WEC / Le Mans – Nissan presents its GT-R LM Nismo

It was eagerly awaited, despite the stolen photos having been taken around ten days ago on the Austin circuit, in Texas. On the occasion of an advertising spot broadcast during Super Bowl XLIX, the final of the American football championship, Nissan lifted the veil on its GT-R LM Nismo (pictures here et video here), a hybrid prototype meeting LM P1 regulations and which will allow the Japanese firm to make its return to the premier category ofEndurance after 15 years of absence.

“The GT-R is the flagship model in our brand’s touring car range, Roel said. de Vries, director of international marketing and brand strategy at Nissan. This achievement, which constitutes the most accomplished of the GT-Rs, is the continuation of a sporting lineage which dates back three decades with NISMO, the Nissan subsidiary focused on motorsports and performance. The Le Mans circuit events stimulate innovation: our victories on the track will allow us to further innovate within our range of touring cars. We are considered the new kids at Le Mans. Our opponents are the best in the world, but we are ready. »

Just as we had assumed from the presentation of the project in London (see Ah n°1962) and subsequently confirmed, the GT-R LM Nismo will indeed be equipped with a front engine, in this case a V6 twin-turbo with 3 liters of displacement supposed to develop a whopping 550 horsepower and which will drive the front wheels. This will be helped by an energy recovery system (about which no information has been revealed), probably connected to the rear axle and whose contribution should make it possible to reach 1250 horsepower if we believe the figures heard here and there. But this is obviously only theory. The gearbox is five-speed. As we revealed to you in September (see Ah n°1982), the car will also be fitted with 16-inch tires, 31 cm wide at the front and 20 at the rear. Unsurprisingly, Michelin is in charge.

As for the drivers, only the Spaniard Marc Gené has so far been made official. But the Briton Jan Mardenborough, a pure product of the GT Academy by Nissan, is an actor in the advertising spot. Between the identity of their teammates and all the specificities of the hybrid system, many questions are still unanswered and the mystery still remains around this GT-R LM Nismo. But Nissan has in any case struck a major blow in its marketing campaign. And the look of the creation made by Ben Bowlby, technical director and main team of the project, will not fail to get people talking about the brand in the coming hours on social networks.