Nissan pays homage to rally winner with Safari Rally Z Tribute

Nissan was among the first Japanese carmakers to venture out of Japan to compete in international motorsport events and a notable part of this heritage is its participation in the legendary Safari Rally in east Africa.

In 1970, a  Datsun Bluebird 1600SSS scored an overall win in the gruelling rally’s 18th year. The following year, Edgar Herrmann and navigator Hans Schiller raced 6,120 kms across the African countryside in a Datsun 240Z to win the event for Nissan a second time.

At the SEMA show in America this week, Nissan will pay homage to this motorsports heritage with the Safari Rally Z Tribute built by Tommy Pike Customs and a replica Datsun 240Z Safari rallycar.

The Safari Rally Z Tribute imagines how the sportscar – now in its 7^th generation – could be used for adventures beyond the highway. The styling of the car also pays homage to the Datsun 240Z rallycar that won the 1971 East African Safari Rally.

From road to off-road
Leaning into the trend for rugged, go-anywhere ‘safari’ builds, Tommy Pike and his team raised and toughened the car’s suspension, adding commensurate lighting, durability and performance enhancements to make the road-oriented Z ready for the dusty world of rallying.

NISMO suspension parts
Custom KW Safari suspension and NISMO suspension parts raise the coupe’s ride height by about 50 mm, helping accommodate 17 x 7.5-inch prototype NISMO Safari wheels shod with rugged Yokohama GEOLANDAR M/T G003 tyres.

Protecting vital powertrain and chassis components are a front bumper guard and skidplate, while an assortment of NISMO Off-Road LED lights deliver additional illumination for dusty conditions or night racing. Key interior enhancements include a custom roll bar with 4-point harnesses and custom-trimmed Recaro Pole Position seats.

For further powertrain enhancements, the Safari Rally Z Tribute features an AMS-tuned, 400+ bhp  VR30DDTT engine combined with a NISMO Track cat-back exhaust system, cold air intake, carbonfibre engine cover, coolant expansion tank, heat exchanger, and street twin-disc clutch and flywheel.

Replica of rally 240Z
Bringing its racing heritage to life for SEMA visitors, Nissan is also showcasing a vintage replica of the rally-winning 240Z. On loan from collector Randy Jaffe, the car was restored in 2013 to drivable, period-correct condition.