Nismo

Nissan Motorsport Ltd.
Private
Industry Motor vehicles
Genre Tuning/Racing
Founded September 17, 1984 (September 17, 1984)
Headquarters Tokyo, Japan
Key people
 Yasuharu Nanba
Shoichi Miyatani
Products Automobiles/automobile parts
Revenue ¥2.9 trillion per year
Number of employees
 205
Parent Nissan
Website Nissan Motorsports Official International site
For the V8 Supercars known as Nissan Motorsport, refer to Nissan Motorsport (Australia)

Nismo (abbreviated from Nissan Motorsport International Limited (ニッサン・モータースポーツ・インターナショナル株式会社 Nissan Mōtā Supōtsu Intānashonaru Kabushiki-gaisha)) is the in-house tuning, motorsports and performance division of Nissan. Formed in 1984 as a result of a merger of two motorsport departments, Nismo cars have participated in JSPC, JTCC, 24 Hours of Le Mans and 24 Hours of Daytona. They currently participate in the Super GT and FIA GT Championship, and in 2015 will compete alongside Audi, Toyota and Porsche in the FIA World Endurance Championship in the LMP1 class, with the new Nissan GT-R LM NISMO.

History

In 1984, Nissan decided that it wanted to merge its two motorsport divisions, founded in the late 1960s, they were Publication Division 3, based in its Oppama factory, responsible for the needs of privateer teams and Special Car Testing Division, within its Ōmori plant, responsible for its factory operations.[1] The company's intention following the merger was to specialize in sportscar racing, but it also provided support for teams competing in the domestic F3 series.[1]

In 1988, NISMO built its first car, the Saurus for motorsport use for its one-make series. The following year they developed the Skyline GT-R for racing as well as building the 500 evolution editions for road use.[1]

Products

Tuning kits

Nismo designs and manufactures a range of aftermarket performance parts for Nissan cars including Aerodynamics parts such as spoilers and diffusers, alloy wheels, engine and suspension parts.

Most Datsun, Nissan, and Infiniti branded cars have performance parts available from Nismo, either in production or as old stock. For example, Nismo sells parts such as unground cam billets, performance cams, pistons, etc. for the KA24E engine, which was used in the Nissan small pickup truck for several years and also used for the 1989 and 1990 model years of 240SX, a popular car among Import scene enthusiasts (especially Drifters) in North America.

In Japan, the V35 Skyline and Z33 Fairlady have both received several levels of Nismo tuning packages (E-Type, S-Tune, R-Tune, and S1 packages), with a full track spec Fairlady Z debuted at the 2005 Nismo Festival of Speed held at (formerly) Fuji International Raceway.

In February 2007, Nismo announced the launch of the Nismo 380RS. The Nismo 380RS is a factory modified version of the Nissan Z33 Fairlady Z tuned by both Nismo and Autech. Two versions were released, the first was a track-only model called the 380RS-C (C for competition), the second is a street model being sold at Nissan dealers. Both versions use a Nissan VQ series V6 engine, bored and stroked to 3.8L. The track-only 380RS-C makes 400 hp (298 kW), and the street version makes approximately 350 hp (261 kW). The Nismo 380RS was only sold in Japan.

Complete cars

A 2010 Nismo 370Z

When Nismo released the Skyline GT-R R34 V-Spec complete car, the Z-Tune, because there was a limitation in the number of parts, Nismo was only able to create 20 of them. The complete version sells for ¥17,745,000 (US$146,600, as of December 7, 2005) in Japan. However, the parts-conversion version, where the customer's Skyline GT-R's become the base car, sells for ¥13,125,000 (US$108,500, as of December 7, 2005). However, it is known that the GT-R Z-tune can exceed the US$180,000 price tag in car market. The engine is an RB28DETT Z2 (a normal GT-R engine with a stroked displacement of 2.8 liters & Nismo parts designed specifically for the Z2). All of the Z-Tunes have been sold already. The car weighs 1,600 kg (3,527 lb).

A 2015 Nismo GT-R

Nismo was also responsible for the R33 Skyline 400R and S14 Silvia 270R models. Both featured comprehensive modifications to the drivetrain, suspension, brakes, chassis, and aero work. Very limited numbers of both models were sold in 1997, and both command high resale prices even today. These models stressed Nismo's link to street car tuning, and were developed (as was the Z-Tune GT-R) at their Chiba City tuning garage. Nismo street tuned vehicles have been sold at Nissan dealerships for years, and come with full warranties.

Motorsports

A 2003 Xanavi NISMO Skyline GT-R GT500 race car

In the 1960s, Nissan competed in the Japanese Grand Prix sports car race.

Nissan joined the IMSA GT Championship in 1979, where it competed in the GT classes with the 240SX, 280ZX and 300ZX. From 1985 to 1993, they entered the main GTP class with the GTP ZX-Turbo and NPT-90. Geoff Brabham won four GTP drivers championships with Nissan from 1988 to 1991, and the manufacturer won the 1992 24 Hours of Daytona and the 1989, 1990 and 1991 12 Hours of Sebring.

In the 1980s and 1990s, Nissan raced at the All Japan Sports Prototype Championship and 24 Hours of Le Mans with sports prototypes such as the R88C, R89C, R90C and R391. They claimed the 1990, 1991 and 1992 JSPC titles, but they never won at Le Mans. Notable Nissan drivers in this era include Masahiro Hasemi, Kazuyoshi Hoshino, Masahiko Kageyama and Toshio Suzuki.

In the 1980s, the manufacturer entered the Fuji Grand Champion Series with Group 5 Bluebird, Skyline and Silvia silhouettes and the Japanese Touring Car Championship with production Skyline models. In the 1990s, Nissan competed in Supertouring championships around the world with the Nissan Primera, winning the 1999 British Touring Car Championship with Laurent Aiello.

In 2013, Nissan entered the V8 Supercars with the Nissan Altima, partnering with Kelly Racing.

Nismo currently participate in the Super GT as a team, where they have won multiple GT500 championships with Érik Comas, Satoshi Motoyama, Michael Krumm, Richard Lyons, Benoît Tréluyer, Tsugio Matsuda and Ronnie Quintarelli.

In 2009, Nissan entered the FIA GT1 World Championship with a Nismo-developed Nissan GT-R. Krumm and Lucas Luhr were 2011 drivers champions. Since 2011, Nismo has produced the GT-R GT3, which has competed in the Blancpain Endurance Series. Nismo has also developed production class Nissan GT-R cars for the 24 Hours of Nürburgring.

They also have a pool of drivers, known as the Nismo Global Driver Exchange. This allows factory drivers the chance to race in big events such as the Le Mans 24 Hours, the 24 Hours of Dubai and the Bathurst 12 Hour.

Since 2011, Nissan is involved in the FIA World Endurance Championship and European Le Mans Series as a LMP2 engine supplier. They have had success with Greaves Motorsport, Signature Team, OAK Racing, TDS Racing, G-Drive Racing and SMP Racing.

For the 2015 Le Mans 24 Hours race, Nissan announced in June 2014, that Nismo will enter the LMP1 category to fight for the FIA World Endurance Championship against Audi, Toyota and Porsche.[2] Following a disappointing performance in the 24 Hours, the program's remaining schedule in 2015 was pushed back, with the team intending a regular rebut in the 2016 season;[3] however on 22 December 2015, Nissan announced that it was shuttering the program altogether.[4]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Konami. Enthusia Professional Racing. Sony PlayStation 2. Konami. Level/area: Library→Maker Profiles.
  2. ↑ Motown, India (29 June 2014). "Interview with Darren Cox Director Global Motorsport Nissan". Motown India. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  3. ↑ Dagys, John (1 October 2015). "Nissan LMP1 delayed until 2016; new team principal announced". Fox Sports. Retrieved 2015-12-28.
  4. ↑ Pruett, Marshall (22 December 2015). "Nissan Fired Its Le Mans Team Over E-Mail". Road & Track. Retrieved 2015-12-28.

[1]

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nismo.
  1. ↑ http://www.motownindia.com/Tete-A-Tete/89/Darren-Cox-Director-Global-Motorsport-Nissan#.VBgYRpSSzV0
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