Nissan ZEOD RC Gets Public Track Debut at Fuji Speedway

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publicly unveiled its ZEOD RC last week and during the lead up to the Six Hours of Fuji, Nissan sent it on track at Fuji Speedway in front of the public for the first time.

"This has been a fantastic opportunity for everyone involved to bring the Nissan ZEOD RC to Japan to present the car at Nismo and then show the car at Fuji Speedway for the fans," said Nissan Global Motorsports Director Darren Cox.

The ZEOD RC, zero emissions on demand racecar, is Nissan’s 2014 Garage 56 entry. A turbocharged four-cylinder engine powers it with a switch on the steering wheel to run completely on electric power. The benchmark for the car is to be able to complete one lap during each stint at the 24 Hours of Le Mans under completely electric power at the pace of a GTE-Pro car and top speeds in excess of 300km/h (186 mph). Recharging will be done with regenerative braking.

Nissan has hired Super GT GT-R driver Michael Krumm and GT Academy winner Lucas Ordonez as the test drivers for the car. After its laps at Fuji, the car was shipped back to the UK for further development.

“We know we have a very big mountain to climb to develop this electric vehicle technology for Le Mans but seeing the reaction from the young fans is a key reason why we are doing this,” said Palmer.

The technology for the car will be adapted to a future LMP1 car.