A prototype Nissan from the 1985 Frankfurt Motorshow.....looks like its based on some Zed32 parts (interior and a VG30DETT) but is mid mounted!! http://response.jp/issue/2004/0521/article60538_1.html Typical Japanese 180kph speed limit.. It had HICAS and 4 wheel drive!! Interesting to see this predecessor to our beloved car! :zlove:
Re: Put the Z32 front & 2000 tail lights on that & you have a winner :zlove: Still.... its not half bad for a 20 year old car!
Thanks - Very interesting Post! A few pictures worth 1000 words! This looks like the earliest VG30DETT usage documented. The VG30DE did not appear in a production car until the ZR31 of 1987, yet here we have what is obviously a well used prototype - it's a runner, not just a show mockup! If the dents aren't enough evidence have a look at the wear on the seat bolster from people climbing in and out. When the Z32 first appeared, there was talk of it possibly being mid engined. I still wonder if there's any truth in this. The rear hatch opening on a Z32 is a strange design, almost like there was to be commonality with a "notchback" coupe model. Or maybe to fit an engine bay cover, like this car has? Probably the mid4 was developed in parallel with the Z32 and the Z32 won out as being more profitable to build, as a front engined car, yet borrowing some ideas from the Mid4. Good as the Mid4 may have been, I'm glad that they did not continue with it instead of the Z32, as it would have been so expensive that it would not have been as accessible as the Z32 has been to its new buyers and later owners. The Honda NSX is still very rare and exotic - it survives as a very low volume high-cost production item. I don't think Nissan would have worn that. They finally dropped the Z32 after it had a year or two of very low sales which forced it into virtually a limited production status (only 40 or so per year were sold in the last few years of the Z32). Probably the Mid4 would have been a dead-end. Sales would probably have been low to start with and may have declined further and faster than the Z32, given that it would have been very expensive to build. Nissan may have given up on it in the mid 1990's and either switched back to the Z32 or even given up on their Z series of sports cars entirely. The Z32 stayed popular all through the 90's and only dropped in popularity with the rise of the SUV phenomenon of 1998-2000. So, I suppose, on reflection, Nissan did the right thing - building the delightful Z32 and leaving the probably even better, but expensive mid engined car on the shelf, so to speak.
The Mid4-II was a pre Z32 prototype and probably did have a shot at production at some point... thje mid engine design did not necessarily doom it to limited production status or huge costs... MR2's have been doing it for years. I think the space drawbacks of a mid engine car (plus the weight of everything including 4WD) would have been the biggest issue.... Nissan probably just wanted to test the waters with the public (that's what prototypes are for). There was also the original Mid 4 which was the predecessor to the Z31 300ZX... maybe someone in Nissan really wanted the idea to go ahead and managed to convince the brass to have a second shot at it. Ben
wow, twin turbo aswell! What interesting piks! good job. I think that its awsome for an 85 model, dam if that thing was race prep'd it would be scary and IMO it doesnt really come across as a heavy car to me... looks fairly light actually i would guess 1300kg, would be interesting to get some specs on it????? I would even say that Honda may have got some ideas of this car for there nsx model hmmm what u ppl think??
I was always under the impression that MR2s were just rolled off the carolla production line in reverse. Don't quote me on it though. J.
Re: Being a prototype it was probably built and aimed at the european market. Again, probably aimed at the european markets? I wouldnt be surprised if it really is "kph ... just with a "mph" label? :LOL:"
Some more info >>> The car pictured is actually from the 1987 shows; there was an original MID4 that dates back to 1985. The link below says there were 3 MID4-II's and that a titanium grey was the test mule. This is backed up by the bolster wear and the ododmeter reading on the car in the original post. To answer the weight question, it is quoted at 1400kg, which is pretty impressive considering the added weight of 4WD. A 4.9 0-100kmh comprehensively beats a standard Z32TT! http://zhome.com/History/MID-4.htm Also of interest is this look under the skin of the MID4-II:
Why is that? I noticed they do something similar to Euro cars with the speedo. My previous car was a Calibra and it had the 60km mark highlighted in red (I think it was 60). I've always been curious why they do this. Anyone know?
Re the 55mph thing Following the 70's fuel/oil crisis which caused a bit of panic amongst legislators and car designers, the US introduced a blanket 55mph speed limit - exceeding this in any state would be inviting the boys to descend on you with red'n'blue lights flashing, guns drawn, demanding to "git yo hands up thar, boy". I can't be certain, but I would be willing to bet that the 55mph mark was a legislative requirement. I believe that a lot of the US states have relaxed the maximum speed limit to a degree, but some of the more conservative ones may still have the 55mph limit. This is just under 89kmh - that's a slow old drive along route 66 ...
Mid4 I read about this in a magazine along time ago, I was under the opinion that Nissan never went production with it was because it was gonna be too heavy and high with AWD and moved the engine to the front in the Z32 as it made better weight distribution with a front engine if it had no AWD
dunno lloyd why is it not possible for nissan america to make a car and .. and test it at their plant? You remember the fiat spyder 124s... they all were made in florida. Not one was made in europe ,all where left hand drives in MPH.Not bad for an Italian company. I remember queit a few toyota's made in Japan and shipped to the states and not released anywhere else. the MIDI been around for a while I remember being at the melbourne car show in the late 80's. I never seen the mark 11 though it a lot nicer than the first one.
