Record-breaking Kiwi honoured with special Nissan Z
The famous Nissan 300ZX IMSA racer of New Zealand’s Steve Millen has been celebrated with a new Z racing concept car.
Nissan was a dominant force in the North American IMSA racing series in the early 1990s, with New Zealander Steve Millen driving the 300ZX Twin Turbo to 20 wins and two championships.
Millen still holds the record as the most successful driver in IMSA GTS and GTO competition history, while the white, blue and red-liveried 300ZX he drove has become one of the defining cars of the era.
More than 30 years on, Nissan has paid tribute to the Kiwi and the car he raced so successfully, revealing the Nissan Project NAT2 SCCA Touring 2 Z at this year’s SEMA show.
Based on the current ‘RZ34’-generation Z road car, the new project is the result of the North American Nissan Acceleration Team (NAT) deciding to use their free time to build the sports coupe to SCCA Touring 2 specifications.
The class is designed to rely on the road-going vehicle’s base with suitable modifications, almost as a hybrid between what we see in Australia between the top-level production cars and GT4 machinery – the latter Nissan already competes with the Z in some markets.
Building off the standard Z, Nissan’s engineers added 38mm turbo inlet restrictors to the twin-turbo 3.0-litre V6, as well as a NISMO cold air intake kit and GT4 single-exit stainless steel exhaust system, an upgraded fuel system, aluminium radiator, heat exchanger, and oil cooler.
Parts from Z1 Motorsports were also used, such as an aluminium oil pan and differential cooler, while the car runs a custom tune by the firm.
Additional upgrades under the skin include NISMO suspension (such as front upper control arms, front and rear sway bars and adjustable end links), plus stronger bushings and mounts for the suspension, engine and transmission.
Most striking is the Z’s livery, which is a homage to the colours of Millen’s two-time IMSA championship-winning 300ZX, incorporating Nissan’s racing number of ‘23’.
Its big NISMO GT4 Rays 18-inch wheels are wrapped in racing tyres and sit in front of a larger Z1 Motorsports big brake kit, consisting of monoblock 6-piston calipers and 380mm discs at the front, while the standard calipers and rotors have been retained for the rear.
Inside, a SCCA competition-spec roll cage was produced and fitted by Huffmaster Motorsports, keeping the driver safe in their Sabelt seat and six-point harness, while a fire suppression system is also fitted.
The nine-speed automatic transmission can be controlled manually by a new paddle shifter kit, while there’s also a cockpit camera and lap-time/data logger for the driver to better analyse their performance.
“Nissan has always had passionate fans who aren't shy about telling us what they love and what they'd like to see next, and we love that – a lot of us at Nissan are enthusiasts, too,” said Nissan Americas vice president, aftersales and customer loyalty, Kim Less.
Sadly, the Project Z will remain a concept for now, with Nissan not announcing any plans to make it as a turn-key offering for grassroots racers.
Its unveiling comes just a month after Nissan's US department took the roof partially off the Z, creating the Z Kaze concept with T-tops as a homage to 1990s tuner culture.
