The Nissan Zeod RC will be racing at the 24 Hours of Le Mans later this year and when we last brought you an update on the car we didn’t know anything about its internal combustion engine. Well now we do—plus heaps more—as these videos show, featuring the slightly nerdy guy from Engineering Explained.
Here’s your second batch of photos from the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, that makes it 155 photos in all. We start part 2 with the very cool Maserati Alfieri concept and end with the very cool Volvo Concept Estate. Cool!
Following its DeltaWing project Nissan is coming back to Le Mans in 2014 with the Zeod RC. This time, though, Nissan is acting alone, and not with the cooperation of Don Panoz, who is pushing on with a DeltaWing Coupé project of his own.
Zeod stands for Zero Emissions On Demand and at its launch event at Fuji Raceway the car ran solely in electric mode. And not terribly far, either. But it’s early days in this innovative project.
For now details of the car’s internal combustion engine are under wraps. It’s planned that the petrol engine will first be tested in the Zeod RC early next year, with the goal of racing the car at next year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Indeed, the Zeod RC represents a bigger aim of Nissan to race the Zeod, or a derivative thereof, in the LMP1 category in future years.
Nissan says the petrol engine should be good for 12 laps of the 13.6km Circuit de la Sarthe by which time the Zeod RC should have recharged its battery enough to allow for one complete lap at full race pace.
We’re currently in the genesis of an electric powered racing era, with Le Mans in Nissan’s sights and the FIA Formula E category due to start next year as well. We’re not sure how far electric-powered motorsport will take us, but it’ll be interesting finding out.