Nissan builds one-off Rally Z for SEMA 2023

Nissan likes to honor its glorious motorsports past by paying tribute to one of its most iconic models.

At the SEMA show in Las Vegas, the Japanese brand had another one-off concept based on the Datsun 240Z that won the 1971 East African Safari Rally. But this time it's not the Juke Hybrid. Instead, it's the 240Z's direct descendant, the all-new Nissan Z.

Nissan calls it the Safari Rally Z Tribute. And yes, the brand has imagined its latest sports car going flat out even when the pavement ends. Tommy Pike Customs raised and reinforced the car's suspension, added auxiliary lighting, and introduced some durability and performance enhancements to make the sports car more capable of the dusty world of rallying.

A combination of NISMO and custom KW Safari suspension parts raised the Z's ride height by 2 inches, which enabled the sports car to fit the 17-inch NISMO Safari wheels wrapped in chunky Yokohama Geolandar M/T G003 tires. Underneath, a metal skid plate was added to protect the car's underpinnings, while custom NISMO off-road lights provide the illumination needed on those night stages.

Inside, a custom roll cage was fitted along with 4-point harnesses on the custom-trimmed Recaro Pole Position seats.

Meanwhile, the Safari Rally Z tribute also has its VR30DDTT engine beefed up by AMS to produce north of 400 horsepower. The custom tune is also complemented by the addition of a NISMO Track cat-back exhaust and a cold air intake system.

As mentioned earlier, the Safari Rally Z tribute is a one-off build for the SEMA show. But what this gives is an idea for enthusiasts that the usually asphalt-oriented Z could be a potent weapon even on the rough stuff.