Looks like the 2014 edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans will be a spectacular event not to be missed. Aside from Porsche making a comeback after a long time hiatus and Mark Webber being one of the confirmed drivers for their LMP1 entry, Nissan also has something special in store. Convinced that the DeltaWing could perform better with more luck in hand, they had developed another version of the ‘Garage 56’ entry, dubbed the ZEOD.
There have been pictures of the prototype surfacing on the net, but this right here is the finished product. Unveiled recently at the Nismo HQ in Yokohama, Japan, the unique racer will not be running under any of the LMP1, LMP2 or GT classes, as it will be classified under the special one-off ‘Garage 56’; a place where cars with new, experimental technologies will be placed.
For the time being, Nissan had yet to release the full specifications of this ZEOD racer, but it might be powered by a lightweight turbocharged engine coupled with a battery system similar to the one in the Nissan Leaf. Also included is the recharging capability via regenerative braking learnt from the Leaf Nismo. With all these put together, the original DeltaWing designer Ben Bowlby said that the ZEOD will be able to lap Le Mans “faster than an LM GTE car”.
“Our goal for the program is to draw back the curtain for the fans to see the innovative technology that Nissan is developing”, said Darren Cox, the Global Motorsport Director for Nissan.
“We could not think of a better place than the Fuji round of the WEC for the actual ZEOD RC to appear in public for the first time. We have interrupted our intense testing in the UK to fly the car to Japan for this display”, he added.
