- Nissan spread out its reveals leading up to the Tokyo auto show, saving its edgy electric sports car for last.
- All five concept cars shown made use of proposed electric power, with focuses on commuting, off-roading, and racing.
- The Nissan Hyper Force shares several visual cues with GT-R models of the past, but it’s clearly focused on the future.
There was a huge crowd around the Nissan booth for the unveiling of its final of five concept cars at the 2023 Tokyo auto show. The final vehicle hidden under the drape was clearly something low and sporty with a giant wing, so expectations were high for high performance, and Nissan didn’t disappoint.
While some concept cars play it safe, the Nissan Hyper Force is as high-energy and aggressive as its name suggests. Neither gloss nor matte, its bare metal finish gleams like an expensive carving knife, and some of its edges seem sharp enough to kill. The Nissan’s lower fascia juts out like a steam train cow catcher, or a severely pouty lower lip. Its headlights are sunken deep within a set-back grille, and sit far to the side like the eyes of a hammerhead shark. The body lines towards the rear manage to be both geometric and organic, with a hard triangle of flared fender capped by a flowing rise over the tire.
The Hyper Force may be somewhat brickish in overall profile but Nissan says the design was done with input from the NISMO racing team, and that it will cut through the wind like the knife it resembles. The stepped front end and the comb-like rear diffuser provide downforce and control cooling airflow. The big wing offers active aero, while a plasma actuator—which uses an electrode to control air flow—fine tunes airflow around the forged carbon wheels for better grip during cornering. That’s clearly not the only electricity being put to use. The Hyper Force gets a (theoretical) solid-state battery making 1341 horsepower, which will hit the ground via a beefed-up version of Nissan’s e-4ORCE all-wheel drive.
Behind the Hyper Force’s vertically opening doors is a cockpit made of more forged carbon, with floating laid-back racing buckets with four-point belts, and a hint of backseat. The squared-off edges of the exterior repeat in the concept’s narrow steering wheel and surrounding screens. Those screens move towards the driver in R mode, displaying systems data like tire pressure and temperatures. In GT mode, the interior lighting goes blue rather than red, and the interface focuses more on infotainment and cabin comfort. When not being driven, the Hyper Force can be used as a VR gaming room, with modes that allow racing without even leaving the garage, which is the high-tech version of sitting in your parked car making vroom sounds, only now you can do it with friends around the world.
If you’re getting GT-R vibes from the concept’s quad round taillights and particular badge formatting, you’re not alone. While representatives at Nissan wouldn’t quite admit that the next GT-R will be all-motor, they did say that the responses to the Hyper Force concept would be closely monitored as the company makes its plans for the performance cars to come.
Senior Editor, Features
Like a sleeper agent activated late in the game, Elana Scherr didn’t know her calling at a young age. Like many girls, she planned to be a vet-astronaut-artist, and came closest to that last one by attending UCLA art school. She painted images of cars, but did not own one. Elana reluctantly got a driver’s license at age 21 and discovered that she not only loved cars and wanted to drive them, but that other people loved cars and wanted to read about them, which meant somebody had to write about them. Since receiving activation codes, Elana has written for numerous car magazines and websites, covering classics, car culture, technology, motorsports, and new-car reviews.
Source: Motor - aranddriver.com
