kaze concept as a one-off take on the current Z featuring a custom T-top roof, and a healthy dose of 1990s Japanese tuner influence.
Revealed at the ZCON enthusiast event in the US, the Kaze – Japanese for ‘wind’ – was developed by a group of Nissan North America designers and product planners as a tribute to the open-top Z models of the past. They engineered a removable twin-panel roof for the current-generation Z, creating an open-air layout while retaining a central structural section in ‘T’ shape – similar to the 280ZX and 300ZX.
The concept is finished in Pacific Teal and features widened guards, a vented carbon fibre bonnet and a bespoke carbon fibre aero package with pumped out wheel arches. Perhaps the coolest detail is the set of genuine 18-inch NISMO LMGT2 wheels.
With the LMGT2 no longer in production, Nissan sourced an original set and had them restored for the project. They measure 10 inches wide at the front and 11 inches at the rear. The 1990s tuning theme continues underneath, with lowered NISMO suspension and several upgrades from Japanese tuning specialist GReddy.
The Z’s familiar 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 receives a GReddy front-mount intercooler, Airinx intake and Supreme SP exhaust system. Nissan hasn’t provided revised power or torque figures, however, suggesting outright performance wasn’t necessarily the main point of the exercise. But these mods would no doubt tweak the power up from the standard 309kW NISMO variant.
Inside, the Kaze concept swaps the usual dark theme for white leather-trimmed seats, contrasted by carbon fibre details. Bose speakers integrated into the headrests are also fitted, presumably making a little more sense once the T-top panels are removed.
Unfortunately, Nissan describes the Z Kaze as a concept only and hasn’t announced any plans for production. But it is interesting to see an open-top configuration on the current Z. What do you think, would you like to see a new T-top Z in showrooms?
