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It’s been over a decade since Nissan introduced the retro-flavored IDx, hinting at a third sports car to join the 370Z and GT-R. The former has since been replaced by the Z while the latter is dead but will return one day likely as an EV. As for the IDx project, it was killed because it would’ve been too costly to produce and there apparently wasn’t enough demand. Nissan was also concerned it would’ve cannibalized sales of the 370Z.
However, Nissan has been dropping hints lately about launching a third performance model. It has gone on record several times about resurrecting the beloved Silvia nameplate. In a new interview with Australia’s Drive magazine, a high-ranked official confirmed the sports car is officially in the works. Nissan Vice-President Global Product Strategy Ivan Espinosa shared the good news: “We’ve been doing some very early upstream exercises of what the architecture could look like.”
An “upstream exercise” is a business process that basically refers to initial planning and the early stages of development. Espinosa aims for Nissan to have the sports car ready before the end of the decade with an electrified powertrain. That may be bad news for purists but a gas-only setup wouldn’t work globally, especially in Europe where there are stringent emissions regulations that keep getting stricter.
Nissan wants the reborn Silvia to comply with regulations in as many countries as possible so that it can ramp up production to achieve economies of scale. Even though sports cars are a niche market and developing one from scratch is a costly endeavor, Nissan won’t join forces with another automaker to make it happen. Rather than going down the Z4/Supra, GR86/BRZ, or Miata/124 Spider route, the new Silvia will be an all-Nissan effort.
Espinosa is confident the company can ride solo in the engineering process but admits the project necessitates “a serious level of investment,” which is a “difficult” commitment to make. A new Silvia would be developed from the ground up, and his wish is for Nissan to skip a collaboration with another brand.
“I’m trying, as I said and I keep saying it in my brain, three sports cars in my lineup, a GT-R, a Z, and something else. And this something else in my brain is called the Silvia. Now, will we do it? I’m trying. I’m not sure we’re going do it, just to be 100% clear, but It’s something that I would like to do if we, if we can. I’m trying to make it work, I’m trying to make it happen. It’s not an easy case. it’s not easy because the sports cars market is shrinking.”
The fact of the matter is sports cars don’t sell all that well. Nissan took its sweet time replacing the 370Z with a Z, and that’s not even an all-new vehicle. It’s understandable why the company is reluctant to pour a lot of money in what would ultimately be a niche product when it already has one (Z) and is working on another (GT-R). The mighty Godzilla going on a multi-year hiatus goes to show why Nissan is not rushing to replace the R35 anytime soon.
Launching a third sports car adds another level of complexity during challenging times for Nissan given the need to electrify its lineup. We can only hope that it makes the cut considering the Silvia’s cult following and the scarcity of affordable sports cars. Honda’s reborn Prelude gives us hope this segment of the market can survive in an SUV-hungry world.
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