The Nostalgic Nissan Z Kaze Concept Has a Rad T-Top Roof

Plus period-correct and restored multipiece wheels.

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For the past few years, Nissan has leaned hard into the nostalgia factor. For the Nissan Z, it makes total sense. The car is a rolling walk down enthusiast memory lane, and the new Nissan Z Kaze concept is the latest thing we’re begging Nissan to build. You know, for all the Z fans out there.

To start, the car is painted the incredible shade of Pacific Teal. This color should be on everything: markers, crayons, nail polish, eye shadow, Trapper Keepers. Nissan also bumped out the Z’s body lines a bit for a wider and more aggressive stance. There’s a vented carbon-fiber hood, fender flares, and a custom carbon-fiber aero body kit—the stuff that would have emptied bank accounts back in the day.

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On top, a T-top roof! This style of roof first debuted on the 280ZX and appeared again on the 300ZX. After that, the Z’s traded T-tops for more conventional convertible body styles.

The concept rolls on a set of extremely special wheels: multipiece 18-inch NISMO LMGT2s. These wheels are no longer being produced, but the Nissan team found an original set and had them restored and rebuilt. We shudder to think how much that job cost. Regardless, they look fantastic on the modern Z.

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Under the metal, the concept wears a mix of NISMO suspension and GReddy engine components. Mods include a Supreme SP exhaust system, Airinx air filter kit, and a front-mount air-to-air intercooler kit. Nissan didn’t say how much power this version of the 3.0-liter twin-turbo V-6 makes, but in regular applications it’s putting down a claimed 400 hp.

Finally, this is a concept with an actual interior (because Nissan went backward here and turned an actual production car into a concept). There are leather seats, carbon-fiber accents, and Bose headrest speakers to ensure you can hear your media even with the roof open.

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The Z Kaze takes it name from the Japanese word for wind. It will be displayed at ZCON in Phoenix, Arizona, from September 23–26 before heading to the Japanese Classic Car Show in Long Beach, California, on October 3. See it there, and see if you can still find a Fruitopia somewhere after.

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I got into cars the way most people do: my dad. Since I was little, it was always something we’d talk about and I think he was stoked to have his kid share his interest. He’d buy me the books, magazines, calendars, and diecast models—everything he could do to encourage a young enthusiast. Eventually, I went to school and got to the point where people start asking you what you want to do with your life. Seeing as cars are what I love and writing is what I enjoy doing, combining the two was the logical next step. This dream job is the only one I’ve ever wanted. Since then, I’ve worked at Road & Track, Jalopnik, Business Insider, The Drive, and now MotorTrend, and made appearances on Jay Leno’s Garage, Good Morning America, The Smoking Tire Podcast, Fusion’s Car vs. America, the Ask a Clean Person podcast, and MotorTrend’s Shift Talkers. In my spare time, I enjoy reading, cooking, and watching the Fast & Furious movies on repeat. Tokyo Drift is the best one.

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