Nissan reveals off-road ready Safari Rally Z Tribute

Off-road capable sports cars are very much the flavour of the month right now with machines such as the much-hyped Porsche 911 Dakar and the Lamborghini Huracán Sterrato proving there's a global appetite for these paradoxical mudslingers.

Hungry for a piece of the action, Nissan has unveiled a rally-inspired 400Z that pays homage to the Datsun 240Z rally car that won the gruelling 1971 East African Safari Rally.

Built by Tommy Pike Customs in Greenville, South Carolina, the Safari Rally Z Tribute sits on KW Safari coilovers that raise the coupé's ride height by 50mm. Complemented by Nismo suspension parts and Safari wheels shod with Yokohama Geolandar M/T tyres, this gives the 400Z just enough ground clearance and traction to bust over most terrains. An unpainted carbon fibre bonnet helps keep weight down and adds to those rally car chops.

Protecting vital powertrain and chassis components are a new front bumper guard and skid plate, while an assortment of Nismo off-road LED lights deliver extra illumination for dusty conditions — or night rally stages. Key interior enhancements include a custom roll bar with four-point harnesses and custom-trimmed Recaro Pole Position seats.

The coupé's 3.0l twin-turbocharged V6 engine has been modified to produce over 300kW courtesy of a cold air intake, Nismo Track cat-back exhaust system and an AMS software tune. There's also a Nismo coolant expansion tank, heat exchanger and street twin-disc clutch and flywheel. Drive is sent to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual transmission.

The Nissan Safari Rally Z Tribute is on display at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas. At the time of writing the Japanese carmaker has no plans to put it into series production. Here's hoping they change their minds.