I love seeing new concept cars.  This one especially peaked my interest because it is a Nissan product.  I’ve been sitting on these photos for some time as this car was released at the 2009 Geneva Auto Show.   Nissan is going to be taking the Infiniti brand name to Europe for the first time and was looking to make a splash with the “Essence” concept.

The drivetrain of the Essence concept is what intrigues me the most so far.  Power comes from a twin turbo’d, direct fuel injection, 3.7L V6 that has been paired with a newly designed electric motor called the ’3D Motor.’

Infiniti press release excerpt:

Essence previews a new type of electric motor, called 3D Motor, that was designed to meet tough requirements on size and power output. The result is a particularly slim, disk-shaped motor that has twice the torque of a conventional unit. Its design was achieved by 3D magnetic field analysis to optimize the layout of the electromagnetic coils and permanent magnets.

In Essence, the motor is positioned between the engine and transmission and provides 160PS (158bhp), drawing power from a compact lithium-ion battery pack in the boot area. Because the 3D Motor operates in both propulsion and power regeneration modes, the battery pack is kept charged up.

With the 3D Motor putting out 158hp, and the 3.7L V6 putting out 434hp, the Essence nears the 600hp mark at the crankshaft.  I’ll take two please.

The exterior design is that of a very liquid and flowing 2 door coupe/hatch.  I can’t help but think that there is some sort of homage paid to the early Z Car with the sloping hatch and C-pillar design, call me crazy.  In the end I really like the design and execution of the Essence and I wouldn’t be surprised if we started to see some of this technology and a few of these design cues in forth-coming Infiniti models.  Traditionalists may not approve, Rob, but that’s why it’s a concept.

I would like to thank Autoblog.com for the photos and some of the info on the Essence concept.  If you would like to read the entire press release make sure that you click the link below to the Autoblog post.

Autoblog.com Infiniti Essence Concept post

By now everyone knows that Z Car Garage just hosted an awesome event on the Follow The Nissan Z tour and we took the chance to try out a new wheel option.  The obvious choice are the R35 GT-R wheels that we have off our shop GT-R.  They fit perfectly which could make this the hot ticket when the 370z hits market.  Check it out

This car was brought to our shop by our friends at GO370Z.com and Nissan Sport magazine.  Check out their sites.

Rumors and spy photos of a four-door, Infiniti-badged, GT-R sedan have been around even before the R35 was released to the public.  It seems that the rabid enthusiasm for the GT-R has breathed life back into the program which had been reportedly scrapped a few months back.  Good news for us!

The new model will be more than just a lengthened GT-R.  While the final design is still under lock and key, this artist’s renderings hint towards a slightly softer lined four door coupe.  The biggest difference from the current GT-R is going to be the engine change from the VR38DETT.  The engine of choice for the new 4 door coupe will most likely be the 5.0 liter V8 (VK50VE) out of the FX50.  The engine is supposed to put out somewhere north of 420bhp.

While that isn’t enough power to let it compete evenly with other super 4-doors (AMG S63, Bentley Continental Flying Spur) no one thought that the 4,000lb R35 GT-R would be able to stand up and fight either.  I wouldn’t under-estimate the performance potential of this vehicle just yet….

The rest of the drivetrain will remain the same as the R35 with the manu-automatic dual clutch trans axle.  Hopefully there will be a few internal changes made to handle the power this time around.

Whatever happens with this concept, I’m just happy that Nissan is still willing to create concepts of this caliber.   We’ll have to wait and see….

Some pictures and information was sourced from LEFTLANENEWS.com

Here are some new pictures of the forthcoming Nissan 370z that I found while wandering around the black hole that is the Internet.  Enjoy!

Nissan is getting close to unveiling a new sports coupe that will slot in under the upcoming 370z.  The new car is set to be called the FR, probably referencing it’s front engine and rear drive design.  Think of this new car to take the place of the long forgotten 240sx/Silvia.

The most interesting part of the vehicle is the proposed drive train.  Rumor has it that Nissan will be installing the HR16DET (turbocharged inline 4 cylinder) with VCR.  VCR is a sort of variable compression ratio design aimed at improving performance and fuel economy.  I will try to dig up more information on this new technology over the weekend.   Expected power output is in the 220-250hp range at the crank.

The dimensions will be similar to the S15 Silvia (not offered in U.S.) with the new car being slightly wider and shorter.    Vehicle weight should be in the 2,750lb range with the base pricing to start around $20,000.  I’ll keep you all posted with any updates and feel free to send me any info if you stumble across anything.

Pictures and some info taken from 7TUNE.com