S-tune complete car recognizabke by the chrome logo (left) |
In 2004 Nismo really kicked things into higher gear, releasing engine tuning and parts for almost every Nissan production car: from the Firlady Z to the new Skyline V35, all the way to the March. In the same year, the release of the legendary BNR34 Z-tune marked a milestone in the Nismo brand development, becoming the most powerful and expensive complete car ever released to the general public.
Z-tune prototype testing at the Nürburgring |
Unlike the R1 and S1 engines the F-Sport never really made it on the Nismo catalogs and was mildly promoted, main reason being that Nismo was going to use some of the leftover spares they had in stock, but with no intention of mass-producing these parts in the future. Again, not a very focused approach, rather aimed at keeping parts moving and bringing some extra revenue. But releasing very limited engines in trial-run production numbers wasn't something completely new to Nismo after all: ever heard of a RB26 Short Version or a RB26 Nür-Sport?
First F-Sport GT Complete Car |
F-Sport Engine (2.8l)
- GT Engine block
- GT Crankshaft
- GT Con-rods (Spec 1)
- GT Head gasket
- ECM
- Sport air-filter
- Racing spark-plugs
While the list is inclusive of all the key parts necessary for the engine to work, it's worth noticing how Nismo decided to omit key components to avoid competition (or extreme resemblance) with the Z2. To begin with, the camshaft, pistons, intake collector and the custom-made IHI turbochargers were not included; as a result, the F-Sport produced similar power figures (500ps), mostly thanks to the increased engine displacement, but lacked the explosiveness and racecar feel of the Z2. Again, the concept was to create a smooth engine with generous torque with road use as its primary function. It's also interesting to notice how the F-Sport was stripped of the race-derived Spec2 con-rods (and GT pistons) and fitted with the Spec1 instead. Still made of the same SNCM439 nickel molybdenum they are 2mm shorter than the Spec2 (119.5mm vs 121.5mm) and mated to genuine OEM Nissan pistons for RB26 with 30mm compression height. The end result is a powerplant that pulls more vacuum at low RPM, which translate in better throttle response and low-end torque, exactly in line with the engine concept.
Nismo Super Coppermix Twin Clutch
Nismo HA S-tune Suspension Kit
While maintaining the conventional balance of comfort and performance of the famous S-tune, Nismo added the possibility to adjust the ride height (± 15mm) to allow users to tune them without lowering the car too much. In order to differentiate the from the standard S-tune, Nismo changed the color of the shock absorbers to black.
Nismo LM GT4 Limited II 05Ver
Nismo Sport Airbag Steering
The F-Sport package was offered as an aftermarket option: Nismo fitted them on customer cars with mileage up to 60,000km or bought limited numbers of used vehicles on the second-hand market with mileage up to 55,000km and then sold them as complete cars through ZELE International. Due to the change in the engine displacement all cars had to be registered as modified vehicles to comply with the authorities.
Nismo complete cars at Nismo Festival |
Until next time.